We all have habitual ways of relating to other people, and chances are your habits haven't changed much over the years. So ask yourself, does the way you communicate and behave foster positive relationships with clients, colleagues, family and friends — or send them running for the nearest exit? Try applying these five tips and see if it improves how you connect with people — and how you feel about yourself, too. 1. Take a good look at yourself. Does it seem like you're always crossing wires and failing to connect with the people in your life? Look back on your last three encounters with clients or colleagues. ... READ THE REST

There are countless ways lawyers can and do compete with one another for work. We have price — what work costs; process — how work is performed; personality — the lawyer’s and her firm’s; place — one’s geographic location; principles — “honesty,” “integrity,” “work ethic.” Those and countless others that don’t start with “p” are all characteristics that lawyers emphasize in an effort to differentiate themselves.

Ask the Experts: A partner from a local firm is joining our practice. Can you give some good tips on integrating a new lateral hire into our firm?

It's unavoidable. If the goal you and your colleagues have set for your firm is a high rate of growth, you are going to be banging your heads against a wall every day. So it’s important to know up front whether that wall is made of bricks or gold. Will the gain be worth the pain? These are the 10 steps I used to accelerate growth at a previous employer from start-up to nearly $1 billion a year — and use today with TheFormTool. While no approach to business will work in every circumstance, these steps are highly adaptable to a law firm — whether a national firm or a solo practice. Depending on the size and complexity of your practice, these steps could take days, weeks or months to fully implement. But if growth is your target, it will be worth it. ... READ THE REST

What’s the biggest predictor of a law firm’s success? Hint: It’s not the firm’s bottom line.  1. Clients are canaries. Research into seven failed professional services firms, four of which were law firms, indicates declining client satisfaction is an early predictor of a firm’s demise. Likening clients to “canaries that were used in coal mines to detect […]

Sometime before the Great Recession (Depression?), there existed a quaint notion that people could stop working — at least some of the time. Over the course of recent years, however, the line of argumentation has advanced, with advocates of a new wave going about convincing everyone that there is really no such thing as what had been termed work-life balance. There is only your life, intrinsically and hopelessly wrapped around both personal and professional entanglements, at any and all times.

Billing. It’s not something we like to talk about, but it is something lawyers have to do regularly, so it deserves some attention. Making sure you capture all of your billable time and produce clear, coherent invoices for it helps ensure you get paid the fees you have earned. Here are three tips to help sharpen your billing pencil and even get more billable work out of your day. ... READ THE REST

As we enter the heart of summer, pleasant weather ramps up the frequency of cookouts and other casual events. We find ourselves spending less time with business contacts and more with family, neighbors and friends. Often that includes people with whom we also wish to do business. This can raise the "social dilemma." How do you pursue the opportunities that relaxed conversations reveal without seeming to unfairly exploit the friendship or occasion? Five steps to remember ... READ THE REST

In their written communications, lawyers need to use the right words and the right number of words in the right way. If you circumvent your content, malign your meaning, dangle your modifiers or otherwise mangle your sentences, you might very well alienate your partners, anger your clients or annoy the judge and jury. But let’s put this in positive terms. If you can write clearly, concisely and correctly, you can impress your partners, engage your clients and win over the judge and jury. Lawyer, writer and writing instructor Gary Kinder has taught more than 1,000 writing programs at law firms nationwide — to rave reviews. He knows the difference between clean, clear and crisp writing and muddled muck. Unfortunately, too often he sees the latter coming from lawyers, especially young attorneys. “Often first- and second-year associates try too hard to write like, well, lawyers,” Kinder says. ... READ THE REST

The wait to hear about an online job application is often too long, and the process is often discouraging. If you don’t have a personal connection to the employer, it will be difficult to get through the screening process without matching most of the job's posted requirements. This doesn’t mean you shouldn’t apply if you feel you're a good fit, but rather that you should keep your expectations in check — and try not to do anything that will harm your application. Of course, you should try to find a connection through LinkedIn and your other network. Even if you don't have a connection that will usher your application quickly through the online gauntlet, however, there are things you can do to significantly improve your chances of getting it into the right hands. Below are just a few. READ THE REST