Does Your Law Firm Feel A Bit Weird Right now - and What Might That Be Telling You?

Building business development cultures that thrive.

Hello S-Curvers,

If your law firm feels a bit... weird lately, you might not be imagining things. You could be tempted to put it down to personality clashes or overwork. But what if something deeper is at play? That ‘weird’ feeling might not be individual. It might be systemic.

The pressure is bigger than the firm.

Since fracturing my foot while walking the dog in January - no, not a more exciting Australia Day party injury! I’ve had a bit more time to think. And like many of you, I’ve found world affairs unsettling. We’re living in an era of low certainty and high anxiety—and that seeps into our organisations, whether we like it or not.

As we head toward Easter, I’ve been reflecting on a concept from system psychodynamics called parallel process. It helps explain why some of the irrational or unexpected behaviour in our organisations might be a mirror of broader pressures.

Parallel process is the idea that patterns repeat across different levels of a system—individual, team, organisation, even society. Think of Russian dolls. You, your team, your department, your firm, your industry, your country—each is nested within the other. The dynamics at one level tend to show up in another. And in a world gripped by uncertainty, it’s no surprise that people might be feeling a bit weird or unsettled.

This isn’t just theory. It’s visible in the research.

When I interviewed lawyers for my research, the language of survival was everywhere. One drew a work role image with themselves juggling balls while being watched by a giant malevolent eye labelled “management” (Image below). Others spoke of workaholism, burnout, and the slow grief of realising their dream career was, in fact, a business.

“It’s disappointing. Life as a lawyer is not what I expected. It’s taken me 20 years to reconcile myself to the fact the law is just about business. Plain and simple. Growth. Billables and profit.”

Another said:

“There’s no way. Something has to give—your personal life, your health, drugs, alcohol or divorce.

All just to chase the billable hour.”

When survival becomes the dominant theme in a culture, it’s worth asking what that says about the system—not just the people in it.

A framework to make sense of the chaos.

Here’s how you can apply the idea of parallel process in your firm:

Zoom out: Notice repeated patterns at different levels—does the stress your team is under mirror broader firm pressures? Could the increased stress in your firm reflect some of the uncertainty in the world?

Name the system: Avoid personalising what might be systemic. Instead of “Why is she so hard to work with?” try “What’s being played out here that’s bigger than both of us?”

Expect discomfort: The concept of parallel process was developed by organisational psychologist Dr Clayton Alderfer, who studied how dynamics in larger systems show up in sub-groups and individuals. He argued that to understand organisations, we must be willing to explore patterns of emotion and behaviour across the system—even if it’s uncomfortable.

Alderfer warns that exploring parallel processes involves facing anxiety and letting go of control. But in doing so, you can gain unique insights.

Look for patterns: Repeated behaviours often point to a larger dynamic at play (systems within systems). Pay attention to what’s repeating - for you and for others.

What to do with this insight.

Next time you’re tempted to blame someone for being “difficult”, ask yourself what system they might be reflecting. What stress or threat might they be carrying on behalf of the whole?

As Dr Irvin Yalom writes in Staring at the Sun, sometimes we need to face what’s uncomfortable—like our own mortality, or the limits of control—to live more fully. The same is true in law firm & BD leadership.

Instead of trying to understand the individual, notice the pattern. Gaining this insight can also bring you relief from what might feel stressful, or even personal at times.

THANK YOU

References

Alderfer, C. (1987). Intergroup Dynamics. Handbook of Organisational Behaviour. Prentice Hall.

Hartley, R. (2021). Parallel Process [Practitioner handout]. Facilitating Results.

Yalom, I. D. (2009). Staring at the Sun: Overcoming the Terror of Death. Jossey-Bass.