For tips on how to be successful as a partner, read my latest article in the July/August 2007 issue of the ABA’s Law Practice Magazine titled It’s Only Just Begun: Strategies for Staying Successful as a New Partner. Despite the title, both new and experienced partners can benefit from these tips.
As I wrote in my article Seven Steps for Maintaining Motivation, many lawyers struggle to stay motivated. However, finding motivating tools or props can help to propel a lawyer forward.
In his new blog Thoughtful Legal Management, David Bilinsky, discusses how preparing a law practice budget can also be motivating. A budget not only gives a lawyer a clear idea of his/her income and expenses, but also helps a lawyer to visualize the future.
As David explains in his July 17 post, “the process of drafting your business plan and putting numbers into your budget spreadsheet takes you into a visioning mindset - where you contemplate your future and your place in it. You take charge of the future that you wish to have.” Several of my clients have used the budgeting process and accompanying visualization to spur them on; for example, one client was motivated to revitalize his firm’s website, and another to launch a global client development strategy.
Lawyers trying to grow international practices particularly benefit from budgeting. Whether you are a big firm lawyer or a solo, a government lawyer or an in-house attorney, international business travel and related expenses really impact your practice’s bottom line. Budget for the sum that you expect to incur, and be prepared to defend the necessity of this expenditure to your boss–even if you are a solo and the boss is You. Then envision yourself growing your international practice to–and perhaps beyond–what you have already envisioned.
Check David’s new blog regularly for more ideas. I had the pleasure of meeting him last fall in Vancouver (my birthplace) at an ABA Law Practice Management conference, and subsequently writing a few articles for the ABA’s Law Practice magazine, which he edits.
International lawyers of various nationalities email me for rainmaking tips. Often they are working in countries other than their homelands, such as Indian attorneys practicing in the United States, German lawyers working in Argentina, or American attorneys practicing in Hong Kong.
Regardless of your national heritage, your background can be a real client development asset in that it gives you a unique perspective–and perhaps an advantage over–equally qualified attorneys with a different heritage. Your background must be a compliment to (but not subsitute for) stellar legal skills, and so showing a prospective client that you have the requisite legal acumen is key.
Last week Donald Prophete of Ogletree Deakins explored this topic with Michael Cummings through The Law Marketing Portal, As an African-American partner in his law firm, he routinely thinks about this topic. Prophete notes that after he establishes his value with a potential client, ”my heritage may be an asset because it can be an advantage for me over other attorneys they may be considering for the work. So, my diverse background complements the business value I provide.”
Similarly, international lawyers may find that they share the same national heritage as certain prospective clients, or that their heritage gives them particular insights into the project at hand–or even the clients on the other side.
Regardless, use your national heritage to your advantage. If you are located abroad, be sure and network with other nationals of your heritage who may become good referral sources. Expats often enjoy connecting with expats from the same country. And as Prophete suggests, look for other professionals of your heritage to mentor you as you grow your practice, even if they work in different fields. This holds true for lawyers both in and outside private practice.
How do your clients speak about you? For example, if someone asked them to describe you, which two or three adjectives would come to their minds? If you don’t know, then you should ask.
One of my clients found out–to her horror— that her clients considered her as “tardy”. She had fallen into the habit of over promising the speed at which she could deliver her work product. She knew that her clients didn’t need their work that fast, but she wanted to impress them. Needless to say she failed to meet those deadlines–often.
The problem was that by promising them a quick turn around, her clients counted on it. Failing to meet her artificially early deadlines actually eroded her brand. However, thanks to her clients’ input, she changed her behavior and salvaged her reputation.
If you do not know what your clients think about you, ask them. Solicit input via email from 10-20 colleagues and clients and ask them to respond with 5-10 words or phrases that describe you. Specifically ask them for both both positive and negative feedback. (If necessary, explain that it’s a branding exercise required by your coach, management or other partners). The feedback will be enlightening, and will allow you to correct some unhelpful traits–ones you may not realize bothered your clients.
I’ve spent several days over the past week training some wealth management advisors at Goldman Sachs on Rainmaking in a Global Economy. Like top performing lawyers, these advisors are bright, motivated and hardworking. And, like top performing lawyers, these advisors also benefit from defining their ideal clients very carefully.
Because GS clients must have a certain net worth to become a client, up front the GS advisors need to (1) define and pursue appropriate clients, and (2) graciously refer others to a different wealth management advisor if the fit isn’t right.
Lawyers can learn a lot from this approach. The diligent GS folks do lots of preliminary research about their potential clients to find the ideal ones. Too many lawyers hang out their shingle and take whatever walks in the door. Others rely on their law firms to do the requisite screening, and end up with clients that would be better served by another attorney.
The more clearly a lawyer can define his or her ideal client, the more successful that lawyer will be in finding them. Defining clients by industry, size, type of legal matter, experience, geographic scope and other criteria all help to paint a clear picture of an attorney’s ideal client. Charting this data will also enable the lawyer to see common characteristics among his or her best clients, and then focus future rainmaking on potential clients with those traits. It’s also a good idea to identify which kind of clients he or she actually enjoys working with most.
Lawyers also need a list of names of other competent counsel to refer business to–within and without their firm. That way, when a potential client isn’t ideal, or a conflict arises, the lawyer can graciously refer the client on but keep good relations. (In other words, the lawyer is acting as a helpful ”connector”, as Malcolm Gladwell discusses in The Tipping Point.)
Keeping a list of qualified international attorneys capable of handling cross-border issues is especially important for lawyers working globally. Potential clients can probably find another local lawyer to represent them in a domestic matter, but will have more difficulty finding another experienced attorney with true cross-border knowledge. Make yourself a valuable information source, whether you are performing the legal work yourself or referring it to someone who can.
