Miami Legal Business Development | Branding | Law Firm Coaching | Paula Black

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In the past few posts I have been sharing with you my work as a faculty member at the Managing Partner Forum in St Louis. The highlight... Managing Partner Idea Exchanges. They are insightful conversations among the Managing Partners that gives everyone valuable ideas to take back to their firms.  Aviva Cuyler from JDSupra and I facilitated the small firm group that included firms of up to 40 lawyers.

VISION & STRATEGY. We discussed the various ways that Managing Partners have had success getting started and here are the top five:

1. Think about your vision. Where do you want to be in 5 years? Tomorrow?
2. Set time aside to think about your vision & strategy... plan to plan.
3. Consult with others.
4. Set goals that are concrete, simple and easy to communicate (it should fit on an index card).
5. Understand your position in the marketplace.

Generally the hardest part of any task is getting started and I think our group came up with a good list of things to consider as you embark on your strategic plan. I think there are two items here that are key. The first is - make your strategy simple to communicate... so concise that it could fit on an index card. I know this is a tall order for lawyers... but could be the difference between full engagement of the firm OR not. The second is - understand your position in the marketplace. This is often overlooked, many firms get so caught up in what is good for the firm that they forget to look at the situation from the outside looking in. So, when considering a strategic plan these are two critical steps that could ensure success... good luck!

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Can you believe it... we're halfway through the year.  Are you one of those lawyers that are still talking about 2010 being the year that you will work on business development?

This week we asked: What are you going to do with a few extra minutes?

1. Create a plan - 38%

2. Create a plan AND work the plan - 30%

3. Look for an iced cappuccino - 32%

My Thoughts: 68% of you said you will create the plan with 30% making the commitment to WORK it... good for you!

It's easy to let a few minutes slip away... here and there. Before you know it... it's an hour... then a day... then a month... it adds up. If I had a dime for every time a lawyer told me he/she doesn't have time I would be sitting in the south of France with a glass of wine, NOT sitting at my desk writing this blog. When a lawyer tells me they don't have time... what they are really saying -  I DON'T WANT TO DO BUSINESS DEVELOPMENT... I HATE IT.... I DON'T KNOW WHAT TO DO.  Now be honest... what are YOU really saying?

1. You don't want to do it? You decide... do you want a job or a career?
2. You hate it? Get over it... and find a way to develop business in a way that and you like.
3. You don't know what to do? You learned how to be a lawyer didn't you? Start learning!

"I don't have time" is a story we tell ourselves. If we keep saying it... it will be the truth. What do you want your truth to be?

Legendary UCLA basketball coach John Wooden had this to say about the importance of taking that first step:

"The most important key to achieving great success is to decide upon your goal and launch, get started, take action, move!"

Black Pearl: If you're ready to start developing your marketing plan but don't know how to begin, start by reading my article entitled Every Attorney Needs A Marketing Plan: 7 Easy Steps.

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The summer is here and with it comes somewhat of a slowdown for many practices. So my question to you is what are you going to do with the TIME? Even if it's only 5 or 10 minutes...  Look for an iced cappuccino?

Question of the week: Are you going to make this time count?