Many lawyers dictate their thoughts into a recording device, then send the recording to an assistant for transcription. This is a great time-saver for the lawyer. But the human transcriptionist today is gradually giving way to computer versions. When I say “gradually,” I mean that digital transcription doesn’t work well in all situations yet. Consider these uses for transcription (they’re listed from easiest to most difficult for computers to understand)

It’s difficult to attend any legal conference these days without hearing about technology and change, but it’s refreshing to discuss these topics with people who actually do the work. Recently, I moderated a panel for an ARK conference, "The New Spectrum of Legal Services," in Chicago. Our focus was the pressures on legal operations and general counsel. Panelists covered technology adoption, partnerships with law firms and information technology departments, plus their future strategic priorities.

Matter Management Checklist. If you took time to pause and write down the activities that take up most of your time during the day what would be at the top of your list? Realistically you are probably dividing your time between billable and non-billable activities every single day. However, your administrative work is probably requiring more of your time than you realize.

James Jones Jr. bumped up against a problem most new lawyers face when he first hung his shingle: where to find clients. That later led to a big idea. After practicing law for a decade, Jones and co-founder Kristina Jones launched Court Buddy in 2015. Their platform uses instant-matching technology to provide a la carte legal services at flat rates to consumers and small businesses. Court Buddy won the 2017 American Bar Association Brown Select Award for Legal Access.

Get to the Point has previously preached that specificity enhances credibility. In fact, I’m working on a cross-stitch with this aphorism to place on the office wall. Using an unsupported superlative flouts this rule.

Blockchains — a sort of digital ledger best known for powering the bitcoin digital currency — have been getting a lot of attention from lawyers for their potential to change how people transact. Specifically, there are a number of software projects aimed at applying blockchains to create self-executing “smart contracts” (or at least trying to). Lawyers often deal with how people transact, so it’s probably a good idea for lawyers to understand blockchains. Understanding blockchains is hard, though, especially when approaching them from a legal standpoint without looking under the hood from a technology standpoint. Here are some of the best resources for understanding blockchains from outside of law.

Most professionals have a complicated relationship with public speaking — particularly if it is a good business development opportunity. On the one hand, you're pretty sure you want this gig. It could be the start of something good for your practice. On the other, it can be darn intimidating when you stand up in front of a crowd knowing they expect you to be the expert. Talk about pressure! It will help you manage your anxiety and do an extraordinary speaking job if you get lots of information up-front. Here are five key questions to ask before you say you’re all in.

Blog posts, podcasts and videos aren’t the only options for sharing content on your law firm’s website and social media platforms. Infographics offer an easy way for readers to review — and quickly grasp — visualized data. They are an engaging way to educate clients and prospects and share your knowledge. To get the most out of infographics, though, you’ll need to follow a few best practices.

A client dinner is a beautiful thing. There’s food and wine and balloons and maybe a small token of appreciation. Somebody makes a speech that mentions “paradigm shift” 31 times and everyone falls asleep. Sometime between the main course and the cheesecake, the phones come out. Then, one by one, the whole room checks out … and you think to yourself, maybe there’s a better way. There is.

You need to have relevant content available online so that when prospects search for information that touches on your specific area of expertise, they’ll be more likely to find you. Whether published articles, guest blog posts, webinars, podcasts, online forums or social media posts, when your experience shows through in your content, it becomes the foundation for effective marketing through thought leadership. This is a highly effective strategy for increasing visibility and accelerating market influence.