我得到过的最佳建议

5.罗比•卡普兰和克里斯蒂•史密斯

德勤大学领导力包容中心（the Deloitte University Leadership Center）的主要负责人克里斯蒂•史密斯在今年初与宝维斯律师事务所（Paul Weiss）的合伙人罗贝塔•卡普兰（即罗比•卡普兰）相识。47岁的卡普兰曾成功在美国高等法院为伊迪思•温索尔辩护。后者为同性婚姻享有联邦政府法律规定的婚姻福利而奔走。卡普兰与史密斯（49岁）两位女士在不同的领域发展事业，最终却结成了密友，在事业上相互鼓舞。——Stephanie N. Mehta

史密斯：我是走着去参加我与罗比的第一次晚餐的。我打给电话给我的妻子凯利说：“我很紧张，这个女人改变了历史。我应该和她说些什么？”凯利马上说：“为什么不让她成为今晚的主角呢？”我哈哈大笑。这是一个完美的办法。

卡普兰：我记得我一见你，脑子里就在想：“一：她好酷；二、我面前又是一位带着孩子的已婚女同志，我不经常遇到这种情况。”

史密斯：我从罗比那里学的东西是：拥有你的地盘。我一直被要求承担某些责任，过去，这些责任都是单向的付出。反思过后，我决定不再接受现状，不再重复别人的道路，我要开辟一条新的道路。

卡普兰：我成为宝维斯的合伙人时，主要看我担任所谓第一律师的能力，很少看一个人拉业务的能力。今天，情况不同了。我也希望拓展业务，给事务所拉客户。几乎每次我努力拓展业务时，我都会想起克里斯蒂，因为她特别擅长做这个。对我来说，亲自做这种事要困难许多。我在法庭说那些事也许完全没有问题，但在会议上说那些事是另外一回事。所以，我尽可能地与克里斯蒂沟通。

5.Robbie Kaplan & Christie Smith

Christie Smith, managing principal of the Deloitte University Leadership Center for Inclusion, met Paul Weiss partner Roberta (Robbie) Kaplan at a professional networking event earlier this year. Kaplan, 47, successfully argued before the U.S. Supreme Court on behalf of Edith Windsor, who sought to ensure that same-sex couples be entitled to the benefits of marriage under federal law. Though Kaplan (right) and Smith, 49, work in different fields, the two women became confidantes, and each has inspired the other professionally. --Stephanie N. Mehta

Smith: I was walking to my first dinner with Robbie, and I called Kelli, my wife, and I said, "I'm nervous! This woman has changed history. What am I going to talk to her about?" And Kelli said, without missing a beat, "Why don't you just let her be the big shot tonight?" I laughed. It was the perfect response.

Kaplan: I remember meeting you and immediately thinking, "(a) She's super-cool, and (b) Here's another married lesbian with kids, which is not something I encounter all that often."

Smith: The thing I've learned from Robbie is owning your place. There are responsibilities I've been asked to take on at work that had been done one way in the past. Upon reflection, I decided not to accept the status quo and follow someone else's path, but to create a new path.

Kaplan: When I became partner at Paul Weiss, it had to do with the ability to be what's known as a first-chair lawyer. It had much less to do with one's ability to get business. It's a different world today, and I want to be able to develop business and bring clients into the firm. Almost all the time I'm trying to develop business, I'm thinking of Christie, because she's so good at it. It's much harder for me to do this for myself. I might not have a problem saying those things in a courtroom, but saying those things in a meeting is different. So I try to channel Christie as much as I possibly can.