Yesterday morning. Meghan and Kristen’s condo. 9:30 a.m.
“Where should we put the names on our letterhead?” Meghan says from the couch with her MacBook Air on her lap. There is a cup of coffee on the table in front of Meghan.
“I like two columns, one with our names on the left, and contact information on the right” says me. I’m sitting at Meghan and Kristen’s dining room table responding to emails. There is a cup of coffee on the table in front of me.
I show Meghan a draft of temporary letterhead that I created in Word.
“What about putting our names at the bottom of the letterhead?” says Kristen seated to Meghan’s left on the couch. Kristen is drafting a letter to an opposing party.
Meghan continues working on the letterhead. I continue responding to my morning emails. Kristen continues drafting the letter.
“How much should we order? I think Ryan is right, we order printed letterhead. It looks better than printing our own. What are we going to do when Kristen passes the bar?”
“Do we need our individual names on the letterhead?” I asked.
Kristen: “No, I don’t think we do. I think we keep it simple. Our names and titles are on our signature in the body of the letter. Why put them on top as well. Let’s keep it simple”.
Meghan: “I think that’s right. You agree?”
Me: ”Yes”.
Meghan: “Boom. Ordered.”
That is the story of our letterhead.
One of the constants in our partnership has been this dynamic. We work through problems as a group. With each member bringing different skills and thoughts to the table and the result is the initial idea gets worked through several phases. What emerges is a better idea.
We’ve gone through this process on countless decisions – from our cases to our stapler. The dialogue is constant. The respect is constant. The absence of ego is uncommon. Some of our conversations are lengthy. Some of our conversations are short.
We believe in our team. This is why we are tearing down walls in our office instead of putting them between us.
I think you’ll love our letterhead.
