Giving in doesn't mean giving up

I was talking to a co-worker the other day about how to approach a difficult case and we had a fundamental disagreement about how to approach the court: start aggressive and then back off, or start more neutrally and them ramp up as needed. And as we were arguing our points and as I was getting more and more dug into my idea, I suddenly stopped. I was quiet (unusual for me) and I decided that continuing the discussion was not nearly as productive as trying  it his way. And as it turns out, his way was right, and I learned something both about how to improve my practice of law and how to improve my ability to learn.

Because no matter how old we are, we can always learn something from someone else. We can give in to hearing them out without giving up on ourselves. We can give in to new ideas without betraying our values. We can give in to listening and not give up on our goals.

It's easy in this time of politics and physical distancing to become entrenched in what you believe; it's harder to stop just listening to yourself and give those around you a chance to be heard. So in the middle of becoming more and more entrenched in your way of thinking, stop. Take a breath. Take a look around you and inside of you. Realize that you may be fighting a fight because it's what you know rather than fighting a fight because you know it's right.

Lesson learned.
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