What’s your I.Q.?

November 12, 2013 by
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What’s your I.Q.? If something doesn’t work out for you, how quickly do you say “I quit”?

I’m sure you’ve hired someone who didn’t work out. You’ve tried software systems or apps that you ultimately rejected. You’ve tried new marketing methods and didn’t stick with them.

How much are you willing to put up with before you say “no mas” and move on?

Of course this is a rhetorical question. Everything is different. It depends on the cost (time and money), the potential return, the complexity, and market conditions. And it depends on you–your knowledge and skills, your finances, your goals, your work ethic.

And so there is no right or wrong answer. But clearly, we have all tried many things we have abandoned that might have produced the desired result had we given them enough time. As Thomas Edison said, “Many of life’s failures are people who did not realize how close they were to success when they gave up.”

Successful people have a long term perspective. They are willing to invest today for a return that might be a long time in coming. Unsuccessful people want instant gratification. And yet nobody wants to do something that’s not working and not likely to do so. When should you continue and when should you admit defeat and try something else?

One thing you can do to answer this is to find someone who has successfully done what you are contemplating and do what they did. In other words, find models and model them.

Because if they did it, there’s a very good chance that you can do it, too. Just knowing that will keep you going when you otherwise might quit.

Don’t necessarily compare yourself to others. When they started, they may have had more skills than you do, or a bigger network. It may take you longer to accomplish what they accomplished. It may be harder.

I’ve found this to be true in my life, and I am okay with this. If what I am attempting promises benefits that I truly want, it’s okay if it takes me longer. What I care about is knowing that I can do it. If I know that it’s possible, based on what others have done, I’ll keep going. In this case, I have a very high I.Q.

I admit, this is not always true. Sometimes, along the way, I discover something about myself or about the journey and change my mind about what I want or what I’m willing to do. But having that model at the beginning allows me to get started and keep going long enough to make that discovery. As a result, I’ve done more than I ever would have done had I waited for the right time or conditions.

What about innovation? Highly overrated. Most inventors will tell you that what they do is look at something that already exists and see it doing something different. Or, combining two things into something new. Entrepreneurs do the same thing.

If you want a successful law practice, find successful lawyers in your field and study them. Find out what they did to become successful and do that. It may take you longer and you may have a bumpier journey than they had. But at least you know that if you follow the same road map, there’s a very good chance that you will get to the same destination.

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Filed Under: Career satisfaction, Personal development, Productivity, success Tagged With: , , ,

163 Getting Things Done Software Options

October 25, 2013 by
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I admit it. Even though I am committed to Evernote as my getting things done software application, I still like looking at other apps. It’s fun. I get ideas. And yes, I get tempted. But I stay with Evernote, even though it is not a GTD app and does have limitations, because it is simple, powerful, and I can make it do what I want it to do. (I also like having all my tasks and projects in the same place as my notes.)

I chose Evernote because everything else I tried was too complicated to learn and/or use, or didn’t “feel” right for me. I found myself spending too much time managing lists instead of getting things done.

Anyway, if you’re still looking for the perfect app, or like me, you enjoy seeing what else is available, you might want to take a look at this directory of 163 Getting Things Done Software options. I found it by reading a post that summarizes ten popular GTD apps. Of the ten, I have the most experience with Toodledo and Nirvana. They’re both worth a look.

Careful, though. No matter what productivity system you use, trying out new apps can become addicting. You can spend hundreds of hours reading reviews, trying features, and moving information. Been there. Done that.

Of course in the end, the best system is the one that works for you. My wife uses pen and paper and gets way more done than I ever have. It took her about ten seconds to set up her system and she spends zero time looking at other apps.

Check out my Evernote for Lawyers ebook.

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Filed Under: Productivity, Technology, Time Management Tagged With: , , , , , ,

How to finish a writing project when you’re stuck

October 15, 2013 by
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Attorneys write a lot. At least we’re supposed to. We have deadlines to meet and bills to pay and we have to keep cranking. But sometimes, we get stuck. We may be half-way through a writing project and find ourselves unable to finish.

“7 Ways to Finish Difficult Writing Projects” is about how to finish a writing project when you’re stuck, and I’ve used most of the 7 ways. Reading my draft out loud and going for a walk to clear my head, for example, have helped me figure out where I am in the writing and where I want to go.

One of the suggestions is to make an outline, which I usually do, but sometimes my outline is the reason I’ve become stuck. Like a mis-calibrated GPS program, the outline took me to the wrong destination.

If I know what’s wrong, I’ll write a new outline. But sometimes, the piece isn’t working and I can’t figure out why.

When this happens, I write a outline of what I’ve already written. I may do this in a linear list with topics and sub-topics, or in a non-linear “mind map”. Reverse engineering the draft lets me see what’s missing or what I need to re-arrange to make things work. I then compare this outline to my original and from these two, create a third outline that allows me to move forward.

But sometimes, I’m still stuck. I know something is wrong but I can’t put my finger on it. What do I do? I go for a drive.

Once I’m on the road, I start talking and record myself. I pretend I’m speaking to my intended reader and I tell him what I want him to know. Speaking it out this way helps me get to the essence of the material. “I know I’ve got all these pages written, but here’s what I really want you to know. . .”.

In fact, sometimes, I do my first draft this way. I don’t write an outline, I just jot down a handful of topics I want to talk about, press record, and talk. Not only do I get the first draft done quickly, it’s often much better than what I might have written because the ideas flow naturally, instead of being forced to fit the structure of an outline.

If you ever find yourself stuck in a writing project, or you don’t know where to start, stop writing and start talking.

Earn more without working more. Here’s the formula.

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Filed Under: Personal development, Productivity, Writing Tagged With: , ,

My trick for getting things done that I don’t want to do

October 11, 2013 by
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Yesterday, we talked about trusting your gut to choose your most important tasks for the day. But there are always other things we need to do. Small things, unpleasant things, things we may not be excited about, things we strongly dislike.

Want to know my secret for getting things done that I don’t want to do?

I just do them. I don’t think about why I don’t want to do them, or worry about what might happen. I just hold my nose and take the first step. If I have to make a call I don’t want to make, I just start dialing. Before I know it, the call is over.

If you find yourself procrastinating or avoiding something you need to do, just start doing it. Don’t think about it. Don’t write out a plan. Just start.

Okay, easy to say, not always easy to do. Sometimes, you don’t know where to start. Or it’s a big project. Or you need more information.

In that case, I find something I can do now and do that. Even if it’s just writing down an idea of how I might start or what I need to find out. There, I’ve started.

This works most of the time. But not always. I still procrastinate. I might have low energy, I might want to do something else instead, or I might be afraid. When this happens, I tell myself, “Do it anyway.”

  • I don’t have enough time: Do it anyway.
  • I don’t have enough information: Do it anyway.
  • I don’t know what to do: Do it anyway.
  • I don’t know how: Do it anyway.
  • I don’t want to: Do it anyway.

“Do it anyway” is a trigger phrase. I’ve conditioned myself that when I hear those words, I drop shields, get out of my own way, and do it. It’s like a hypnotic command. (No, don’t email me with some crazy idea and tell me to do it anyway. I’ve got to say it to myself.)

It’s close to Nike’s, “Just do it,” but I hear that as a command and I don’t follow orders very well. The word “anyway” acknowledges and validates my resistance. It says, “yes, there are reasons for not doing it but there are more reasons or better reasons for getting it done.”

Sure, it’s a trick. And no, it doesn’t always work. But it works enough of the time, and that’s good enough for me.

The next time you’ve got something on your list you don’t want to do, do it anyway.

Need a marketing plan? The Attorney Marketing Formula comes with a plan that really works.

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Filed Under: Personal development, Productivity Tagged With: , , , ,

How to prioritize your daily tasks

October 10, 2013 by
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I use my own version of GTD (Getting Things Done) as the backbone of my productivity system. Every day, when I sit down to prioritize my lists and choose what to work on for the day, I choose three “MIT’s” (Most Important Tasks). If I get my MITs done, I call it a good day.

Some people recommend the 1-3-5 system: 1 big thing for the day, 3 medium things, and 5 small things. Others use the 3-2 method: three big things, two small things. And then there’s the ABC/123 method.

For me, “three things” is about right.

Many days, it’s just one or two MITs. The number really doesn’t matter. What matters is that I am effective because I’m getting important things done.

But how do you decide what’s important? How do you look at a long list of tasks and projects and select three Most Important Tasks?

I don’t know. I just do it.

Sure, there’s a certain amount of logic in the process. I look at deadlines and appointments and reminders. But more often than not, it’s my gut that tells me what to do.

In “The 4-Hour Work Week,” Tim Ferriss offers a suggestion for deciding what’s important. He says, “Imagine you’ve just suffered a heart attack and are allowed to work only two hours a day. What would you do during those two hours? And if you had another heart attack and were allowed a maximum of two hours of work per week, what would you do?”

Ferriss also says, “. . .requiring a lot of time does not make a task important,” and I agree. He is also a proponent of making a “don’t do list,” ignoring things that aren’t important so you can focus on what is, which I wrote about recently.

I like learning about new productivity systems. But most of them are too complicated and time consuming to learn and use. I like the simplicity of focusing on just “three things”.

If you want to know how to prioritize your daily tasks, start by acknowledging that some things are much more important than others. Think 80/20. A minority of tasks, perhaps 20%, will contribute to the majority of your results.

You’ll never get everything on your list done, and trying to categorize and prioritize hundreds of things that aren’t important, or as important, as your three things, isn’t efficient or effective.

This post is one of my MITs for today. Next for me is to finish another writing project. I’ll get to that right after I check my calendar.

I explain my productivity system in my Evernote for Lawyers ebook.

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Filed Under: Law office management, Productivity, Time Management Tagged With: , , , , , , , , , ,

Lawyers: your messy desk is costing you business

October 2, 2013 by
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I’ve written before about how to clean up a messy desk and how doing so can make you more productive. But there’s another reason why a messy desk is bad for business: It gives your clients (and others in your office) a negative impression.

A messy desk implies that

  • You have an equally messy (confused) mind
  • You are inefficient and waste time
  • You are disorganized and may forget things
  • You take longer to do things, costing your clients money
  • You don’t pay attention to detail
  • You have too many other clients and don’t have time for new ones
  • You are sloppy in other areas (i.e., billing, deadlines, negotiating, drafting, research, personal hygiene, etc.)

Most of all, a messy desk tells people you don’t care.

Yes, you want clients to know you are busy. Busy means you are in demand, that other people value your expertise and want to give you money to help them. But you can be busy and organized. You can be busy and care about making a good impression.

If you have a messy desk, some clients won’t hire you again. You make them nervous. Neither will they refer their friends.

Clients want to know that you know what you’re doing, that you do it efficiently, and most of all, that you care about them. Why give them cause to think anything else?

Marketing is everything we do to get and keep good clients. Everything. Here’s the formula

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Filed Under: Client relations, Image, Increase your income, Law office management, Productivity, Referrals Tagged With: , ,

Creating an operations manual for your law practice

October 1, 2013 by
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Early in my career I rented space from an attorney who had a very lucrative high volume personal injury practice.

He had half a dozen employees, including one attorney, and everything ran very smoothly. The office was busy but quiet. Everything was orderly. They never seemed to miss deadlines or suffer a major crisis.

One reason why the office was so successful was that the attorney had prepared an operations manual. Every aspect of the practice was documented. Every employee knew what they were supposed to do.

He created the manual, I was told, so that if someone quit or went on maternity leave or got sick, the new hire or temp would be able to quickly get up to speed.

The manual explained how to open a new file, how to close a file, and everything in between. There were forms and checklists for every stage of the case, and fill-in-the-blank form letters, too. The calendaring procedure was spelled out in detail.

As a result, nothing fell through the cracks. The cases got worked and settled or tried. Things moved quickly. Mistakes were rare.

I never saw the actual manual but hearing about it inspired me to create my own. I started by making extra copies of every letter I wrote and putting them in a separate file. I created checklists for repetitive tasks. I asked other attorneys I knew for copies of their forms and form letters and re-wrote them to suit my style and work flow.

I was also able to build a sizable practice with a relatively small staff, in part, because of my manual.

One of the benefits of going through this process is that it forces you to think about everything you do, allowing you to find ways to do them better. You find holes in your procedures, places where mistakes can happen, and you can patch them. You find wasteful tasks and can eliminate them. You see opportunities for doing things faster.

You also find ways to improve client relations. For example, you may discover gaps in communicating progress to clients about their case, or find ways to make their experience less stressful. Repeat business and referrals will increase because you always send welcome letters and thank you letters and remember clients’ birthdays.

The bottom line is that creating an operations manual for your law practice will save time, save money, help you avoid errors (and malpractice claims), and make your practice run more smoothly and more profitably.

If you don’t have an operations manual for your practice, I encourage you to start one. If you have staff, enlist their aid. If you do have a manual, make a note to review it periodically, so you can update it with changes in the law, new forms, and new ideas.

You’ll thank me later.

For more on creating an operations manual, see The Attorney Marketing Formula

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Filed Under: Career satisfaction, Client loyalty, Client relations, Communication, Increase your income, Law office management, Marketing legal services, Productivity Tagged With: , , , , ,

Increase Productivity with a Don’t Do List

September 23, 2013 by
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Most people say they don’t like meetings. They’re boring. Nothing gets accomplished. The same information could have been delivered by memo.

The leaders say, “We’ve got to make our meetings better.” They read books and attend seminars. They hire consultants. They buy better equipment.

The meetings improve. They pat themselves on the back. Success.

Or not.

Instead of trying to improve their meetings, maybe they should have eliminated them.

One of my favorite Peter Drucker quotes is, “Nothing is less productive than to make more efficient what should not be done at all.”

Go through your calendar. What meetings or conference calls could you safely eliminate?

Go through your tasks and project lists. What are you planning to do that should not be done at all?

Observe your daily work flow. Which steps could be eliminated? Which parts could be delegated?

Efficiency means doing things better. Effectiveness means doing the right things. It matters not how well you do things if they should not be done at all.

So try this: for the next seven days, compile a “don’t do” list. Write down everything you do that isn’t necessary or doesn’t contribute to your most important goals.

Take stock of whatever is left, whatever should be done. Look for ways to do them quicker, better, or more efficiently.

Make sure your partners and employees do the same. At your next office meeting…wait, never mind. Just send a memo.

Earn more and work less. Click here.

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Filed Under: Law office management, Personal development, Productivity, Time Management Tagged With: , , , ,

The 80/20 Principle and your law practice

September 11, 2013 by
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One of my favorite books is The 80/20 Principle by Richard Koch. In it, Koch makes the case first articulated as The Pareto Principle, that “a minority of causes, inputs, or effort usually lead to a majority of the results, outputs, or rewards”.

The idea is that as much as 80% of your results may come from 20% of your effort. In the context of practicing law, that might mean that 20% of your clients produce 80% of your income. The actual numbers, however, aren’t necessarily 80/20. They might be 90/30, 60/20, or 55/5. The point is that some things we do bring results that are disproportionate to our effort and that it behooves us to look for those things and do more of them.

Koch says, “Few people take objectives really seriously. They put average effort into too many things, rather than superior thought and effort into a few important things. People who achieve the most are selective as well as determined.”

We’re talking about focus. About doing more of what works and less of what doesn’t. About using leverage to earn more without working more.

Look at your practice and tell me what you see.

  • Practice areas: Are you a Jack or Jill of all trades or a master of one? Are you good at many things or outstanding at one or two?
  • Clients: Do you target anyone who needs what you do or a very specifically defined “ideal client” who can hire you more often, pay higher fees, and refer others like themselves who can do the same?
  • Services: Do you offer low fee/low margin services because they contribute something to overhead or do you keep your overhead low and maximize profits?
  • Fees: Do you trade your time for dollars or do you get paid commensurate with the value you deliver?
  • Marketing: Do you do too many things that produce no results, or modest results, or one or two things that bring in the bulk of your new business?
  • Time: Do you do too much yourself, or do you delegate as much as possible and do “only that which only you can do”?
  • Work: Do you do everything from scratch or do you save time, reduce errors, and increase speed by using forms, checklists, and templates?

Leverage is the key to the 80/20 principle. It is the key to getting more done with less effort and to earning more without working more.

Take inventory of where you are today. If you’re not on track to meeting your goals, if you are working too hard and earning too little, the answer may be to do less of most things, the “trivial many,” as Koch defines them, so you can do more of the “precious few”.

My course, The Attorney Marketing Formula, can help you.

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Filed Under: Increase your income, Leverage, Marketing legal services, Marketing Plan, Personal development, Productivity, Specializing, success Tagged With: , , ,

How to do what you want (but can’t)

September 10, 2013 by
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Years ago, I was at a men’s store buying suits and got to talking with the sales person. He was very good at his job and I told him so. He thanked me and said that what he really wanted to do was be a writer. The problem is, he’s tried to write but can’t.

He’s got an idea for a novel, he’s got his characters, he’s worked out the story in his head, but when he sits down to write, nothing comes.

I made several suggestions, but he’s tried them all. No dice.

He’s tried dictating. He’s tried freewriting (writing whatever comes out without stopping to think or edit). He’s tried every technique for overcoming procrastination and writer’s block but nothing has worked. I got the feeling he was convinced that nothing will.

So he sells men’s clothing.

Today, I would probably say, “Well then, I guess you’re not a writer.”

Don’t hate on me. He needs some tough love. Fight back (and write) or admit that you are not a writer and go do something else. Living in the middle ground, “I want to, but can’t,” is hell. It will kill your soul and leave you, on your death bed, filled with regret.

Frankly, I think the guy needed therapy.

And yet, wanting but not doing is common. We all have things we want to do but don’t. We never start, because we don’t have the time. Or we start, but three weeks later, we’re off the wagon.

If you’ve ever started a diet, you know what I mean.

Want to know how to do what you want to do but can’t? Whatever it is–getting in shape, learning a new language, writing a book, or marketing your law practice, if you want to do it, but don’t, here’s my suggestion:

Do it today for two minutes.

Want to get in shape? Go walking for two minutes today.

Want to write? Get typing or scribbling and don’t stop for two minutes.

Want to bring in new clients? Take two minutes and send a “Hey, how are you these days?” email to someone you haven’t talked to in a long time.

It’s just two minutes. You can do two minutes.

Now you’re not going to write a book or get into shape in two minutes. But if you can do two minutes today, you can do two minutes tomorrow. Maybe in a couple of weeks you’ll be up to five minutes. Eventually, the thing you had trouble starting or sticking to will become a habit. What was once hard will be easy.

By starting small, you program your brain that writing or exercising or marketing isn’t hard. It’s something you can do. So you keep doing it.

Most people join the gym on January 1st and push themselves so hard and get so sore that by January 15th, they’re done. Don’t do that. Start small. Develop the habit.

I heard about a guy who has been going to the gym for ten years and is in fabulous shape. Like most people, he had trouble getting started. So, for the first three months, he went to the gym every day, sat on a bench and drank coffee. He said he wanted to develop the habit of going to the gym.

Start slowly. Do something every day. Eventually, you will become an unconscious competent (doing it without thinking about it) and your life will never be the same.

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Filed Under: Marketing legal services, Personal development, Productivity, Time Management, Writing Tagged With: , , ,
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