It's been a bloody year for law firms, and all signals indicate that it's likely to get worse before it gets better. Even before last week's mass layoffs, the lateral market was slow. Those who have been considering a move may decide to stay put for now, and those who were laid off are facing some tough decisions.

Even in a difficult market, though, competition will always exist for top legal talent. Some lawyers will remain hot commodities regardless of hiring freezes and layoffs.

Possessing abilities far beyond mere legal skill, these highly marketable lawyers know a single secret that other lawyers overlook. Not all of the lawyers who use this secret could identify or explain it, but every successful lawyer practices it. Overlook or ignore it, and the consequences can be dire.

What's the secret? It's deceptively simple. Here it is: whoever you are, whatever your specialty, wherever you practice, whether you hung out a shingle or are working in a firm of thousands, you are a sole practitioner and you must operate accordingly.

What does it mean, in this context, to be a sole practitioner? Most importantly, it's a mindset. (And, incidentally, not all sole practitioners necessarily hold this mindset - only the successful ones.) Having the sole practitioner mindset means that you accept full responsibility for your practice. You're responsible for how you spend your time, how many clients you have, the quality of your clients, whether you enjoy your practice, how much time you spend in the office, and so on. The sole practitioner mindset leaves no room for a victim mentality: the lawyer is either satisfied and working to improve or dissatisfied and working on change.

Junior lawyers may struggle with this concept because it seems facially ridiculous. A second-year associate, responsible for the quality of her clients? You bet. Suppose that Kimberly works in the corporate law group of a large firm and hasn't received a significant assignment since December, when her team's top client filed for bankruptcy. How could she possibly be responsible for being slow? If Kimberly views herself as just a cog in a large wheel, she'll feel powerless and unable to do anything but wait for the lead partner to secure more work for her to do.

But if she recognizes that she's responsible for her practice, she has numerous opportunities: perhaps she could offer to do work for another team or group, or she might write an article or draft a CLE presentation, or she could study up on a new area of practice that shows promise for an upturn in work. Although Kimberly probably can't rush out and recruit new clients today, if she accepts responsibility for her practice, she can ensure that she completes some activity every day that will fill her time usefully. She might be included in a lay-off if the slow times continue, but taking responsibility for her practice reduces the chances of being laid off and increases the chance that she will compete successfully for a lateral move. These are the benefits of adopting sole practitioner mindset.

Of course, mindset is of little value without accompanying action. The sole practitioner mindset prompts a variety of beneficial activities, including relationship building (with a special eye to business development since study after study shows that clients hire lawyers, not law firms) as well as intentional professional and career development. Lawyers with the sole practitioner mindset are also more likely to consider themselves to be leaders and to develop those skills.

What changes would you see if you were willing to accept full responsibility for the following?

• Your workload
• Your collegial relationships
• Your business development success
• Your professional development
• Your practice and career
• Your client relationships
• Your pro bono work
• Your professional reputation

One hint: taking full responsibility for all of these aspects of practice returns to value creation. Although no one is required to make a change simply because he accepts responsibility (look, for instance, at smokers who know that they're putting their health at risk but continue to smoke anyway), very often accepting responsibility does lead to change, which in turn leads to an effort to build value. Create value for your clients, and you'll build a successful practice. Create value for yourself, and you'll build a satisfying practice. Create value for your clients, yourself, and your community, and you'll build a sustainable practice.

Your assignment, if you choose to accept it: ask whether you're willing to accept responsibility for the all areas of your practice, career, and life. If so, what opportunities do you see? What changes would you like to make, and what changes would you be willing to make? What investments of time, energy, and money would you start, and which might you discontinue?