The Magic of the Roundtable
Recently, we crossed the 6-month mark for the initial members of the ADVOS Accelerator (we call them the Founders Club), who have now experienced 2 Quarterly Strategic Planning sessions, 2 Quarterly Themed Workshops, and 6 monthly small group (“pod”) Roundtable sessions. Our Accelerator members have achieved incredible gains as a result of their work in all of those sessions, and we can’t wait to see what the next 6 months (and beyond) brings for them!
Reflecting on the Accelerator experience, I am reminded how powerful the Roundtable concept is, in particular. For whatever reason, though, it also seems to be a well-kept secret.
Because we know that being in a Roundtable can be incredibly powerful, especially for lawyers, we thought it was time to give you a peek into the Roundtable concept, done the ADVOS Way.
What is this “Roundtable Pod”? When you join the ADVOS Accelerator, you are matched up with a small cohort other lawyers as your Roundtable Pod (usually 4-6 members). You’ll likely have different practice areas, approaches to growth, firm sizes and stages, geographic areas, and goals. Pretty quickly, you’ll get to know each other and find that you consider each other “trenchmates”.
Your Pod will have each others’ backs, generously offering up suggestions from their own experiences and making connections for each other. You’ll cheer each other on, commiserate with each other through the hard moments, and hold each other accountable in a really encouraging, healthy way.
Where & when, and what do YOU need to do? Your Pod meets monthly by Zoom, for 90 minute sessions. In each Roundtable session, you’ll have a facilitator to guide the conversation so that you can just show up and be fully present in participant mode. This is one meeting that you don’t have to lead. Here, you get to be the client – and I can promise you that you’ll come away feeling like you received tremendous value from each Roundtable meeting. We’ll share celebrations and goals, as well as challenges you’re experiencing. Then we “workshop” those challenges.
Workshop it the ADVOS Way. The workshop approach in our Roundtables is different from what you might have experienced in other groups – and that’s a big part of what sets our Roundtables apart. Here, there is no one telling you what to do or prescribing a particular method. Instead, your cohort and facilitator will ask powerful questions to better understand your issue (and yes, they’re lawyers – so sometimes they’ll have a propensity to ask leading questions, which can be really eye opening in this context!), share their experiences if they’ve faced similar challenges, and offer up suggestions you might consider. These conversations are so rich, and the mix of experiences from different contexts can be so enlightening.
Commitment to Action. After we’ve workshopped the issues from the group, we close the meeting with each member deciding on one commitment to action for the coming month and sharing it with the group. In the following month’s meeting, we’ll check in on that commitment – and knowing that someone is going to ask you about it in the group is a powerful motivator for accountability!
The Goal: ADVance toward YOUR PROmance. We’re big believers in the #PROmance concept – building a practice you love, that loves you back. We also know that everyone’s picture of the #PROmance is different. Our Roundtables are designed to help you move toward your own vision, faster than you could on your own, with the support of your Pod and the ADVOS team so you never feel like you’re in it alone – even if you’re a true solo.
It’s not about a coach telling you the answer, or a rigid method you’re prescribed to follow. It’s not a forum for venting or wallowing without taking action (though you’re welcome to be completely honest about the hard parts of running a firm – and then we’ll talk about how to navigate those challenges). It’s not a thinly-veiled marketing tool for other offerings. (And ugh – we have been in “roundtable” groups that were all of these things – let’s just say those are definitely NOT what you’ll find here!)
What it is, though, is magic. Our members – even the skeptics – come away with answers and insights they didn’t realize they needed, connections that will open doors to fantastic opportunities, and a tribe to lean on both inside and outside the monthly meetings.
Want to get closer to your vision of #PROmance, faster than you thought possible? Join us in the Accelerator and let the Roundtable Pod work its magic for you. (We will re-open enrollment soon – so click here to join the waitlist to be sure you are the first to know, and you’ll also receive our updates and valuable resources along the way!)