Google Drive, through Docs, Sheets or Slides, has given users a free way to create documents, share them and allow multiple users to edit simultaneously or asynchronously. So, how would you use this? Say you are on a conference call discussing the language of a document. In Google Drive, everyone on the call can see the document in real time and make edits as discussed. Or, during a meeting your assistant can be taking minutes, and the meeting attendees can correct them in real time. READ THE REST

Some years ago, I conducted a half-day workshop on business development at an AmLaw 100 firm's retreat. I closed the session by saying the following: “If you don’t remember anything else we have discussed in the last three hours, please just remember one word." Then I printed the word in great big letters on the flip chart — and explained what it stood for. ... READ THE REST

When I see other lawyers trying to be perfect, I want to help them. More often than not, it's a female lawyer who is also a mother, trying to be everything to everyone all the time. I want to stop and give her a pat on the back. Or maybe even a hug. This lawyer is clearly suffering from what I call, “I-Must-Be-Perfect.” Fortunately, I do not suffer from this affliction. I am more of the, “Look, I’m Doing the Best I Can, So Back Off” type. ... READ THE FRIDAY FIVE

In yesteryear, if you wanted to circulate news, you yelled it over the fence. In two minutes your neighbor had all of it. In 20 minutes it was around the block, and in two hours it was all over town. Fast-forward. In the 1980s, corporate communicators relied on faxed press releases and wire services such as PR Newswire and Business Wire to disseminate need-to-know news. Now, the 24-hour news cycle, the Internet, mobile technology and social media have changed the public relations landscape entirely. We’re back to yelling over the fence, but now the whole neighborhood hears you. So, do lawyers today need to pay distribution wire services — at $2 a word — to spread their announcements? Borrowing a line you’ve heard from countless lawyers, "That depends." Let’s consider some scenarios and strategies. READ THE REST

No one would describe "The Future of the Professions: How Technology Will Transform the Work of Human Experts" as a light and frothy read. We are huge fans of Richard Susskind’s previous books and his evolving thoughts about the future of the legal profession. In this latest book, he and his son Daniel, a lecturer in economics at Oxford University, look across all the professions to see what the future might hold. For us, there is a kind of complex crystal ball embedded in this book. Lawyers would be well advised to heed the Susskinds’ view of the future, which we find extremely compelling. ... READ THE REST

Sponsored. Amicus Attorney, the leading developer of practice management software for lawyers, has announced the launch of Amicus Premium 2016, the latest release of one of the most widely used programs in the legal community. This release contains a multitude of new features and advances that will further improve performance and profitability for legal professionals. ... READ THE REST

Caution: Mature Content. Yes, yes, I do want you to stop. A recurring theme of “Get to The Point” is that even if some of your listeners or readers are fine with your language usage, if a speech mannerism will offend others, don’t use it. That issue dominated the national news recently when Donald Trump stated that Barack Obama “schlonged” Hillary Clinton in 2008. They tell me that due to an early childcare situation, I spoke Yiddish before I spoke English. Though I’ve forgotten most of it now, I still know a noun from a verb, and I certainly know when I hear a synonym for the male sexual organ.

How best to manage time? Making the most of your time — your most precious resource — results in a truly balanced life: You enjoy your work life and you enjoy your personal life. What lawyers do is hard. No matter what the clock says, the legal work must always be done. That’s your commitment […]

Valentine’s Day is on the horizon and stores are filled with overpriced flowers and red and pink candy shaped like hearts. In honor of this Hallmark holiday, my editors asked me, “How do you show love to clients?” (I assume by “love” they mean “appreciation.”) My first thought was, “If you need a holiday to remind you to tell people that you appreciate them, you’re doing it wrong.” Appreciation and gratitude should be free-flowing every day to everyone who contributes to your happiness and success. ... READ THE REST

A prospective client has identified three lawyers whom she believes possess the expertise and standing to solve her problem. The good news is that you’re one of them, and 10 minutes from now she’ll be sitting in your office to interview you. The less-good news? You don’t know much about her beyond whatever dry information a Google search and her LinkedIn profile revealed.