Un-Billable Hour: Business Management Strategies for the Busy Lawyer Around the Community Table

Guest Charlène Gisèle is a former big-firm litigator turned professional high-performance coach. This show is about you. It’s about you being your best, taking better care of you, and avoiding burnout and other health issues.  It’s no secret, the legal profession is a field filled with stress. Deadlines, precision, scheduling, marketing, and running a business. It’s a lot for anyone to handle. Gis...

In this episode’s discussions around the Community Table: Who should a solo attorney hire first? You’re building your firm. Who’s the next person you add to add (and you want avoid the wrong hire)? For starters, what do you need? Where are you wasting time? From there, “hiring is marketing,” it’s crucial you attract the largest pool of great candidates.  How do you prepare a job candidate for your...

Marketing and sales are keys to building your business. But where do they meet? It takes two to tango, and “Intake” is the junction. Good intake is always worth the effort.  Guest Bo Royal is co-founder of Pareto Legal and has worked with several Fortune 1,000 companies and scores of law firms. He specializes in helping small and medium sized law firms build their business and strengthen their int...

In this episode’s discussions around the Community Table:  AI is all the rage in the public media, but how are lawyers using it in real life? For starters, it can help you with written communications. Tone down an angry brief or client communication. Write advertising or blog communications. Even create Excel formulas. (But remember, it’s a tool, not a replacement for your skills!).  How do you co...

Business and professional growth are at the core of your business. This episode is about growth. Growing your business intentionally. Are you working “for your business” or “in your business?” Guest and growth guru Rick Watson helps business owners – like you – go beyond daily tasks to focus on real growth.  Watson started his consulting dynasty with a dream and twenty bucks in his pocket. He’s no...

In this episode’s discussions around the Community Table: We start with an attorney who wants to balance hiring and firm growth. What happens when you hire “too much” team for the work or have “too much work” for the team? It’s a delicate dance. Start with a business plan and control the one thing you can, the number of cases you accept. It’s OK to say no to a new potential client. (Plus, find out...

Production and technology are inextricably intertwined. That doesn’t mean online tech replaces the human touch. It means today’s tech tools can help you better serve clients. But you still need to ask, anticipate, listen, and deliver. Guest Joey Seeber – an experienced litigator and the founder of the legal tech consulting and implementation company Level Legal – explores how tech and humans work...

In this episode’s discussions around the Community Table:  It’s a new year. The “Dos and Don’ts of New Year’s Resolutions.” It’s OK to set goals, heck, it’s great. But be reasonable, mindful even. There is no “magical thinking” that everything will change if you wish it. Review your past, understand yourself, share your vision. And if you need an unbiased opinion, ask someone. The dreaded sales sl...

Technology has quickly become a topic that touches everything in the legal world. You can’t escape it. While learning to embrace the latest in legal tech is vital to the success of your firm, it doesn’t have to be overwhelming. We’re talking on this episode about how today’s emerging tech trends impact every aspect of your law firm – from client acquisition, to producing results, to generating pro...

In this episode’s discussions around the Community Table:  Building an effective landing page is critical to making the most of your pay-per-click marketing dollars. Getting “clicks” is one thing, but then what? Hear how to craft a landing page that drives visitors to the next step: hiring you. Go beyond “call now.” Show why you’re the lawyer for the job. What makes you different? Referrals can be...

How to choose the legal tech that’s right for your firm, and how to reject the rest, without getting overwhelmed. What’s denying yourself and what’s overindulging? It can be overwhelming.  Guest Jared Correia helps law firms understand available technology and separate what’s helpful from what’s simply bright and shiny.  Correia looks at software from several angles: Intake, e-signature, customer...

In this episode’s discussions around the Community Table:  A firm owner needs a computer policy for employees both in-office and working from home. What policies should she have for damage to the firm’s computers and client security? There’s insurance for physical damage. More important is protecting client data if a laptop is stolen or hacked. How can you protect client confidentiality, both for...

Throughout his career in “big law” and fintech, guest Abdi Shayesteh struggled with the legal profession’s lack of formal training. “It was sink or swim” with every new challenge, he says. There had to be another way to help associates become better lawyers.  Law school may not fully prepare graduates to practice law, and the old apprenticeship model – learning on the job – has fallen apart as new...

In this episode’s discussions around the Community Table:  We start with an attorney who wants to create a fair referral compensation policy for his associate, a “grinder” who does everything asked. Recently, through a contact, the associate started bringing in new business. How does a firm set up a referral fee schedule? What’s fair to the associate and the firm? How to create effective, inviting...

When it comes to law firm marketing, what is “niching?” Guest Chris Dreyer founded and leads the Search Engine Optimization (SEO) marketing firm Rankings.io. In a thoughtful, in-depth interview, Dreyer shares how to make your law firm stand out in a crowded field when you stop trying to be everything to everyone.  Be memorable. Share what makes you special.  SEO is often portrayed as sorcery, but...

In this episode’s discussions around the Community Table:  We present an extended conversation with guest consultants Robert Leitner and Philip Fairley as they guide a lawyer ready to grow her personal injury and Social Security law firm and discuss how to hire the right people for a developing case load. Does she need another legal assistant, or a medical records clerk, or an intake professional?...

Let’s talk about production and winning cases. It’s not only about acquiring new clients, but also acquiring new clients that can deliver results. A potential breakthrough using Artificial Intelligence, AI. How do we frame, understand, and implement the best of AI’s capabilities? Lawyers need to tread lightly, even as AI is becoming increasingly important in the field of law. Data is often “dirty,...

In this episode’s discussions around the Community Table:   Our first topic is how to use vacations – including your own breaks – to affirm company culture. How do you get away without fully abandoning ship and leaving your team to fend for itself? You encourage team members to take vacations to renew and regroup, but what about you as the leader of the firm? Company culture starts at the top.  Pr...

Is your marketing missing a key component, say, a way to reach Spanish speaking audiences? Many attorneys miss a large segment of their community that wants legal services, if only they would reach out.  Guest Hugo Gomez founded and leads Abogados Now, a digital marketing company that helps connect attorneys in the U.S. with the Spanish-speaking communities around them. This is about more than hir...

In this episode’s discussions around the Community Table:  Our first question turned into a collaborative discussion around the Community Table with input from several other lawyers. How does a longtime attorney with her own firm finally shake things up, turn operations over to someone else, and focus on strategy and the practice of law? It’s hard to let go of control, even with a consultant pitch...

Marketing, acquiring new business, and growing your firm are all important. But ultimately, any law firm has to produce results to scale, and that comes down to who you hire and how you manage, develop, and collaborate with your team.  Guest Luis Scott is the owner and managing partner of Bader | Scott Injury Lawyers. In addition to running a firm responsible for millions of dollars in verdicts an...

In this episode’s discussions around the Community Table:  Interview questions to ask that help you understand an applicant’s true motivations. Questions that dig a little deeper. And how to accept those answers at face value. Ever had a terrible experience hiring someone? There are tools to help you avoid mistakes, but you have to learn how to use them. But there are no silver bullets. Go boldly,...

In this episode, we’ll talk “big picture.” Are you ready to scale up, build your client base, and be more successful?    Guest Sam Mollaei is passionate about creating scalable law firms and helping others understand and implement his blueprint for going big while disrupting the traditional law firm model. He challenges firms to embrace automation, innovation, offshoring, and move beyond the old f...

In this episode’s discussion around the Community Table:  Getting from “yes” to “signing the check.” How to accelerate and bullet-proof your sales cycle. Getting the client to go from agreeing to hire you to actually turning over that retainer. Vaccinating the recruiter. Preparing a third-party recruiter with responses to a prospective employee’s objections. How do you arm a recruiter for a prospe...

OK, you got the lead. The phone rang. But what happens next? How do you turn that lead into a client (and then retain that client for life)? Guest Philip Fairley is the founder of The Rainmaker Institute, a legal marketing firm dedicated to generating leads, and then turning leads into clients through a data-driven approach. You’re more than an attorney, you’re a business owner. Run that business....