Personal capital is a term I came up with recently for something I’ve never gotten around to putting a name to before. I might well have heard that term someplace and forgotten, because Google assures me I didn’t originate it.

Google’s number one result defines personal capital as “your ability to make a difference in any undertaking.” This is about half of what I have in mind. The other, equally important, half for the legal secretary is establishing in the lawyer’s mind that she can make that difference.

For legal secretaries, just wrangling an opportunity to “shine” can be much harder than the shining itself.

It’s happened to the best of us: We hit that invisible wall the lawyer put in place after some secretary who came before her let him down, perhaps many times. He’s decided it’s easier to simply never trust a secretary again. Sounds like a bad relationship, and it is a lot like that.

So how do you break through and win, not your lawyer’s heart, but his confidence? I’ve begun a list, which I’ll be adding to now and again as my thoughts crystallize. Here’s the first installment.

Don’t make mistakes. I know, it sounds spartan — unrealistic, even. But this is what you must strive for, because lawyers have selective memories. Your successes might fade into the background, but your failures will stand out in sharp relief. Against every one mistake, you must balance dozens of instances where your efficiency, professionalism and conscientiousness set you apart from the pack.

Some of the best strategies I’ve found for avoiding mistakes are already on this blog, under the “excellence” label. In addition, there are some very simple steps you can take, such as:

• Always re-checking your work when making revisions. When a document has been marked up by hand, it can be hard to catch every single change in one pass. If the changes are especially numerous, use Track Changes to help you verify that you caught everything. Lawyers hate having to make the same revision twice.
• Using Outlook appointments to remind yourself of everything you might otherwise forget, no matter how insignificant. This will demonstrate that you’re detail oriented, which lawyers find a very reassuring trait in a secretary.

When you do make a mistake, admit it promptly and be the one who sets things right. The one way to shine when you’ve made an error is to be honorable about it and not rest until things are rectified to the fullest extent possible.

If you forgot to mail that service copy last night, tell the lawyer as soon as you realize it. Don’t think about it; don’t give yourself time to chicken out. Just do it. It’s his ultimate responsibility, after all, and he must be made aware and given the chance to decide how the situation should be handled.

When you make a mistake, apologize, but don’t grovel, and don’t offer excuses, no matter how valid they might be. Say one heartfelt “I’m so sorry,” and then move on to “What can I do to help fix things?” Better yet, suggest possible solutions. Then, work as hard and as long as it takes. And then work a little harder. The lawyer will remember the mistake, but he’ll also remember what a professional you were in its aftermath.