The Cycle
I feel like I've just hit for the cycle, won the trifecta, or (insert your sports metaphor here): horrible cold, internet down, computer network on the fritz, and three major projects to get through the door by Thursday. We think we've narrowed down the computer issues to a combination of lightning strike/power surge from this weekend and Norton Anti-virus gumming up the works. Light blogging to follow for a few days while we get caught up -- I'm writing this from home now -- but more big news on the next three Five by Fives (or is that Fives by Five) when I return.
One little rant first, today I went to McDonald's (I know it's bad for me, but I was in a hurry) and ordered some Chicken McNuggets. I asked for an extra sauce packet like I always have, and the helpful cashier told me that the McDonald's is under new ownership and he would have to charge me extra for it. Now, I'm not a "regular" there, but I eat at this McDonald's about once every two weeks. What a short-sighted business decision. I'm not going back.
If you are a lawyer, do you charge "extra" for copies, postage, or other things? When you clients get your bill for hundreds (or thousands) of dollars and see a $3.70 charge for postage for 10 letters, or $15.00 for copies, I bet they feel a lot like I did today.
How Not to Write Like a Lawyer
The following passage is a direct quote from a proposed Order we received in the office yesterday. It was drafted by a real attorney:
Matter comes now for discovery management, by stipulation and agreement of the parties, Attorney X for the Plaintiff and Defendant Y, Pro Se. The Court is advised and notes Y's substitution as Defendant in this matter by operation of law pertaining to Lis Pendens heretofore recorded with regard to this matter by Plaintiff. Thereafter, by agreement of parties herein, and in supplement of the Court's docket Order of April ___, 2004. It is Hereby Ordered: ...
Seriously.
Five by Five - Entrepreneur Edition
I've been a bit quiet about upcoming Five by Five's, but I have some really cool news to report, and some more in the wings. First, the bad news: because it is really difficult to keep the feature going every week, I'm going to spread them out just a bit. The great news is that I've lined up the participants in the next Five by Five. The feature will run on July 19 and the question will be:
What five things can lawyers do to better serve entrepreneurs and their businesses?
The All-Star Cast:
Rob a/k/a BusinessPundit.Michael Cage - Who writes about "Small Business Success, Marketing, and Entrepreneurship" at his Entrepreneurslife.com blog.
Professor Jeffrey Cornwall - Professor of Entrepreneurship at Belmont University and writer of The Entrepreneurial Mind.Jon Strande - Writer of the Business Evolutionist blog and author of the e-book, "The Cash Register Principle."
Barry Moltz - Author of "You Need to Be a Little Crazy" who blogs at his Barry Blog.
To say I'm excited about this upcoming edition is an understatement. I continue to be amazed at the wonderful people who agree to participate in my little Q&A.
Coming soon: Five Legal Technologists answer the question, "What five new technologies should all lawyers incorporate into their practices, but probably won't?"
Innovation Tuesdays
Lori Richardson a/k/a Sales Process Diva has this great idea she calls "Power Wednesdays" where she teams with other professionals to keep her focused on marketing her business.
Form a group of a few people to champion each other - here's how it works:
In the morning, your group all calls into a telephone bridge line and you do a quick "check-in" on how many calls you plan to make, what type of calls, and any other activity goals.
Mid-day, you all call back in and do another check-in to see how it is going; and have some virtual "championing" which will naturally fire everyone up - enthusiasm and success are contagious!
End of day - final check-in. How did your day go? Everyone says what they accomplished, what they learned, and what they will do next.
I like this idea so much, I'm going to start "Innovation Tuesdays." One Tuesday a month, I'll set up a conference call for readers of this blog to call in and share cool marketing and practice ideas. I'd like to limit the number of participants to ten or so, but if the demand is high enough, we can do multiple groups. We'll shoot for a Tuesday in August for the first one. Any interest????
Open All Night
Another great article I found on the HOW Design site. This one profiles a "Create-a-Thon" hosted by a design agency to help pro-bono clients. According to the RIGGS website:
CreateAThon® is an innovative way of handling your agency’s pro-bono work and an outstanding way to make a positive impact on your community. It is a 24-hour blitz of creative energy focused on benefiting local non-profit organizations. Here is a brief summary of how CreateAThon® works:* Your agency solicits applications from local 501(c)3 organizations.
* You select a group of projects based on recommended criteria.
* The number of projects accepted is based on the capabilities of the individual agency.
* These projects are then completed start to finish during a 24-hour period.
Here's the story from the ad agency that hosted one for the the Philadelphia/South Jersey area:
So on September 11, 2003, Hypno led CreateAThon with an elite crew of guest art directors, copywriters, account execs and lunatic friends helping needy organizations with $165,500 worth of pro-bono services. We used the article to recruit other like-minded creatives and businesses; photographers, printers and paper manufacturers all answered the call of duty.When word spread that Hypno was hosting CreateAThon, I started getting emails from people I'd never heard of volunteering to work with us. There was no shortage of talent, although there was a run on available desk space. And Hypno was flooded with requests from needy organizations that heard about the event through the nonprofit grapevine. Nonprofits had been hit hard by the economic slump and many desperately needed creative services.
Within 72 hours of the start of the event—from the first scribbled notes during client meetings to the final products—we saw fully realized posters, brochures, newspaper ads, flyers, postcards, logos, videos, Web sites and billboards. The work was fantastic, and clients were tearfully happy, not only because the creative work, printing and materials were free, but because the projects' quality was top-notch. An excellent printer, Chapel2000, donated printing and materials.
I'm trying to get my mind around a way this concept would work in the legal business. If you have any ideas, let me know.
Satisfy the Unexpected Wish
Designer Rick Landesberg gives some great advice in this article on the HOW Design web site. Landesberg writes about taking a lowly job and making it into a meaningful project. His tips:
First: Don't think about the money. Not your fees, not the budget, not the print costs. If the solution answers the need in a way that delights and surprises, the money often works out.Second: Be sure to also present a solution that responds to the client's request. If you disregard what he specified, your client might take offense. Do what is requested and do what it ought to be.
Third: Don't presume your brilliant solution will be accepted. If it never gets out of the gate, your client will appreciate the extra effort nonetheless.
And finally: Cultivate a mindset that constantly goes beyond the client's stated needs. Listen carefully and critically, and dream on your client's behalf. Satisfy the unexpressed wish.
Great advice for lawyers, too. HOW Design has some more great articles on creativity here.
So That's How Big Firms Get All The Top Students...
There is a fascinating conversation going on right now at Anonymous Lawyer's Blog over this post where Anonymous Lawyer writes about how his large firm recruits and retains top students. Read the full post, and then go to the comments for a great give-and-take between an attorney at a "Lifestyle" firm (lower billable hours, time for a real life, lower pay) and a bunch of law students and associates who'd like to work there.
Finding your Niche
Tom Asacker points to an article from the August 2004 issue of Inc. Magazine by Norm Brodsky:
Brodsky writes: "There are three myths about niches that can get in the way of building a successful business. First and foremost is the myth that you have to choose your niche before you start your company. Granted, it's sometimes possible to identify a niche in advance, but often you can't see it until you've actually gone out into the market and begun to sell." Having been there I can assure you that this is wise counsel from a street-wise entrepreneur. And it applies to an existing business as well. Don't assume - like Polaroid, Xerox, Kodak, et al - that your niche is niche-proof. Everyone is looking to grab a slice of your pie with innovative new products and services. So be smart. Stay tuned in to your audience's dreams, wants and pains and preempt your competition with your own bold, new offerings that improve people's lives.
Great advice. Have you looked at your niche lately?
Inspiration at Work
Anita Sharpe at Worthwhile wrote about an interview with Kevin Carroll, a creative guru at Nike, in HOW magazine. Kevin was asked in the interview to quickly name six things that inspire him. Go to Anita's full post for his response, but Anita wrote:
It's a fun exercise, and if you do it quickly, you might surprise yourself, or, like me, you might produce something that sounds like a personal ad on Match.com: "Magazines. The Beatles. Great dinner conversations. Spontaneous adventures. Billy Crystal movies, or any humorous book or movie that also has a point. Views of water (I bought my house because a creek runs through the property; my office window has a view of a swimming pool and I count that, too.)"
My six things off the top of my head:
My daughter's laughter.
My wife's smile.
Being the first golfer to walk the course early in the morning.
The Missouri Botanical Garden
Having a client say "Thank you."
Having a full day to do nothing but read.
Sometimes we need to step back and realize that work helps us live our life, and shouldn't replace it. Now, back to our regular programming ...
Creating Client Evangelists
Ben McConnell and Jackie Huba, authors of Creating Customer Evangelists, have authored a FREE new e-book titled "Testify, How Remarkable Organizations are Creating Customer Evangelists" with additional profiles of companies that have made their customers fervent evangelists for their businesses. There are just too many great examples to list them all. The e-book is a 50 page PDF. Download it and read it today.
Let there be Light
I'm back from a vacation visiting my wife's family (perhaps an oxymoron?) and back to blogging. After my post on ergonomics last week, I realized I needed a desk lamp. I found this one at IKEA in Chicago Sunday. The roller blade wheels really make me smile.
A Great Top Ten List
Jeremy's Weblog has the "Top Ten Signs You've Been A Lawyer Too Long." My favorites:
10. You're planning on watching 0.8 hours of TV tonight followed by 1.2 hours of pleasurable reading.
8. You tell your parents they can no longer tell you what to do because you're in a different jurisdiction.
2. Your trash talk repertoire includes the line, "You are my wholly-owned subsidiary."
"Smart Men Online" Interview
Yvonne Divita, a participant in my first Five by Five asked me to return the favor. Yvonne interviewed me for her "Smart Men Online" feature that debuts today. Yvonne asked me some questions about technology, blogging, and the practice of law. I'm flattered she asked me and was happy to participate. Thanks, Yvonne!
Vacation
Dennis Kennedy is taking a firm retreat. I'm taking a vacation. My wife and I are heading up to Chicago for almost a week to spend some time with her family. We'll be in the Glenview, Illinois area. If anyone is close and wants to grab a drink or something, shoot me an e-mail.
Partnership for Profits?
Todd talks about the book The Partnership Charter on the 800CEOREAD blog. Todd really liked the book, and I'm going to pick it up based upon his recommendation (it will be my first order from the 800 CEO Read site -- how's that for the power of blogging evangelism). In his post, Todd quotes the following passage from the book:
"Researchers from the Center for Study of Entrepreneurship at Marquette University investigated a sample of nearly two thousand companies and categorized the top performers as 'hypergrowth' companies and those at the bottom as low growth companies. Solo entreprenuers founded only 6% of the 'hypergrowth' companies. Partner founded a whopping 94%, and many of those had three or more founders."
I'm still digesting what this might mean for solo lawyers, but now that I have a partner, I can see how a good partner can make a business hum.
Ergonomics for Lawyers
Saw this interesting survey in an article in my Ergonomics Today newsletter:
Want to know what makes an office worker more, or less, productive? According to a recent survey by Microsoft Hardware, 90 percent of workers believe their productivity is directly linked to their workstation design, and most would choose ergonomic tools to increase their efficiency over company-wide morale-building programs.
What struck me about it is just how little attention most lawyers pay to their own computer set up, much less that of their staffs. As my partner and I design our new offices (we are looking at new space soon), we are going to have small primary work offices with multiple meeting rooms to meet with clients. Because the attorney's actual office doesn't need to be a show place, we could do something like this or this instead.
Stop Start Continue
Barbara Payne at Blog for Business has this great brainstorming tip she found in the Winning at Work newsletter:
Next, get three pieces of flip chart paper and label them "Stop" "Start" "Continue" -- then ask your staff to work in groups of 3. First group brainstorms answers to the question: "In order to (raise revenue by XX dollars, solve this issue, etc.), what do we need to stop doing?"Second group does it with "In order to (raise revenue by XX dollars, solve this issue, or whatever), what do we need to start doing?
Third group brainstorms this one: "To (raise revenue, cut costs, solve this issue, or whatever) what do we need to continue doing? Hint: Brainstorm about what's working really well.
Then rotate everybody around so that everyone gets a chance to give each question their best shot. Now you summarize all the points, assign a financial impact to each point that's been raised, make it all into a report that says exactly what you will do (lay someone off? cut a program?) if your stuff doesn't work.
I love the "stop - start - continue" method. What would your firm's three questions be?
Five by Five - Fred Faulkner
These Five ideas come from Fred Faulkner, a blogger I met at the ABA Techshow blogger's dinner. Fred works for the ABA and maintains the ABA TECHSHOW site.
While I'm not a lawyer, my past three years working in the legal industry has led me to these observations about the practice of law and what needs to change for it to survive for the future. These are in no particular order, but are somewhat all related.
1) Embrace Technology -
Get with the program folks. There are a plethora of technological tools that will help you not only practice law better, but give you more time to have that balanced life everyone is talking about. Those who have found the balance have learned to leverage technology to give them the freedom they need to get away from the office.
2) Loose the Billable Hour -
It may have been a profitable way of doing business in the past, but there are proven ways that show lawyers can get a better ROI on their time and investment in their practice by <em>not</em> being in a billable hour environment.
3) Understand That Practicing Law is Not Any Different Than a Regular Business -
It doesn't matter if you are a solo, small firm, or a multi-national firm, you still need to understand overhead, payroll, management, administration, cost-per-employee, and other "business" activities to make sure you are in the black at the end of the month.
4) The Practice of Law is Not a Boys Club Anymore -
Women are here to stay in this profession, and in many cases they are better than men in the courtroom. Every individual brings certain qualities to the courtroom, male or female. Women can also bring the rain into the firm just as much as a male, so they should get equal opportunities.
5) Practicing Law is a Service, and Therefore Should Be Able to Marketed as One -
I know that marketing is a little taboo in the legal profession. Not that it isn't allowed, but just not like most any other business. There are ethics that must be followed in any profession, but marketing your ability to be able to provide a service should not be as restricted as it is. Firms need to understand that marketing is crucial to the future of the profession (as well as all mentioned above). I know it is still in its infant stages, but lawyers need to understand that it can be done ethically, as part of everyday business, not be penalized than working on billable hours, and still be done right.
Those are my five things. If we can get off this high horse of "if it isn't broke, don't fix it" attitude, the legal profession will be better off.
Five by Five - Ann M. Byrne
Here is a Five by Five contribution from Ann M. Byrne, author of the Quid Pro Quo blog.
1. Rambo lawyering is out; civility is in.
Let the law be known as the profession where lawyers can be vigorous advocates and go out of their way to respectful and considerate to others. Lawyers would promptly return calls. Lawyers would keep their clients fully informed and encourage them to promptly and completely respond to valid discovery requests. Lawyers would adhere fully to the spirit and the letter of the court rules and rules of professional responsibility. Lawyers would cheerfully and graciously share tips, forms, best practices, and other information with other lawyers.
2. Lawyers and the law would embrace technology and new ways of doing things.
Many others have spoken far more eloquently than I could about technology and its role in the practice of law. I came to the legal profession from another career and had used computers intensively for years. I was astonished to see that only the secretaries had computers. I was amazed that the lawyers touched only the paper files and routinely misplaced their contents. I was stunned to see the index cards for checking conflicts and looking up case law. I could not understand how these people functioned. Everywhere I looked, people were drowning in paper. Things have improved some over the years I've been in practice. Yet, even today when I read the statistics on the number of lawyers who do not use any case management software, I am shocked.
Lawyers say they don't have time to learn how to use a computer, a computer program or a feature of a program. Lawyers also say that the systems they use work quite well and that they see no need to change they way they do things. I am reminded of the industries that saw no need to change how they did business and which are no longer in business today.
Lawyers have little incentive to be efficient, especially if they work on a billable hour model. Other billing models haven't convinced me, yet. Any way, very little of the practice of law is based on what makes sense or is efficient. The whole system needs to be revised and made more efficient and more modern. There are some bright spots of change on the horizon, which is encouraging.
The ability to successfully implement technology in the practice of law would, in my ideal world, be as highly valued as the ability to successfully try a case or the ability to write a cogent brief or the ability bring in clients. Lawyers and law firms would recognize that it takes many different abilities and skills to be successful in the practice of law. Each of those abilities and skills would be valued and considered when compensation and promotion decisions are made.
3. Lawyers and law firms would make a commitment to revamp the practice law; then execute their plans.
Staff would be included and will be valued participants in the process. Everyone would look high and low for all the things that we have always done that don't need to be done and can safely be omitted. Then we would stop doing them. We would ask your clients which of the things you do for them that they don't need, don't want, or don't find helpful. Then we would stop doing them. We'd ask clients what things we could do for them that would be more helpful to them. Then we'd look for ways to do them and we would start doing them. Then we'd look for inefficiency and waste. We'd figure out how to get rid of it. Then we'd eliminate it.
If we've been hankering to try something, we'd go ahead and give it a whirl. When we find the right situation, we'd make the time to get it done. Then we'd do it. We'd expect some things to not work out and we'd value what we learned from the attempt. We'd share what we learned, our successes and our misses. We'd make this revamping an on-going process until we had completely revised our practices, our courts, and our profession.
4. Lawyers and law firms would institute a sabbatical program for lawyers, perhaps along the lines of the MacArthur Fellowship, funded by lawyers and law firms for the benefit of the profession.
Everybody needs a break or a change of pace at some point in their careers. Why not allow lawyers to go work for a limited time to improve access to justice, to develop e-lawyering programs, to do pro bono work in an entirely different area of law, to help reinvent local, state, or federal government, to work on projects for courts, or to undertake some other worthwhile project. There are literally thousands of things that need to be done. Lawyers are wonderful problem solvers. Let's figure out a way to tackle some of those challenges and get them resolved! What a great way to recharge our batteries and get a new perspective.
5. There will be laughter in law offices.
Most of lawyers I know have wonderful senses of humor and love the work they do. They see the humor in a funny situation and their peals of laughter are an elixir. May each of us be blessed with at least one good belly laugh a day. You just feel great after a good laugh. Have one along with your apple every day!
Five by Five - Ambivalent Imbroglio
The next contributor is the anonymous law student author of Ambivalent Imbroglio with this post:
1. Close down Lexis and Westlaw and bring an immediate and permanent end to for-profit legal research. The law belongs to the people, not Westlaw. The services now provided by these companies should be done by public employees paid by tax dollars, then the cost of legal research and representation would drop for everyone. See also Carolyn Elefant's suggestion #1. Same idea, mine just goes further; instead of having one free Lexis/Westlaw account per library or school, every computer w/internet access should have free, unlimited access to the publicly-funded, non-profit replacement of Lexis and Westlaw. This new database should also be searchable by Google and any other search engine.
2. Dissolve the ABA's cartel-like stranglehold on law schools and legal education. This would involve eliminating current requirements in most states that you have three years of law school before you can even take the Bar. Perhaps we should eliminate the Bar exam, as well. See Scheherazade's suggestion #1 . But even if some sort of qualifying credential is required to practice law, it should not require any sort of formal training. If there's a Bar exam or something like it, and you can pass it without a day of formal education, you should be able to practice law.
3. Reduce firm salaries and billable hours requirements by half, across the board, while at the same time doubling salaries for public defenders, legal aid attorneys, non-profit attorneys and all other "public interest" practitioners. That wouldn't even the playing field, but it would go a long way. See also Scheherazade's suggestion #4.
4. Make lawyers accountable for the work they do. I really don't know how to do this, but perhaps a google-able database of lawyers and the cases they've worked on would go some way to making attorneys accountable for the work they've done to protect big tobacco, to help Enron rip off its shareholders and the American public, and convince the Bush administration that it doesn't have to follow the Geneva Convention.
5. Require law schools do more than pay lip service to public interest law. Again, I'm not sure how to do this, but law schools need not be factories for producing BigLaw drones. For a start, professors who make jokes to their classes about how rich attorneys can get by screwing their clients should be fired. Becoming a lawyer should not be about making money.
Combined, my suggestions should go a long way to taking the money incentive out of the practice of law. Making the best available legal research free to all will reduce the overall demand for attorneys—more people will be able to do their own research and represent themselves. Freeing law schools from the dictates of the ABA will allow new schools to spring up, and eliminating the law school requirement altogether will allow the number of lawyers to skyrocket. All that great competition (lawyers love competition, right?) will mean no one will get much money. And, since legal research will be free, lawyers will be able to charge much less there, as well. Reduced firm salaries will become a necessity; therefore, law students will be much less motivated to go to BigLaw anyway. Plus, since they won't be paying such high tuition (because there are more law schools and because some people won't go to school at all to become lawyers), students will graduate with much less (or no) debt, removing another reason many people now go to BigLaw. Finally, if lawyers are forced to make a public accounting of the work they do, we'll have fewer people writing terror memos and defending companies that destroy the environment and public health and all those other bad things. The world will be a better place, and all because of these five things.
What was it Aerosmith said? Was it, "dream on"?