Growing law firms need cash, but cash can get tight. All firms should have access to reserve cash, such as a line of credit, but applying for a loan can be nerve-wracking — especially when bankers start throwing out unfamiliar terms. To help with your next loan, here are seven banking terms defined in plain English. Armed with these few phrases, you should be able to hold your own in any loan discussion.

You may find people taking pictures of their device screens with their own (or other people’s) phones. Don’t do that. There’s an easier way. Instead, investigate your device’s built-in ability to take screen shots — also known as screen grabs or screen captures.

We all struggle with conveying complicated ideas, whether in spoken or written communication. The issue is particularly acute in the fields of law and medicine, where professionals work to explain issues and situations in which the audience typically has far less understanding than the professional — and where time is of the essence. Well-constructed analogies are particularly effective in these situations. They perform these vital functions:

This year has seen an explosion of articles about artificial intelligence, technology and innovation, often in the context of transforming the legal profession. The writings have been accompanied by a number of conferences scheduled to address these issues. One upcoming conference is the College of Law Practice Management Annual Futures Conference, scheduled for October 26-27 in Atlanta. One highlight of the Futures Conference is presenting the winners with their InnovAction award.

It has been six years since I wrote my initial list of essential cloud tools for lawyers. Since that time, the cloud has become near-ubiquitous. Attorneys are comfortable with it. The smartphone era relies on it. We’re at the point where we can’t imagine living without it. It was interesting reviewing the list from back then and updating it for the present day. Evernote, MyFax and Efax were booted for various reasons, including lack of relevance and failure to keep up with the times. Dropbox and Rocket Matter still made the list. And the emergence of new, amazing cloud products have made the list fresher and much more exciting. As of late 2017, these are the top essential cloud tools for lawyers.

It’s the old "tree falling in the forest" conundrum: If a lawyer develops expertise, but no one knows about it … are they even an expert? “Becoming an expert” is a great differentiation strategy, but the challenge is making your expertise visible to new clients. Since clients are rarely equipped to judge expertise, your differentiation may go unnoticed by the people who matter most. Which begs the question: Does invisible expertise even exist? If you’re committed to making your legal expertise visible, you won’t have to worry about answering that question.

While you may not be able to control the economy, the legislature, regulations or trends, you may be able to stay one step ahead of them. That’s where the product life cycle comes in. If you understand the product life cycle, you may be able to avoid the valleys and stay ahead of the competition. Don’t be put off by the term “product” — the concept applies to legal services, too.

Your law firm cares about your personal and professional growth. But make no mistake, the law is a business — often a cutthroat one. Your firm has made a big investment in you in terms of salary, benefits, training and overhead. It expects a return on that investment.  As a young lawyer, it’s important to understand your firm’s point of view as to your value, and to a great degree it comes down to dollars and cents.

Given the nonstop, hyped-up headlines, you may worry about competing with a robot for your next job. Rather than fret, why not start investigating ways artificial intelligence technology can give you an edge — both in the job market (somebody needs to know this stuff) and in actually delivering legal services? (Your competition is working on this right now.)

“This is the year.” He sounded casual enough, but I saw the inner force he hoped to screw to the sticking place. “This is the year I finally get out of here and start doing things I love.” We’d been down this road before. The goal is always the same: Leave the firm where he feels tied to work he doesn't enjoy. But extracting himself has proved nearly impossible. Quitting ... anything, is rarely easy. Here are five things that just may get you to hold your nose, close your eyes and take the leap. It’s your time. ...