When you don’t know how to do something, when you’re looking for new ideas or ways to improve what you do, the simplest place to find some answers is to look at what other lawyers do.
Read their blogs. Listen to their podcasts. Subscribe to their newsletters. Analyze what they’re doing and find some ideas you can use.
Because some lawyers know things you don’t know and are better at certain things than you.
When they talk about a strategy they use to win cases, take notes. When they mention a book or blog that inspired them, read it. When they describe the tools and techniques they use to improve their productivity or results, go take a look.
Study successful lawyers and learn from them, so you can emulate them.
But don’t copy them.
Take what you learn and adapt it to your practice, your market, your style. Because you’re different and so are your clients, friends, and followers.
But. . . a word of caution.
When it comes to marketing and practice building, many successful lawyers can’t teach you anything.
They were successful because they had connections you don’t have, or spent a lot of money you don’t have (or don’t want to spend), or they were in the right place at the right time.
They had an uncle who opened a lot of doors for them, a few key clients who sent them a lot of referrals, or a case that got them featured in the right publications.
Study them. See what you can learn. But don’t assume you can do what they did.
You also need to be careful when you read lawyers’ blogs or newsletters looking for ideas you can write about in yours.
This can be a great source of ideas, but don’t automatically assume you should write about the same topics.
Why?
Because many lawyers write what they want to write, not what their readers want to read.
Just because you’re in the same practice area doesn’t mean you should write about the same subjects, or do it the way they do it.
Make sure you know your readers, so you can write what they want to read.
One more thing.
Don’t limit yourself to studying other lawyers. Read and follow and learn from other professionals and business owners who sell to or advise the same markets you target.
You may not be able to (or want to) do what they do to market or manage their practice or business, but you can learn about your target market–what they want, how they think, and how to connect with them.
Your local real estate broker can teach you things you’ll never learn from other lawyers.
How to choose your target market
