Is multiplying your income simply a matter of time?

March 15, 2016 by
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Okay, so your practice is a well-oiled machine. You have the staff you need, your marketing is working, and your income is growing. It’s only a matter of time before you reach your bigger goals, right?

Not necessarily.

You may see incremental growth–going from $100,000 to $300,000 over five or ten years, for example–but to go from $100,000 to two million dollars will probably require something more than the passage of time.

It takes a different set of skills, attitudes, and resources to develop a much bigger practice and while experience is a great teacher, it’s usually not enough. If it were, you would consistently see the majority of lawyers who have practiced for twenty years earning significantly more than the lawyers who have only practiced for ten.

We’ve all seen lawyers who rise to to the top of the earning pyramid in a few short years. How do they do it? They started out with, or developed, the skills, attitudes, and resources that made this possible.

If you want to grow, you have to do the same.

You can’t expect to “get big” if you essentially do the same things over and over. Repetition doesn’t necessarily lead to expertise.

You have to do things differently. And do different things. You have to get out of your comfort zone, and you have to be prepared to fail. In fact, failure is a big part of growth because if you’re not failing some of the time, you’re not taking enough chances.

Make a habit of embracing change. Continually ask yourself, “What can I do that I haven’t done before?” and “How can I do this differently?”

Because if you always do what you’ve always done, you’ll always get what you’ve always gotten.

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Filed Under: Personal development

You’re good, but not at everything

March 14, 2016 by
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You’re smart. And good at what you do. But other people are better at some things and if you’re not hiring them or networking with them or letting them inform you through their books and presentations, you’re working too hard and limiting your growth.

I’m guilty of this myself. I do things I know are not my strengths, because I think I’m “good enough” or out of false economy (“I don’t need to pay someone to do that”). Or I fall into the trap of thinking, “It’s quicker if I do it myself.”

Even if that’s true, speed is not always paramount. Not for the long term, anyway.

There’s an old African saying on point. It says, “If you want to go fast, go alone. If you want to go far, go together.”

Some say that TEAM (T.E.A.M.) is an acronym for “Together Everyone Achieves More”. No matter how good an individual is, no matter how much he or she can produce on their own, a team can produce more.

As Aristotle put it, “The whole is greater than the sum of its parts.”

What’s more, a team is more efficient because each individual doesn’t have to do their job and everyone else’s. You won’t have as much time or energy to try cases if you also do your own bookkeeping.

Whether you run your own practice or work for a firm or a company, you have a team. They may not be an employee, they may never have worked for you, in fact, but they’re out there, just a phone call away.

Think about all of the tasks that go into doing your job or running your practice. Some tasks should only be done by you. Many tasks, however, are best done by someone else.

Go find them and hire them. Or learn what they can teach you.

Earn more, work less: The Formula

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Filed Under: Leverage, Productivity, success Tagged With:

You’ve got to be a little abnormal

March 11, 2016 by
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In Mel Brooks’ Young Frankenstein, Dr. Frankenstein asks Igor whose brain he gave him, which brain he had just transplanted into a very large and very agitated Gorilla.

Dr. Frankenstein: Whose brain was it?
Igor: Abby someone
Dr. Frankenstein: Abby someone. Abby who?
Igor: Abby. . . Normal

I’ll bet that’s how some people think lawyers are created.

Okay, no. Most lawyers are normal. Ridiculously normal. Bland and boring normal. And generally, that’s a good thing.

Society doesn’t want weird lawyers or crazy lawyers. We don’t want overly flamboyant lawyers or lawyers who say or do things that make us want to run and hide.

We may embrace the crazy in our celebrities, but not in our professionals.

And yet, a little bit of Abby Normal is a good thing in a lawyer.

It’s true.

If you don’t have something that makes you stand out, well then, you won’t stand out. And standing out is critical because if you don’t stand out, you don’t get chosen.

George Bernard Shaw said, “The reasonable man adapts himself to the world; the unreasonable persists in trying to adapt the world to himself. Therefore, all progress depends on the unreasonable man.”

(Maybe we need to re-think this “reasonable man” thingy.)

Anyway, if you want to stand out, be unreasonable about some things. Not big things. Little things, like wearing bow ties, taking up an unusual hobby, or publicly advocating a controversial cause.

Find something that makes people see you as different. And then make the world adapt to you.

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Filed Under: Image

5 ways to fix a stalled writing project

March 10, 2016 by
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If you have a writing project that you’re having trouble finishing, the best solution is to look at your material with “fresh eyes”.

Here are some things that work for me:

1) Break it up into smaller parts

When I find myself stuck on a project, one of the first things I consider doing is breaking up long chapters or sections into smaller parts. I can then re-arrange those parts, again and again if necessary, until I find the best places for them, whether that’s another part of the chapters they came from or another chapter entirely.

In time management, it’s called “The Salami Technique”– breaking up big projects or tasks into smaller slices which are easier to handle. It works the same way with writing.

In Word, you can cut and paste parts of your chapters into separate documents. I use Scrivener, which makes this much easier. At a glance, I can see all of the parts, without having to scroll through long chapters, and it’s easy to move those parts to anywhere in the document.

2) Write a new outline

Outlines are meant to be a starting point, not a rigid mold into which you must pour your words. If your original outline isn’t working for you, write a new one.

You can “re-write” the outline you started with, or, as I often do, put everything out of sight and write a new outline from scratch.

I often do this on paper because it gives me a different perspective. I might go in another room with a legal pad, think about my project, and quickly write a list of the subjects I want to cover in the order I want to cover them. I’ll usually start with the subjects I’m certain about, then come back and fill in the others.

I might do a mind-map, on paper or on the computer. This gives me a visual overview, making it easier to see where I might be going off track.

Sometimes, I re-write my mind-map or outline several times, until it feels right to me. I might do it again later in the project if a particular chapter or subject is giving me trouble.

3) Put it away

If you don’t have a deadline for your writing project, put it away and come back to it later. Give it a few days or weeks, or even months, and work on other things. When you pick it up again, you will be able to be more objective.

When I do this, I often see entire pages and even chapters that don’t belong. I also see gaps I need to fill in, with unanswered questions I need to address.

Things jump out at me–paragraphs that don’t make sense (“What did I mean, here?”), repeated ideas, and ideas that need to be fleshed out. As a result, problems that had once plagued me are easily fixed.

4) Get someone else involved

When I’m stuck, sometimes I sit my wife down and “explain” to her what the project is about. She gives me feedback and asks questions that allow me to clarify what I mean. Explaining it to her also allows me to “hear” if what I’m saying makes sense, and gives me clues about what I need to do to finish the project.

5) Read it out loud

If I’m on the third or fourth edit and something is still bothering me (i.e., something’s missing, something doesn’t make sense, I’ve got too much of one thing and not enough of another), reading the document out loud helps me to see what I couldn’t see before.

So that’s what I do to fix a stalled writing project.

One more thing. Sometimes I find that despite my best efforts, I can’t make the project work and the best solution is to abandon it.

I find that my best writing doesn’t “fight me,” it flows smoothly and I finish it quickly. If the current project doesn’t, I have no problem moving onto greener pastures.

What are the most important elements of an effective website? This has the answer

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Filed Under: Writing Tagged With:

You’re (still) not thinking big enough

March 9, 2016 by
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When you sit down to set some goals, you probably look back at the previous month or year and use that as your guide.

That’s okay, but every once in awhile, you need to think bigger.

Instead of always setting “normal” goals, think up some big, hairy, audacious ones. Goals that stretch your imagination and condition your subconscious mind to reach for much bigger and better outcomes.

A goal to bring in one additional new client per week is a fine goal, but it’s so ordinary. What if you could bring in one additional new client per day? What if you could bring in five additional new clients per day?

What if, instead of increasing your income by 20% this year you “allowed” yourself to think about increasing it by 200%?

That’s the kind of thinking I’m talking about.

If you always think ordinary thoughts and set ordinary goals, you can’t expect to achieve anything but ordinary results. If you let logic determine your future, you may never discover what’s possible.

Logic be damned.

Giant leaps are possible. We’ve all seen people who accomplish amazing things in just a few years.

Why not you?

“Whatever the mind of man can conceive and believe, it can achieve,” Napoleon Hill said.

I’m not suggesting living in a fantasy world or suspending common sense. I’m saying it’s a good thing to regularly ask yourself, “What if?”

Have some fun with this. Brainstorm and write down lots of ideas. Say to yourself, “Wouldn’t it be nice if. . .” and let your inner child come up with ideas. Crazy ideas, impossible ideas, but exciting ideas that put a smile on your face.

Questions like these can stimulate your imagination and plant seeds for future growth.

Just start throwing out ideas and see where it takes you:

“Wouldn’t it be nice to work only four hours per day, or four hours per week?”

“Wouldn’t it be nice if I didn’t have to do litigation any more?”

“Wouldn’t it be nice to be able to build my practice with only 10% of my current overhead?”

“Wouldn’t it be nice to practice law without any clients?”

Go crazy. Tickle your funny bone with wild ideas. Write down as many silly questions as possible.

Because you’ll never know what’s possible unless you think big enough.

For a simple marketing plan that really works, get this

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Filed Under: Goal Setting

Finding more places to market your legal services

March 8, 2016 by
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I finally converted a Kindle book to paperback. It’s the same book, re-formatted and published on a different platform (CreateSpace), exposing my wares to paperback buyers, libraries and bookstores, and others. I plan to do the same thing with other ebooks.

With very little effort, I am increasing my income. You can do the same.

You already have marketing methods and channels that are working for you. Why not explore ways to extend what’s already working for you into different channels or markets, or increase your exposure in existing markets?

For example, you already get referrals from other lawyers, right? A simple way to get more clients is to find more lawyers who can and will send you referrals. (My Lawyer to Lawyer Referrals course shows you how to do that).

Go through your existing marketing mix and think about how you could find or develop

  • More professional referral sources
  • More places to run your ads
  • More free and paid online directories and referral services you can sign up for
  • More places to publish your content
  • More cities and venues for conducting live seminars
  • More podcasts and blogs to interview you
  • More online and offline publications to publish your guest posts or articles
  • More social media platforms where you can network, push out content, and gain more followers
  • More ways to get more subscribers to your email list
  • More professionals to interview for your blog, podcast
  • More websites, blogs, podcasts, to target different searches or market segments, or promote different services
  • More websites, blogs, podcasts, to target the SAME searches or market segments
  • More videos on youtube
  • More groups where you can speak and network
  • More clients empowered to recognize your ideal client and refer them
  • More (new) niche markets, client types
  • More ways to use existing content (i.e., re-purpose posts, presentations, videos, ebooks, etc.)
  • More new content to publish on existing platforms (i.e., new articles, blog posts, videos, etc.)
  • More ways to surprise and delight your clients (so they return, refer, provide positive reviews, and send traffic to your web site)

And so on. Maybe even more bookstores to sell your books.

It’s called working smarter. It’s called leverage. Taking something that’s already working and finding ways to make it work harder. So you don’t have to.

Get more referrals from your clients with MAXIMUM REFERRALS

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Filed Under: Leverage, Marketing legal services

What’s new? I’m glad you asked!

March 7, 2016 by
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When someone asks you, “What’s new?” what is your typical reply? If you’re like most people, you say something akin to, “Not much,” am I right?

If so, you’re missing out on an opportunity to promote yourself and your practice in an easy, non-promotional way.

Instead of deflecting the question, tell people what’s new.

Share some news with them. Tell them about an interesting case you just signed up or just settled. Tell them you just hired someone new or you’re looking for someone. Tell them about moving your office, or that you’re thinking about it.

Your news, however inconsequential it might seem to you, is far more interesting than saying “not much” or engaging in small talk. News has intrinsic energy. It shows you doing things, taking action, moving forward. It tells people that you’re growing and successful.

News gives you a talking point that allows you to start a conversation with someone you just met. It also gives you an excuse to contact people you know with something to share.

Never leave home without something news to share.

What’s that? You don’t have any news? Make some. Write an article or report or a short video and post it on your website. Tell people about it–what it does and who it helps. Invite them to go see it or offer to send them a copy. Ask them to share it with people in their network who might be interested.

If you don’t have a new article, tell them about an old one and ask if they’ve seen it. Or tell them about one that you’re working on or thinking about writing.

There’s always something new.

Now, don’t keep your news under wraps, waiting for someone to ask, “What’s new?” Reach out to clients and professional contacts and share your news. Use your news as the excuse for re-connecting. “Hey, I just wanted to let you know about. . .” or “Hey, I wanted to ask if you saw. . .”

When you meet someone new, after you introduce yourself, tell them about your new article or your updated article or the article that just got mentioned on another website, and invite them to check it out.

When you always have news to share, you’ll always have something to promote. You don’t have to promote yourself or your services. Promote your article or report and let it promote you.

How to write a report worth sharing: click here

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Filed Under: Marketing legal services, Networking

The first book I ever wrote

March 4, 2016 by
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In my personal injury practice, I had every client bring in their auto insurance policy. As I reviewed their policies, I noticed that most of my clients were spending too much for insurance.

They bought coverage they didn’t need, had deductibles that were too low, and routinely purchased from companies that charged double or triple what other carriers charged.

Anyway, I fell into the habit of going over their policies with them and showing them how to improve their coverage and lower their costs. A nice added value service that my clients appreciated.

One day, I decided to wrote a book on the subject. I thought that in addition to giving copies to my clients, I could sell the book, something I had always wanted to do.

And I did sell a copy. Yep, just one.

Why? It was a good book. The problem was that I didn’t have a viable way to market it.

This was before Amazon and other online book stores. No websites, no “online”. Advertising was my best bet but my margins (the gross profit on the book) weren’t enough to cover the costs of advertising.

I didn’t have a back end product or service to sell. If I had been in the insurance business, I could have sold the book at break even, or at a loss, and made my profit on the back end selling insurance.

The lesson is that it’s not the product, it’s the marketing. It doesn’t matter how good your product is if you don’t have a profitable way to reach your target market.

That’s true whether you’re selling books or candlesticks or legal services.

You may deliver outstanding legal services but you will starve to death if you don’t have a way to reach potential clients and deliver your message. On the other hand, if you are merely competent as a lawyer but you use sound marketing strategies, you can make a fortune.

The good news is that legal services have big margins. You can afford to spend money (or the equivalent in time) disseminating your message. The even better news is that most attorneys do such a poor job of marketing that you can easily beat them to the punch.

Ready for more good news?

Today, we do have Amazon and other online book stores, and websites of our own. We can economically reach book buyers, and then sell them legal services on the back end. Our marketing is paid for by book sales. Instead of paying for advertising, our advertising pays us.

How to identify your best target market

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Filed Under: Marketing legal services Tagged With: ,

Maybe you need some new friends

March 3, 2016 by
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When you get together with other lawyers, at a bar function, in the courtroom hallway, or anywhere else, what do you talk about?

Do you talk about cases and clients? Do you rap about the law? Do you talk about sports or the weather?

One thing I’ll bet you don’t talk about is marketing.

Yes, I know you’re not like most lawyers. You read me, after all. You “get” that marketing is important and valuable and you work at it. But can the same be said of the lawyers you speak to every day?

Many lawyers are uncomfortable talking about marketing. They don’t want anyone to know they do it, fearing that it makes them look weak and unsuccessful. So marketing isn’t talked about in polite company. Marketing isn’t cool.

Silly, but can you tell me this isn’t true?

Here’s the thing. I believe that the lawyers who are most attracted to marketing, and aren’t embarrassed to admit it, are the lawyers who need marketing the least.

If you like marketing, or at least you respect it and actively work at it, the odds are you’re already doing well in your practice. The lawyers who look down at marketing tend to be the ones who need it most. They are either uninformed, in denial, or resting on their laurels. They are unaware that they are living on borrowed time.

We can differ and debate the different types of marketing. Some lawyers advertise, some don’t. Some are aggressive, some are willing to sacrifice results in deference to image. That’s okay. What’s not okay is pretending that marketing is beneath you and can safely be ignored.

One reason it can’t be ignored is that every attorney is already “doing” marketing, whether they know it or not.

Remember, marketing is everything you do to get and keep good clients. Everything. Any attorney who believes that clients relations isn’t marketing, for example, or that they don’t need to work at it, is fooling nobody but themselves.

When you talk to other attorneys, bring up the subject of marketing. It’s good to compare notes. See what’s working for them and what’s not working. Ask them what they’re doing to get more traffic to their website, for example, or get their former clients to send referrals.

If you get a blank stare, or if your attorney friends don’t have anything positive to say about marketing, it might be time for you to get some new friends.

If your attorney friends are open to learning, tell them to start here

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Filed Under: Marketing legal services

Party favors for new clients? Yes, that’s a thing

March 2, 2016 by
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Remember when you were a little kid and you went to a friend’s birthday party? You got party favors–puzzles, noisemakers, toy soldiers, cap guns, candy, and other fun stuff? Something to take home with you and show your siblings and parents?

It made the party more fun, didn’t it?

Ooh, remember those finger puzzles where you put your index fingers in both ends and couldn’t get them out?

Anyway, you should do the same thing with your new clients.

Party favors for new clients? Why not? Even though it’s not a party, even though they may be seeing you about a very serious problem that is anything but fun, you should make a point of giving new clients things to take home with them.

Maybe a nice folder to hold the paperwork on their case. Maybe a nice pen with your contact information on it. Maybe a book you wrote or a book you recommend. Maybe a gift card so they can get dinner on you and forget about their troubles.

Load them up because people like getting stuff. Adults are just big kids, aren’t we?

You don’t have to spend a lot of money, but don’t let them go home empty handed. Legal services are intangible. Give them something they can hold in their hand and show their spouse or friends.

Make sure you also give them information about your practice areas. Educate them about their problems and the solutions you provide. Show them how you can help them and the people they know. Teach them how to identify your ideal client and give them tools (reports, coupons, DVDs, etc.) they can pass out.

If you have a practice that is suited to having a bit of fun, you can give new clients something whimsical. Maybe an adult coloring book and colored pencils. If that’s not your thing, give them coloring books they can take home to their kids.

I know, lawyers don’t do these things. That’s the point. Party favors are an easy way to stand out, be talked about, and remembered. And maybe put a smile on the face of someone who’s going through a difficult time.

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Filed Under: Client relations, Marketing legal services
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