Client service tips from Paul Alisauskas – Pace Law Firm: When you are relating to, helping or problem-solving for a client, there’s no more important skill than listening. Apart from helping to conclude a task, the added benefit of effective listening is that it shows the client that they are important – they have something worthwhile to say. This is illustrated in the following anecdote:

William Gladstone and Benjamin Disraeli were both eminent British statesmen in the late 19th century. They were also fierce enemies. The story goes that a young lady was taken to dinner one evening by Gladstone, and then the following evening by Disraeli.

The woman later said, “When I left the dining room after sitting next to Mr. Gladstone, I thought he was the cleverest man in England. But after sitting next to Mr. Disraeli, I thought I was the cleverest woman in England.”

Disraeli obviously had a knack for making the other person the center of his universe, if only for the evening. If you practice attentiveness to others, you’ll find it does wonders. They will enjoy it, and so will you. You will accomplish much more. And, you will find it the simplest tool imaginable for building rapport with your client.