Reboot Your Law Practice

These days everybody’s got something to say about everything. And social media gives the whole world a platform to show off their knowledge and their stupidity. Scott and Oscar tell some cautionary tales about when they or their clients got caught up in online comments and statements that they regretted. The hosts also talk about the need to think before you text or email as these digital messages are permanent and can be taken out of context. Here are three rules to remember before engaging in digital or online communication: - Rule 1: Don’t Say Anything: The first and foremost rule is to think twice – no make that three times- before posting anything or commenting on a matter you are dealing with. It may be hard to resist the temptation but try you must. More importantly, the client definitely must be instructed not to comment online about a pending matter. - Rule 2: Edit Yourself: Before emailing or posting, go over what you are saying carefully. Not just to avoid being berated by the grammar police but to

This week the hosts discuss what to do what you don’t have a lot of legal work to do. Scott explains how College Discipline and Special Education have became a large part of his practice over the past year and because the summer is pretty much dead for these areas of practice, he lays out how he plans to use this extra time. The hosts suggest you see the opportunity in the down time. Reflect on your practice and plan moving forward. Create a business plan. Implement systems. They also suggest actions such as; - writing an article - have a networking lunch once a week - get involved with your local bar association The hosts suggest that you look at specific aspects or systems in your practice that you want to change and consider them failures. Truly reboot by taking the time to tear them down, and then build them back up with your vision and knowledge.

In response to a listener email from a law student who asked “Would the podcast hosts go to law school if they could do it all over again?,” Scott and Oscar give the proverbial lawyer’s answer “It Depends.” They discuss their answer to that question in detail and also talk about the state of the current marketplace for lawyers. The hosts point out that they would definitely go to law school again at the same price and with the same student loan debt they did when they went, but would have to think hard about taking on $250K in debt to go now. They discuss that due to the current market (better but still not great) folks should only go to law school if they can (a) get into a top tier school or (b) get into a middle level tier school with little or no debt. The easy answer to the question posed is that they both would not go again if they could only get into a lower tier school and receive no tuition assistance or scholarships. If listeners find themselves in the latter situation, the hosts discuss that they n

It’s the hardest thing about the practice of law as a solo or in a small firm – getting properly compensated for your time. But it’s also the secret to having a quality practice that you don’t resent. In this episode, Oscar and Scott discuss some of the reasons why clients balk at paying and what lawyers can do to make sure that the bills you send out come back with checks. While it once again boils down to maintaining the two core principles at the heart of what we always talk about – authenticity and value – the hosts offer some concrete tips and suggestions to keep your balance sheet on the upside. • Set expectations early - about fees, billing and communication • Have a properly drafted, clear retainer agreement • Communicate regularly about fees and about the matter they’ve entrusted to you • Provide detailed and easy-to-read bills • Don’t allow yourself to fall too far behind

This episode focuses on what law schools do to manipulate their rankings and appear more worthy to incoming law students. Scott and Oscar talk about schools who pay for high rankings in “Best of” lists that may appear on internet searches but have no true substance behind them. Some lower tier schools are not allowing their students at the bottom of the class to even take the Bar exam to hopefully inflate their Bar passing rates as well. The hosts point out that many of these tools, trick and tips are also used by legal marketers to try and convince lawyers to engage in their marketing systems. Law students and lawyers alike should take care to look behind the phony statistics and promises (which are usually easily identified) and do your homework. In both legal education and the practice of law there are few shortcuts. Nice shiny objects that may look good at the start soon wear off and leave you out in the cold. Make sure what you are doing and investing in has value and is genuine.

Oscar opens the show telling a story about how he happened to run into a long-lost relative while traveling in Chile. He came across his relative because he was engaging some local folks in conversation and one thing led to another. The hosts talk about lawyers need to keep their eyes and ears open for opportunity. You make your own luck – by having an open mind and always having a business-oriented perspective, opportunities will come your way. Take the chance- reach out to people, set up meetings, have lunch, coffee, - run ideas by them, ask them about their business, run things by each other you never know where it will go. We are so often in contact with people who can help us in our practice but we walk past them every day because we won’t take that first step. The main point is that you can’t wait for opportunity to knock on your door, you have to have the initiative and take a chance to go and get it yourself.

This week we discuss the need to focus your marketing dollars and strategy carefully. The hosts get into the nitty-gritty about how Pay Per Click and Facebook Ads and other common legal marketing tools work – and don’t work. By talking about their experiences, both good and bad, Scott and Oscar give out useful tips and strategies for making the most out of whatever marketing plan you decide upon. Like everything else, careful planning initially is key. Think about who you want to target and what words or phrases are those targets most likely to be responsive to. Also make sure your ad is effective and not annoying s you don’t wat to turn people off. Finally, the hosts also talk about the need to regularly monitor your marketing plan to make sure your time and money isn’t being misspent on things that do not provide results.

Scott starts off this podcast talking about a lawyer he met at a conference who afterward sent him a book her mother wrote about Atlantic City (which is where the lawyer practices). The book was accompanied by a small note and the lawyer’s business card. That story began a discussion about the importance of following up and following through on connections you make as you meet potential clients and referral partners. Even something as simple as sending out holiday cards should be done with thought and focus on who you want to reach out to and perhaps adding a personal note in at least some of the cards. Talking about holiday cards led the podcast hosts to discuss how all tasks you undertake to market your practice and grow your business needs to be focused and targeted. Before starting this podcast, the hosts set out to determine the costs (financial and time-wise) associated with the endeavor. Scattershot marketing or advertising without focus and follow up will just having money flowing out the door with no

The podcast was contacted with two inquiries – one from a law student who was curious about how to start a practice right out of law school and one from an attorney who wanted to form her own practice as a legal writing specialist. The admitted attorney has a non-legal job that pays the bills but wants to be able to make ends meet (and more) by doing what she sees as her strength – writing for other lawyers. The hosts advise that in some ways, it is very different than most other re-boots. She can only market to other lawyers. So she has to decide how to market herself – How will she describe herself on LinkedIn? On her website? The main thing is to come up with an interesting way to explain her value to her target audience – lawyers who don’t want to write. She will also have to assess her competition – lots of outsourcing companies, including many of them overseas – do what she does and at a much lower rate. So she has to have an answer ready for that question when it comes. Maybe the answer will come from

No matter how long ago you graduated, you can get help from your Law School Career Services Office. They can help you with emails, cover letters. updating your resume and understanding networking. This week is Part 2 of our interview with Elizabeth Dambriunas, the Associate Director of Alumni Advising at the Office of Career Planning at New York Law School. Elizabeth talks to Oscar and Scott touch on the following; - Attorneys need to have an understanding of the legal market - Attorney’s can’t put all their hopes on their 1st job. Learn and grow as an attorney and make decisions any gain experience for where you want to go next. - Blind applications are most likely a waste of time - Must be able to present in a positive way during interviews (and have some intelligent questions for the interviewer)

This week we welcome back Elizabeth Dambriunas, the Associate Director of Alumni Advising at the Office of Career Planning at New York Law School. Elizabeth talks to Oscar and Scott about the following topics; - the changes in the job market for new law school graduates - the best steps that a law student, who has a specific career path in mind, should take while in law school to help their chances of practicing in that area. - actions that could be taken by an attorney who would like to move practice areas such as pro bono opportunities or blogging - when submitting anything to a prospective employer it must be perfect - remember that networking isn’t asking for a job, its asking for advice and info

Maybe you are “in-between” jobs right now. Maybe you graduate law school and can’t find work. Maybe you are stuck in a dead-end job and not practicing the kind of law you would like to practice. Well, maybe you can do something about it besides just sending out resumes and cover letters. This episode looks at ways you can make the most of this “down time” you may be experiencing. The hosts suggest a variety of ways that you can enhance the possibility of you getting that job you want or practicing the kind of law you want to practice. A few of the suggestions: - Look for per diem or contact work through such websites as Upwork.com - Find an interesting case in the newspaper in the area of law you want to explore and watch the trial - Write a law-related article for your local newspaper or your blog if you have one - Go through your Bar Association or Law School to look for a mentor in the field you want to pursue The point of the program is that doing one, or some or even all of these things doesn’t guarantee

We’ve talked about what happens when your solo practice starts to grow and you need to add your first associate. In this podcast, the hosts talk about managing the delegation of work. The first step is in analyzing the work you need to be done and how to best handle its distribution. Then you need to get organized to make sure the work you distribute is done on time and in the manner you want it done. A good calendaring program and organization system is critical. When it comes to legal matters, it’s important that the associates have training, oversight and are keeping track of their time. Delegation applies not only to actual legal work but to other parts of your practice that you can pass off to others – employees, interns, third parties – in order to free up your time. If you are a solo and are not delegating legal work to others, then your practice will never grow as you only have so many hours in a day. Your clients will understand that you are delegating minor parts of your practice in order to concent

Podcast Host Scott shared his experience from a yoga retreat that he went on with his wife this past weekend. He was struck by the genuineness and authenticity of the instructors and how applicable it was to the practice of law. The hosts reflect on how their earlier episodes focused on work-life balance and the need to find time to contemplate your attitude and your law practice. One’s attitude totally affects how one views their work. Scott said the main theme of the weekend that he took away was the need to connect to yourself and others. The hosts talk about how people are reared to kind of belittle or not value connection when in fact making connections is the first step to a relationship with clients and referral partners. “Listening” as opposed to “talking at” people is one important step in building your practice. Another take-away from the weekend was that each yoga instructor had their own individualized website that participants could review. That made it easier to get some detailed information abo

Since the early days of TV, there have been many lawyer-themed shows. From “Perry Mason” to “L.A. Law” to “Boston Legal” to today’s “Grinder.” But rarely has a show focused on a character like Saul Goodman in AMC’s “Better Call Saul” a spinoff of “Breaking Bad.” In it, Bob Odenkirk plays a small time criminal defense solo practitioner who goes into and then out of Big Law while trying to get his own practice going. In this podcast, Scott and Oscar talk about many of the issues the show raises about lawyering itself. The various episodes highlight the good and bad differences between solo/small firm life and Big Law; legal marketing; realistic ethical dilemmas; and hustling for clients. In the podcast, the hosts encourage listeners to watch the show and to take away from it some very important messages to building a law practice. None as important as being authentic to who you are and to providing value to your clients

Scott and Oscar discuss the future of legal education as we see the advent of online law schools. The discussion revolves around an article calling for more online law schools to address the imbalance between the debt caused by law schools and the reality of the job market. The hosts also discuss lawsuits brought against law schools by law students who can’t get jobs and blame the inflated job placement numbers posted by law schools that entice them to enroll. The show then focuses on how the important thing to take away from all of this is that the traditional law school model has to change. Law students need to know that there may not be high-paying jobs for them when they graduate and law schools need to prepare them for developing a practice, managing expectations, and how to actually practice law in the real world.

If you have been practicing law for a few years, chances are you have gotten emails or mailers encouraging you to become a member of a number of sites that will promote your name and give you leads for legal work. The two biggest purveyors of this pre-packaged marketing are FindLaw and Avvo but there are a myriad of others. The hosts discuss their personal experiences with some of these companies and the benefits and downsides of joining them. Scott and Oscar all discuss companies that - for a small fee- will declare you one of the “10 Best Lawyers” in your area. A lawyer can take advantage of some of these promotional materials and it’s up to each lawyer to decide what use to make of them. But the hosts remind listeners that in the end, you can do a lot of your own promotion and marketing by spending a little more time on developing your practice and network.

Scott and Oscar continue their discussion with Sage Presence founders Peter Machalek and Dean Hyers by delving into presentations. Presentations are a vital way to meet potential clients and referral partners. The guys at Sage suggest a number of ways to make yourself comfortable to do these: First of all, pick a topic that you are very knowledgable about and in which you can develop valuable information to provide to your audience. Then try to populate the session with people who know you and former clients. Remember that you need to provide value to the group so leave time for a question and answer period. Then practice your presentation several time to gain confidence – and practice making eye contact and speaking clearly in scenarios where you interact with others. Pete and Dean conclude by talking about the value of coaching and how coaches can help lawyers develop the skills necessary to connect with new clients. Dean and Tom can be found at Sagepresence.com where you will find tips and strategies as we

This week Oscar and Scott talk to Dean Hyers and Pete Machalek from Sage Presence. Sage Presence coaches professional service firms on how to market themselves by focusing on their message and their communication skills. They discuss a wide range of topics including;- having to move away from the stereotyped version of a “salesman”- how being in introvert can be an advantage when networking,- the potential benefits of giving the “right” value- building your business on giving presentationsYou can check out Sage Presence on the web athttp://sagepresence.com/

Scott and Oscar continue their chat with Tom Bolt of the ABA’s Law Practice Division. The focus turns to specific thing that law students, new lawyers and lawyers in transition can do to help develop a practice in this new economy. The hosts discuss with Tom the role technology plays to both support and place stress upon new, developing practices. Tom’s position offers him unique insight into what is happening in the legal marketplace across the country. He concludes the discussion talking about the Law Practice Division’s four core focus areas: marketing, management, technology and finance. We would like to let our listeners know that the ABA website offers publications, professional development tools and networking opportunities that provide valuable guidance on those four topics. You can learn more about the ABA’s Law Practice Division by visiting their webpage at: http://www.americanbar.org/groups/law_practice.html