As we discussed in the chapter Building Your Influence, managing upwards successfully first requires laying a solid foundation. You need to:

• see the senior lawyers at your firm as allies rather than an adversaries;
• build credibility, rapport, and trust; and
• understand the needs and priorities of the senior lawyers you work with as well as your own.

With all of this in place, managing upwards is a matter of effective communication. To help you communicate more effectively, in this chapter, we...