Attorneys and Social Media

Why do many attorneys readily dismiss social media?

Recently, I wrote that the loss of control and fear of the interconnected may be possible reasons. The world is no longer hierarchical. Plus, it’s “always on. ”

A book I am reading suggests another, more basic reason (that is not necessarily endemic to attorneys.) That is, it is easier to rely upon old lines of thought that serve one well than seek out new ones. In the “The Master Switch” by Tim Wu, the author quotes theorist, Joseph Schumpter:

All knowledge and habit once acquired becomes as firmly rooted in ourselves as a railway embankment in the earth. . . The very nature of fixed habits of thinking, their energy saving function, is founded upon the fact that they have become subconscious, that they yield their results automatically and are proof against criticism and even against contradictions by individual facts.

Put simply – you can’t teach an old dog new tricks. But, what if those “new tricks” – those new lines of thought – are, at best, beneficial and, at worst, dangerous to your livelihood. One must shed off the old and embrace the new. At the very least, one must understand the new before making the decision to reject it.

Tonight I am moderating a San Diego North County Bar Association program on attorneys and the rise of social media: “Tweets from Web 2.0 – The Rise of Social Media and Why Attorneys Cannot Ignore It.” I am interested to hear the questions and comments from the attendees.

I invite your comments on social media and attorneys.