You’ve spent years building your career. Strong financials, great client relationships, partners telling you you’re on track. You’re in touching distance of partnership – maybe 3 months away, maybe 15 months away. This should be the exciting final stretch.
Here’s the uncomfortable truth: this is exactly when some of the best candidates accidentally derail themselves. In cricket, they call it the “nervous 90s” – when a batsman is so close to making a century that they want it too much and do stupid stuff they wouldn’t otherwise do. The same thing happens on the path to partnership.
In this episode, you’ll discover the five critical mistakes that can cost you the partnership you’ve worked so hard for – and more importantly, how to avoid them. These aren’t theoretical pitfalls. These come directly from partners who’ve watched strong candidates stumble in the final stretch and want you to succeed where others have failed.
In this episode you will learn:
- Why your utilisation numbers can sink your partnership bid even when everyone’s backing you – and how to fix the problem before it’s too late
- The difference between healthy ambition and “sharp elbows” that make partners think twice about making you their business partner
- How to balance being a firm citizen without becoming so overcommitted that your billable work suffers (and the exact conversation to have when you need to drop commitments)
- Why “meets expectations” feedback in your final stretch is actually a warning sign you need to address immediately
If you find this episode useful, don’t forget to like it and then subscribe so you don’t miss another episode.
What help is out there for you to progress your career in the professions?
If you’re thinking, ‘I get the theory, but I need more help navigating the politics and building my business case for partnership’, our Progress To Partner Academy can help you.
That’s precisely why we have a suite of courses in the Progress to Partner Academy to help you with this. For example, our course on building your business case for partnership gives you the frameworks to position yourself strategically. And our virtual masterclasses on managing the politics of partnership give you practical tools for this crucial period.
You can also listen to this episode on Substack and on Apple Podcasts
Hello, and welcome!
You’ve spent years building your career. You’ve got strong financials, great client relationships, and your partners have been telling you you’re on track for partnership. You’re in touching distance of the goal – maybe 3 months away, maybe 15 months away. This should be the exciting final stretch.
But here’s the uncomfortable truth: this is also when some of the best candidates accidentally derail themselves. They get so close they can taste it, and that’s exactly when they make mistakes that cost them the partnership they’ve worked so hard for.
In cricket, there’s a term for this: the nervous 90s. It’s when a batsman is in the 90s, within touching distance of making a century, and they get out because they want it too much and do stupid stuff they wouldn’t otherwise do.
Today, we’re talking about the mistakes people make in that final stretch before partnership, and more importantly, how you can avoid them.
This is the How to Make Partner podcast with me, Heather Townsend. The author of Poised for Partnership, and co-author of How to Make Partner and Still Have a Life.
In this podcast, I will be highlighting some of the great stuff in our Progress To Partner Academy. New episodes are released weekly, so press subscribe so you never miss a new episode.
Right, let’s explore these partnership-killing mistakes.
I recently hosted a panel with three partners from a global firm, and I asked them directly: what are the mistakes you see people making in that final bit? Their answers were revealing.
Mistake Number 1: Your utilisation isn’t where it needs to be.
One of the partners on the panel, was blunt about this. She said if your utilisation isn’t there, it makes it really hard for people to promote you. Even if you’ve got partners promoting you, your team supporting you, your office managing partner backing you, and the senior leadership on your side – if your utilisation isn’t where it needs to be, it’s going to make it difficult.
If your team is relatively busy and you’re not achieving your chargeable time targets, that will make it a lot, lot harder to get you across the line.
Now, here’s what this means for you: you need to know your numbers. Don’t wait until your partnership interview to discover your utilisation is below target. Know it now. And if it’s not where it needs to be, you need a plan to fix it – whether that’s getting better at delegating, saying no to the wrong work, or having strategic conversations about your workload.
Mistake Number 2: Naked ambition and sharp elbows.
One panelist who made partner in two different firms, explained the “nervous 90s” concept. People want it so much that they end up being very sharp-elbowed and coming across as quite abrasive. Most people won’t respond well to that.
He was clear: be ambitious, yes. Promote yourself, yes. But don’t go over the top. Naked ambition isn’t an appealing quality when you’re asking people to make you their business partner.
Another partner added: it’s not that being massively driven is bad – that’s brilliant and will take you a long way. But if you’re doing that at the cost of being part of the office, part of the team, part of the drive for the office as a whole, then that’s when partners start seeing red flags.
If somebody doesn’t put their hand up for initiatives within the office – if people aren’t getting involved in pro bono, social mobility, or workplace culture – partners notice. They start thinking, “You’re just becoming a little bit selfish.”
Mistake Number 3: Complacency.
If you’re on the partnership track, it doesn’t come by accident. You’ve got a journey and a path you’re following. But just because you’ve had good feedback at interim reviews doesn’t mean you should sit back.
The partners’ advice: Continue to do what you’ve been doing throughout the journey. Just because you’ve been told you’re doing okay, don’t rest on your laurels. Keep doing what you’re doing, but focus on where you can improve rather than the things you’re doing well.
The hard work starts when you’re told you’re on track – it doesn’t finish there.
Mistake Number 4: Becoming too much of a corporate citizen.
Now this is the tricky one, because I’ve just said you shouldn’t be selfish, but you also can’t take on too many non-chargeable responsibilities. It’s a balance.
The panel discussed this tension directly. You need to be strategically picking what you’re doing. If you’ve got six things that you’re involved in and you need to remove four, how do you have that conversation without triggering the “not a firm citizen” response?
The advice was refreshingly straightforward: Have an honest conversation with someone you trust within your office or practice group. Say, “Look, this is what I’m aiming to do. I want your support, but I’m struggling with X, Y, and Z. I need to have something go.”
The key is having that conversation before you’re suffering in silence. Don’t wait until you’re so overwhelmed that you hand in your notice. Give your partners the opportunity to support you.
Another partner added that you should be saying yes to everything, because everything you do is raising your profile and exposing you to new people and experiences. But if it’s just too much and it’s going to result in your utilisation suffering or your well-being declining, then absolutely come and have an honest conversation.
Mistake Number 5: Not attending to your reputation.
What do people say about you when you’re not in the room? If your reputation has been damaged or compromised, you need to know about it so you can fix it.
In Chapter 10 of Poised for Partnership, I talk about how to examine the current state of your reputation. Look at what’s expected of high performers at your level and how well you match up. Be honest with yourself. If you’re continually getting “meets expectations” rather than “exceeds expectations,” you have work to do.
Consider recurring messages from your appraisals and feedback. Are there themes that need addressing? Ask your sponsoring partner or mentor what others say about you when you’re not in the room.
Once you’ve identified a problem, decide if it’s worth fixing. If you’re getting regular feedback from multiple partners that you’re unlikely to make partner in this firm, it might be time to increase your employability and move firms. But if the problem is limited to one or two people, it’s probably worth investing in mending your reputation.
The final stretch to partnership is not the time to relax or to become overly aggressive in your ambition. It’s about maintaining the behaviors that got you here, being strategic about your commitments, keeping your utilisation strong, and managing your reputation carefully.
Now, if you’re thinking, “This is helpful, but I’d like more structured support to navigate this final stage,” that’s exactly what we’ve designed the Progress To Partner Academy for. We have courses specifically on building your business case for partnership and a number of virtual masterclasses on managing the politics of partnership that give you practical frameworks for this crucial period.
I’ve popped a link to our Progress To Partner Academy directly in the show notes for this episode. Also in the show notes, you’ll find links to my books – Poised for Partnership and How to Make Partner and Still Have a Life – so you can easily find them on Amazon. And as a thank you for listening, there’s also a link for a 10% discount on annual membership for our Progress To Partner Academy using the code PODCAST10.
That’s all for this episode of the How to Make Partner podcast.
What’s your action for this week?
Do a quick reputation audit. Ask three trusted colleagues or partners what they think your strengths are and where you could improve. Listen carefully to what they say – and more importantly, to what they don’t say.
If you have enjoyed this episode please leave us a review on Spotify or Apple Podcasts or give us a comment on Substack. This helps us get the word out to others who may need this advice too. Remember to hit subscribe so you don’t miss next week’s episode.
Thanks for listening!
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Links
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