For law students and recent law school graduates in a job search, the question is: do you follow your interests? Or do you look where the jobs are? Read my post on Beyond the Billable, the blog of the Boston Bar Association for the answer.
Read moreIn a Job Search, Should You Follow Your Interests or Trends in the Marketplace?
Some of my best (and worst ) inspirations come to me at 4:30 a.m. That happened to me in early February when I woke up thinking about all of the creative marketing ideas I’ve heard about in the last 12 months. Some of them have come from clients, some from fellow ProVisors members, and some from lawyers and other professionals I meet who have a flair for garnering attention.
I decided at that moment that it would be great to give out awards for all of this creativity. I then began ruminating in bed about Latin phrases I could adapt (“The Juris Doctor Awards”, “Marketing In Limine”, “In Re: Marketing”). Suddenly, I was hit with a brilliant inspiration! I’ll call it “The Stevies”. Later that day, in a moment of greater clarity, I reached out to a graphic designer to start working on the artwork. Several days later, I received the sad news: The Stevies was already taken.
Despite the fact that my award was really just for fun (?parody), I decided that it was better idea to use another name and not risk a cease-and-desist letter (thank you Dan Batterman for that advice). After some deep thought
Kevin Hallinan recently interviewed me for his show Winning Business Radio. Kevin develops sales teams into high achievers, and sales leaders into true coaches and mentors utilizing the Sandler Sales Training methodology.
In our conversation, Kevin gets me to talk about my origins, how I got interested in recruiting and coaching and why lawyers need help developing their marketing skills.
I’ve always made a habit of responding to email messages within a day (even if just to say I’m sorry but I’m busy right now and will try to get back to you next week–or something like that). While I don’t always live up to this standard, I believe it is common courtesy to acknowledge that someone is trying to communicate with me (unless they are simply trying to sell me something).
While I consider responding to emails in a timely fashion the professional thing to do, I recognize that some of the people I am trying to reach are overwhelmed and simply don’t have the bandwidth to respond.
Many lawyers make effective use of auto replies
Paul Morton has a lot to say about the term “non-billable hours”. Paul is the COO of the law firm Burns and Levinson in Boston. He has been a figure in law firm administration for well over 30 years and he has seen a lot of changes during that time including increased billing pressure on lawyers. But according to Paul, billable hours should not take priority over all non-billable work. In fact according to Paul, the phrase “non-billable hours” should be replaced with “investment hours”.
Simply put, attorneys need to generate income for their firms in the short run. But they also need to invest time in marketing, law firm management, professional development, and self-care. In the long run,
For many lawyers, carving out time for marketing activities is challenging. When there is billable work to do, spending time on things that don’t immediately generate revenue is hard to prioritize. Of course as I’ve written many times, making marketing a habit will ensure more marketing success in the long run (see Mindlessness is the Key to Marketing Success).
One hack that can help you generate more marketing activity without adding a lot of time to your day is to recycle. If you have some content that you can use in a variety of ways, that enables you to better leverage your time.
For example, if many clients are asking questions about a particular subject, you can turn that into a blog post. That blog post can become a LinkedIn post. Similarly you can then turn that into a presentation and maybe include links in a newsletter to a workshop you are planning.
Another marketing hack is to take evergreen marketing content and promote it more than once. If you post on LinkedIn, different people in your network will see it and are online at different times. Posting the same contact more than once is a
On this Valentines Day, I’m remembering my father Bernie Seckler. Dad died at the start of pandemic and would have been 96 today.
In the Jewish tradition, keeping alive the memory of your loved ones is very much part of the mourning process. So today, I’m remembering how important integrity was to my father.
Zealous advocacy is an important part of the practice of law. Persistence is an important part of recruiting. But integrity matters for both.
So what kind of lawyer do you want to be? Someone who fights hard for their clients but does so in an honest way? Or someone who lawyers and judges don’t trust because you are not true to your word.
Read moreIntegrity Matters-remembering my father on Valentines Day
Lori Mihalich-Levin is a partner in the Health Care practice at Dentons where she spends half her time on medicare reimbursement issues. The other half of her time is spent on the business she created, Mindful Return. Mindful Return is a program to help parents returning from parental leave. It was born out of Lori’s experience as a lawyer and as a new mom with a demanding job. In this episode of the Counsel to Counsel Podcast, Lori talks about how she created Mindful Return, how she balances her consulting business with the practice of law, and how having a “side hustle” makes her a better lawyer (and how being a lawyer helps her business succeed).
Read morePracticing Law with a Side Hustle (“Mindful Return”)-on the C2C Podcast
If you are an attorney, what does it mean to be a professional? What is the borderline between zealous advocacy and uncivil and obstructionist behavior? My guest in this episode, Don Frederico, has a lot to say about that subject.
Don is a lawyer I met over 30 years ago when I began my own legal career at Massachusetts Continuing Legal Education. At that time, Don was a litigation partner at the law firm McDermott Will and Emery. Today, Don leads the Class Action Defense Practice at Pierce Atwood.
I met hundreds of lawyers during my days at MCLE. While many of our volunteers were true experts in their fields and generous with their time in helping to educate the bar, there were some standouts. Don was not only someone who was willing to step up when asked, but he was an enthusiastic participant and someone who I thought really modeled true professionalism in the way he treated
Read moreEpisode 55-Professionalism in the Practice of Law with Don Frederico [on the C2C podcast]
I joined the ProVisors business network in June of 2019. There are many things I love about the group and during the pandemic, it has been a great way to stay connected to a very giving group of professionals. While meeting wonderful people has been the best part, my involvement with ProVisors has also been a great lesson in how to differentiate yourself. In the network, there are many lawyers, accountants, financial planners and other trusted advisors who do similar things. So “choosing your lane” and making yourself memorable is important. Many ProVisors members do that well.
Sometimes I hear great tag lines that describe the expertise that the professionals bring to the table (e.g. Call me when you need to manage your client’s message with a megaphone or a muzzle.- Judy Rakowsky, a public relations professional; Call me when you are in the back of a police car or in the back of an ambulance– Chris Murphy, a lawyer who does criminal defense and plaintiff’s personal injury; I bring death and taxes to life-Jenn Taddeo, a trusts and estates lawyer; When the Feds come knocking, I’ll do the blocking-Jose Sierra, a white collar attorney—who is now in-house.)
I have also met a number of lawyers and other professionals who have found very creative ways
Read moreCreative Ways to Differentiate your Law Practice (without showcasing your expertise)