You may have seen the movie about a doctor who, having experienced life as a patient, completely changed his approach to patients when he resumed practice. He changed from being focussed on his needs and the needs of medicine, to the needs of the patient. Until he felt what his patients were feeling, he was oblivious to what really mattered to his patients and how his way of doing things was adversely affecting their lives. Medical practice was so absorbing that he was blind to the real needs and goals of his patients. No matter how smart we lawyers think we are, it is easy for us to get caught in the same trap as that doctor.
Many people ask for suggestions about becoming better in-house lawyers.
My advice is often to stop being an in-house lawyer for a while and become a client of the legal department. Anyone who takes this step soon appreciates that the goals of the in-house lawyer and the goals of the client are very different. Unfortunately, this advice may be impractical. Few in-house lawyers ever get to spend months or years in a client role and then return to the legal department. Many never move beyond the legal department and of those that do, most never return.