Making any Microsoft Office application easier to use often involves tweaking the interface to suit your work style. Here’s one of the quickest, easiest and most powerful tweaks you can make: tricking out each application’s Status Bar. … Read The Rest

Not long ago, I was asked to make a presentation at a state bar’s Law Practice Management Committee luncheon. Topic? Getting clients, of course. When we opened things up for questions, a gentleman in the back said, “You make it sound like the only way to get clients is to specialize!” Ummm. That is exactly what we spent the first 45 minutes discussing — and yes, focusing is the best way. Based on his tone, he didn’t like that idea. … Read The Rest

Last month, Apple unveiled its new iPhone X to much fanfare. Perhaps what created the most fanfare was its price. It starts at $999 — hundreds more than the older iPhone 7 and the brand-new iPhone 8. 

You don’t need a Ph.D. in Economics to understand the logic behind Apple’s pricing strategy. It’s simple. Apple hopes that for many, owning a high-priced phone will become a status symbol, much like owning a luxury car. In short, having an iPhone X broadcasts prestige, prominence and stature. … Read The Rest

Yes, it’s already mid-October. No, you’re not the only one asking, “How did that happen?” The holidays are right around the corner, and they seem to come earlier each year. One question I often get at this time of year is, “Are holiday marketing efforts worth it?” The answer is, yes and no.

The holidays give you an excellent opportunity to strengthen client relationships and stay top-of-mind. But marketing materials that are too salesy often fall flat or, worse, are a complete turnoff. Holiday cards are not brochures. … Read The Rest

Self-employed lawyers rely heavily on their ability to propel their businesses forward — more so than lawyers employed by others or partners of large firms. Fail to keep the engines going and your practice will close. Too much propulsion, however, and you might have the opposite problem: a practice thriving beyond your capacity to handle it. Fear of success holds many of us back from fulfilling our true potential in solo and small firm practice. … Read The Rest

If you’ve got a certain word or phrase, formatted or not, that you type over and over, and it’s driving you crazy, here’s a Microsoft Word AutoCorrect hack you’re going to love. Creating legal documents often involves some really fiddly typing. Long party names, repetitive phrases, all that Latin … it can all get a little frustrating. But a lot of Word users don’t know they can hack the same dictionary Word uses to automatically correct typos and use it as an automated text expander. … Read The Rest

Converting a Word document to PDF is an essential Word skill, especially if you’re dealing with courts that require e-filing. Make that frequent task a one-click operation by adding Publish as PDF to your Quick Access Toolbar. … Read The Rest