Law Practice Tips Archive: 151 – 200

When at a networking event, have a plan on how to approach people you don't know

Your networking plan can include the following:

• Make attending the event a game such that you plan to meet at least one person you have not met before.
  
  
• Approach the greeter or host of the event and ask them to introduce you to a particular person — they will want to help you feel comfortable, for after all it's their event and they want it to be a success.
  
  
• Approach a group of three, and in an appropriate lull in the conversation say something like: "Hi, I'm Irene Leonard, this is my first time to this event. I hope you don't mind my joining your group." Of course, they won't mind if you are polite and don't attempt to then dominate the conversation.
  
  The reason for approaching a group of three is that they are less likely to be having a private conversation.
  
  
• Look for someone else that appears to be alone and approach them with a question like: "Hi, Irene Leonard, this is my first time attending this event what about you?"

What actions are you willing to take to approach new people?

When at a networking event, use open ended questions about the event to help you break the ice

Many people are uncomfortable talking to "strangers" at social functions. To help you more comfortably mingle, have a few open-ended questions in mind to help you break the ice. For example:

   "What brings you to this Real Property Law Section meeting?"
   "How long have you been a member?"
   "What have you found to be most valuable about these events?"

What questions can you come up with?

Maintain a Positive Attitude Toward Clients Questioning Your Bill

Be open minded and amenable to having your clients question your bill. Choose an attitude of "I'm glad you want an explanation of my bill" rather than "You must be upset with my services if you want to question my bill."

Use your clients' questions to help you learn more about them so you can ensure your services are delivered in an exceptional manner. Use your answers to their questions to help them understand the value of what you have done for them. Make it a win-win conversation.

How will you handle client billing questions?

Include Time in Your Schedule for the Unexpected

In a busy law practice it's a given that there will be daily unexpected conversations, emails, and projects. Include time in your daily schedule for those unexpected events.

Making room for unexpected situations will help you feel in control when the inevitable unexpected shows up.

How do you want to prepare for the unexpected?

Talk With Your Client Before Sending a Large Bill

If you've done a lot of work for a client this month and you think the client will be surprised and upset by the size of the bill, call and warn your client that the bill is coming.

Say something like: "I know the bill is going to seem like a lot of money so I wanted to give you a warning. I also want to remind you of all the necessary work that we did for you this month." Then proceed to give the details of the work to the client. Then go on to say: "I'm sorry that you've been put in this difficult position of having to respond to all the demands from the other side. I wish there were more that I could do to make this process easier for you."

If you handle surprisingly large client bills in this manner, you're much more likely to receive payment in full from a satisfied client than if you do nothing but send a bill without a warning and explanation.

How do you want to handle your large bills?

Develop Client Relationships Rather Than Merely Maintaining Them

Rather than simply maintaining the status quo with your clients, actively seek out ways to help them. Learn what other needs they might have for which you can provide service. By developing your relationship with your clients you'll invariably sell them more of your services and make yourself more valuable.

What clients come to mind?

Plan to Follow Up

After a networking event, schedule time to follow up with the people you met. Come up with an action plan for staying in touch.

What is your follow up action plan like?

Set up Your System for Staying Clutter Free this Year

The single most important reason people have clutter in their offices is not having a system to deal with it.

Some key aspects your system should include are:

1. Having enough space to put things and information—this may mean cleaning out file cabinets to make room for this year's work.
2. Knowing where everything that will come into your office will go without having to make a new decision—it's the need to make a decision that causes most of the clutter.
3. Having a daily routine—e.g., finishing the day by clearing your desk. If you have handled point 2 this should be easy.
4. Spending time to stay organized.
5. Relocating or throwing away things as you no longer need them.

Merely having a system isn't enough. You must follow your system consistently in order to stay clutter free.

What, if anything, do you need to do to remove the clutter from your office?

Reflect Positively on What You Accomplished Last Year

Take a few moments and think about the good things that happened last year. Because we are always so busy thinking about what has to happen next, we sometimes miss the very important purpose of relishing or savoring what we have done. As an end-of-year assignment, I ask my clients to come up with 100 accomplishments for the past year. Those that carry out the exercise report it made them feel very good. It made them realize what a good year they had.

What are your 100 accomplishments for 2007?

Handle the Dog File

Practice Saying No This Week in Order to Reduce Stress

If you're experiencing many demands on your time, especially because of the holidays, decide what's important and commit to that and say no to the rest.

What do you need to say no to?

Handle the Dog File

If you have a dog file—one of those files sitting on your desk that you've just been avoiding—pick it up, figure out what you need to do, and just do it. You know the longer you take to get to it the harder it's going to be. You'll probably find that it was a lot easier to handle than you thought.

What do you want to do about your dog file, if you have one?

Stop Pre-editing your Time

If you're one of those lawyers who instinctively decide to reduce your time or not record it at all—stop doing that. Wait until finalizing the bill to edit your time. You really don't have enough information to make the decision regarding the value of your services to your client until you take into context the other tasks you attended to that month for your client. If you still want to discount your time you can show that in your bill as a No Charge or delete it. But you may also decide that you really have performed well for the client and realize the total bill is not unreasonable for the value they received that month. This can happen when you get an unexpected good result and wish you had tracked your time.

What will you change with respect to tracking your time?

Delegate, Delegate, Delegate

Delegating is an art. Delegating doesn't just consist of giving something to someone and expecting them to get it back to you the way you want it. If work is not returned to you the way you want, it's your responsibility to give better instructions and follow through. Replace your limiting belief "It's easier to do it myself" with something like "Once they're trained, it will be easier for me."

• Give clear expectations of what you want.
• Follow up to make sure it is being done the way you want.
• Review the work as soon as you receive it so you can get it back to the delgatee while the project is still fresh in both of your minds.
• Give the work back with instructions on how they can improve or fix the work-don't do it for them-let them learn by doing.
• Acknowledge what they did well-build on their strengths rather than focus on their weaknesses.

What changes do you want to make to your delegating skills?

"A service that is needed is always worth more than a service that has been delivered." Ronald J. Baker

You have more leverage to get your bills paid before you start an engagement than after it's completed. This is why it's so important to get agreement to your fees and the money in trust to cover the cost of your engagement.

This tip is taken from 2001 Professional's Guide to Value Pricing by Ronald J. Baker, pages 131–133, which deals with the psychology of pricing.

What if anything, do you want to change regarding your pricing policies?

Practice Saying No this Week in Order to Reduce Stress

Competing demands require that you say no to the least important. When you have a high service value it is hard to say no, but to really serve your clients you need to prioritize and that means saying no to something.

No includes:

• "I'll do it next week."
• "I'll get someone else to do it."
• "I won't do it all."

What, if anything, do you need to change to say no?

Track and Bill Time Spent Reading and Responding to Emails that relate to Client Matters

Losing even 15 minutes a day to untracked emails can be very expensive. If you have not mastered new habits that help you track all your email time, make a commitment to come up with a system that works for you.

Being too busy to track emails is not a good reason. Assuming reading email is part of your morning ritual before you start your day is also not a good reason.

What, if anything, do you need to change when it comes to tracking and billing emails?

Educate Your Clients on the Complexities of their Legal Matters

If your clients have complex matters that will take a great deal of research and time, explain that to them. Sharing with clients all the difficulties and uncertainties of their situations helps them realize why you must spend so much time on them (resulting in a high fee) and makes you look good (they need your expertise to sort out the complexities). When you approve your bill, you will be less inclined to reduce your fee if you have kept the client informed.

Are you educating your clients enough?

Get Involved in Your State or Local Bar Association

Being involved in your associations can be valuable to your career. It can:

1. Help you find new opportunities
2. Provide you with valuable practice resources
3. Help you solve problems with different perspectives
4. Network
5. Find a mentor, be a mentor
6. Provide an environment for learning
7. Make you feel good as a result of your contribution

What do you need to do to get involved?

Advance Your Interests by Advancing the Interests of Others

By being supportive of others (rather than competitive) and helping them succeed, you create good will that will ultimately benefit you.

• Making referrals to other lawyers, especially competitors
• Praising the efforts of others
• Going the extra step for your client, boss, co-workers, and staff
• Volunteering to be of help

How can you be supportive of others?

How can you "brag" more?

Remember to "Brag" and "Show Off"

Telling clients, referral sources, and others of your successes, small and large helps them know you are a competent, capable lawyer and gives them confidence in your abilities. If you don't tell them, how else will they realize you're doing a good job?

How can you "brag" more?

Treat Existing Clients as Though they were New Opportunities

Find out what has changed or is changing for your clients. When you take the time to reassess your understanding of their business, transaction, situation, or needs, you give yourself an opening to help them in a new opportunity.

What clients should you be making inquires of?

Know Your Client's Pain

To develop new clients, especially business clients, you must know enough about their difficulties to promote your abilities in such a way that when they're ready to hire you they'll know you can help them.

What will you do to learn more about potential clients?

Make Use of Checklists Rather than Relying on Your Memory

Make it easier on yourself by creating standard check lists for routine matters. The use of check lists ensures that something is not forgotten and relieves you from having to remember everything.

A check list that relates to tasks when you're engaged by a new client might include:

___Did I send a thank you to the referral?

___Have I added the client to my holiday letter database?

___Did I get the client's birthday and have I added that to my database?

___Have I added the client to my contact management database?

___Have I received the signed engagement letter?

___Have I received the fee deposit check?

___[If you have a newsletter] Have I added the client to the mailing list?

___Have I completed the accounting records as they relate to a new client?

___Have I completed new client file opening details?

___ _________________

Use the discussion of fees to help you identify what is really important to your client

Rather than avoiding or putting off discussing the cost of your services with your clients, use the discussions to help learn how important the legal matter is to them. It's best to find out how much money they're willing to allocate to the matter before you start the work.

Use the discussion of costs to educate your clients, to make sure they can afford your services as you want to deliver them, and to find out what level of service they actually want.

What is your policy on discussing fees with clients?

Create and Follow a Get-Away Plan for Your Vacation

Enjoying a stress free vacation means following a get-away plan that includes the following:

• To handle last minute matters, and matters that need to be handled more or less immediately upon your return (including email), block out non-committed business days both before and after your actual vacation. This means do not book appointments or meetings on these days. Creating space for the unexpected in advance will help relieve the stress of getting out the door.
  
  
• Tell clients at least 2 weeks before your vacation that you are going to be gone. Let them know whom they can contact in your absence. Find out what, if anything, needs to be handled before you go and what can wait until your return.
  
  
• Delegate everything so you have nothing on your to-do list for the last business day before the start of your vacation. At least two weeks before you leave, decide what work you will delegate to whom. Schedule the completion of undone work for at least one day after your return.
  
  
• Decide how you will handle email and other client communications while you are away. Figure this out at least 2 weeks before you leave.
  
  

What steps will you take to enjoy a stress free vacation?

Note: Part of the get-away plan for my own vacation includes letting my readers know that I will not be publishing another tip until June 11th.

Document Good News with Your Clients

Lawyers are careful to document the problem issues or things that can go wrong with their clients. Equally important is the need to document what you did well so clients feel good about their engagement of you and your services. Just as you write a confirming letter to reveal problems, have a policy of writing letters to explain how well you handled a problem.

When was the last time you wrote a client describing a job well done?