Teddy Snyder | Don’t be tempted to use a fancy word when a plain one will do.

For many young lawyers, dictation evokes images of dusty credenzas covered with tape recorders and microphones. But while today’s lawyers tend to be much more tech-savvy than past generations, they still use their voices to accomplish a lot every day. Dictation has evolved and become an active part of productive law firms. In fact, modern dictation tools are both easily available and completely intuitive as apps for smartphones or tablets. Here are five ways dictation technology can help you to operate more efficiently and improve your billable hours.

Meyling Ly Ortiz | Law firms often miss the mark — presuming they spend any time at all mentoring young associates — with teaching timekeeping.

Get to the Point! Don’t you hate it when something comes out of your mouth that makes your listener hesitate or give you a funny look?

Analog Attorney | Keeping a commonplace book helps you be more interesting.

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.

Bull Garlington | Five apps to help you sleep by listening to the voices you already trust.

Reporting another lawyer’s misconduct can bring on a mix of emotions. If the other lawyer is your adversary and you’ve been battling in the gutter, a bar complaint may be exactly what you wish on this person. Lawyers know a lot of lawyers, though, and we get a lot of insight into each other’s lives through our professional and personal interactions. There are likely many lawyers you'd rather not report to the bar, knowing that a bar complaint is a ticket to havoc being wreaked on a lawyer’s life. So are you obligated to report another lawyer if you know about an instance of attorney misconduct? ... READ THE REST

Be a small-town Lawyer: Many rural areas have a shortage of lawyers. No one needs to remind law students and recent law school graduates about the dismal job market. Only 85 percent of the class of 2012 found a job of any kind post-graduation — and only 64 percent of those jobs required bar passage, […]

Here are seven tried-and-true tactics along with real-world applications that help lawyers differentiate themselves.