Trial Day 14 – Stop Looking For Objections
With all this talk about objections, it’s important to remember that you don’t have to spend your life looking for them. Here’s the wonderful thing: when the time comes to object, you feel it in your heart and in your gut. Trust yourself.
Twenty years in the courtroom taught me that I had to stop looking for objections. Once I became comfortable objecting, I looked for objections everywhere. And sometimes, I was so busy looking for objections that I missed things. I missed what the witness had said, or had left unsaid. I missed the tone of the witness’ voice, or her body language. I was so busy looking for objections that I was missing the things that could have led me to an important question, or an important piece of evidence. I was so busy looking for objections that I risked missing the win.
Don’t spend your life looking for objections. Looking for objections is a lot like looking for reasons to be offended–if you look for them, you’ll find them. Instead, look for fun, for laughter, for connections. You find what you look for, and these are the things you want to find. Objections should be the exception and not the rule.
TODAY’S CHALLENGE–TRY TO STOP LOOKING FOR OBJECTIONS. You don’t have to worry that you’ll miss them. When something is objectionable, you know it. And in those instances, object with confidence. But don’t spend your life looking for those moments. The things you focus on, grow. Science shows this to be true. The Baader Meinhoff phenomenon explains why once you’ve decided on a new car to buy, suddenly that make and model of car shows up everywhere. The things you just notice suddenly show up everywhere. No one wants objections to be showing up everywhere they look.
Where in your life are you looking for objections? And is it distracting you from something better, more productive, or more fun? Share with us how you will work to stop looking for objections, even if just for a day. Then share this with someone who could use the reminder to stop looking for objections in her own life. See you tomorrow!
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