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In the above video, one of my favorite authors, Malcolm Gladwell, speaks about the evolution of spaghetti sauce.  He tells the story of how one man named Howard Maskowitz reinvented the spaghetti sauce industry.

Up until the mid 1980’s there were only a couple of varieties of spaghetti sauce on the market.  Prego was losing out to Ragu and came to Howard asking to help revitalize the brand.  His solution was that there is no perfect spaghetti sauce, only perfect spaghetti sauces. Howard’s genuis was that he realized the need not for the one perfect spaghetti sauce that everyone would universally enjoy, but rather a variety of sauces that appeal to different people.  In other words, some of us prefer chunky, some of us like smooth.  I like mushrooms, you want garlic.  The point is that “the perfect” sauce isn’t the same for each one us.  There is no one size fits all.

How does this fit into the legal world?

The way business is conducted and the workforce in general is experiencing a shift.  The internet has changed many things.  It has afforded the ability to connect and communicate from virtually anywhere.  It has also allowed for people with very specific specializations, niches, interests, and problems to be found and to find others that can fill these needs.  Free-lancers and niche specialists are thriving like never before.

The end result is the need to be remarkable at specific area of law, not just okay in several areas.  In other words, lawyers need to find out how to become one of the “perfect sauces” rather than fighting with everyone to become the “perfect sauce.”

Questions to think about: What is your legal niche?

What legal field do others recognize you as an authority on?  Do you blog to boost your reputation within your legal niche?  Are you the first name that another lawyer would think of when they need to refer a very specific type of case out?  Do you position yourself as an expert and a thought leader for your niche or do you just “fight harder than anyone else”?

I believe to stay ahead today, especially with the amount of new lawyers entering the market each year, it will be imperative to carve out your niche.  Once you become the go-to guy, it will be much harder to displace you.

Update: If you enjoyed this post, please read a terrific expansion of these ideas written by Carolyn Elefant at Myshingle.com.

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