A Law Firm Partner and a Navy Seal Share Tips for Thriving in Big Law

Many lawyers and Navy SEALs have much different day-to-day lives. Even though their daily lives might look different, there are some fundamental SEAL tenets that can be applied to the legal profession and help attorneys be more effective and productive in their careers. 

This specific topic arose when Nixon Peabody’s Phil Taub complained to his Navy SEAL friend Jason Kuhn about how being a lawyer means we are grinding it out every day. Whether in a courtroom or the boardroom, every day brings a great deal of stress and pressure. Kuhn offered that if Taub were to adjust his mindset, that grind would increasingly become easier and more enjoyable. He was intrigued by this.

Here is what Kuhn explained using key phrases that he learned from his time serving as a member of one of the country’s most elite special operations teams:

“The only easy day was yesterday.” Every practicing lawyer should be able to relate to this phrase. It originated not in the legal world, but from Basic Underwater Demolition SEAL Training (known as BUD/S), the most difficult military training in the world. “The only easy day was yesterday” is one the most iconic phrases used by the Navy SEAL community and most often associated with students going through BUD/S training.

Are you interested in learning more about a law firm partner and a Navy SEAL sharing tips on thriving in Big Law? Read more in this law.com article.