Helping people navigate their way

In the profession of law, it’s to be expected – people tend to call when they are facing a crisis.

Perhaps they have been fired. Or they have been charged with a crime. Or they are entangled in a nasty, and often costly, dispute.

They find themselves in a situation that they can’t seem to solve in any other way.

I’ve come to accept that I am most often someone’s call of last resort.

Not that I mind – I love helping people, confronting challenges, solving problems.

But over the course of my career, I’ve come to realize that what I value the most is when these crisis situations create a foundation of trust that transforms the work that we do.

Often these potentially life- or career-altering crisis calls that bring people to me grow into trusted relationships stretching over years. Relationships where I am no longer that call of last resort but a trusted adviser.

My colleagues at Lawson Creamer feel a similar reward from working with clients in a way that helps clients move themselves or their organization forward. There is a desire and a genuine curiosity to know the business of our clients.

This also allows us to help our clients avoid trouble into the future. In discussing the issues and opportunities ahead, we can often flag risks and options to help as they navigate the way ahead.

This can help them avoid or minimize issues before they have a chance to fester into bigger problems or disputes – by that point, they often are not only more time-consuming to resolve but more expensive too.

Mel Norton is a partner with Lawson Creamer in Saint John. He can be reached via email at mnorton@lawsoncreamer.com.