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Articles for Lawyers

As a business coach, I've published a number of articles on topics that help professionals become more successful and satisfied with their work. If you want to learn more about me, my professional approach, and how coaching really works, read on.

Carrying Out Your Marketing Plan: How to Meet the Challenge
Actually carrying out a marketing plan is one of the biggest challenges many lawyers face in building their law practices. The following suggestions might help you win this challenge.

Advance Your Referral Development Program
Developing referral sources is a major part of any successful attorney's business development or marketing plan. To make expand the number of people who refer new, quality clients to you and your law firm, you need a referral development plan or program. Use the Referral Cycle actions to cultivate your referral sources.

Checklists: The Basis for Excellence
Checklists are the groundwork for an excellent, well-run practice that is mistake free and less stressful. Set up systems using checklists for every procedure you and your staff do to make sure that every time something is done, it is done consistently and nothing important is forgotten.

Avoid Overwhelm by saying "No"
To avoid being overwhelmed in your law practice set limits and say "no". This article will give you some ideas on what to say no to and how.

Take responsibility for your delegation
Being able to delegate well is one of those skills that makes a lawyer feel great about his or her practice. In my work, I've experienced time and time again lawyers wanting to blame the person to whom the task was delegated for poor results, rather than themselves. Learning the fine art of delegation includes taking responsibility for your delegation skills by becoming aware of the reasons a delegated task did not turn out well, so you can improve.

Great Service Leads to Client Loyalty
The best way to maintain and build your practice is by making sure that your existing clients are happy. Happy clients pay their bills, give you more work and refer you to others. Unhappy clients don't let you know they are unhappy; they just don't ask you to do any more work. They usually just quietly leave. This article is intended to give you some ideas that can help you keep your clients happy and loyal.

Coaching Skills To Manage Your Law practice
Coaching skills are an indispensable tool for managing your law practice. Whether you are a partner in a large firm or a lawyer practicing solo, coaching will help you manage your employees effectively. Coaching, done well, can improve employee performance. You'll succeed in helping the coachee (the person you are coaching) become more aware of their performance, identify problems and develop solutions. This article identifies some of the important coaching skills a manager should develop.

Seven Keys to Effective Communication
Improving your communication skills will let you express yourself with more confidence; more confidence will help you attract more clients and influence your peers and referral sources. Mastering these seven keys will allow you to connect with your clients in a more meaningful way and solve problems more effectively.

End the Aging Process: Control Your Account Receivables
Having a successful law practice includes getting paid promptly. There's little point in working hard, being good and enjoying what you do, if in the end you have cash flow problems because of aging account receivables. This article provides pointers on how on to create a collection policy which will lead to a 100% collection rate of your accounts.

Delegating: An Essential Skill to Lighten Your Load
The art of effective delegation is one of the most important skills a lawyer can learn and master to lighten their load and reduce feelings of being overwhelmed.

Time Management for Lawyers
Use to-do lists, delegate early, say no, plan early and for the unexpected, and be realistic with your promises.

Resolve to Change Your Limiting Beliefs
When having a difficult time changing your actions or behaviors, it may be necessary to go further than just noticing your inability to perform the behavior and go deeper and focus on changing your thoughts. Habits and behaviors arise out of thoughts and feelings. Some thoughts are limiting, and until exposed, block actions.

Obstacles in Marketing: What? I Have to Make Time for That, Too?

Becoming aware of your particular obstacles to marketing can help you eliminate those obstacles. Some common reasons for not finding the time to market your professional law practice include: not having a clear plan, not knowing how to market, procrastinating, fear of doing something you've never done before and putting everything else first.

The #1 Way To Grow Your Practice: Work your existing clients and referral sources!

The #1 way to build your law practice is to develop the relationships you already have with your existing clients. This article includes ideas on how to expand and enhance your business relationships.

Overcoming Procrastination

If procrastination is a problem for you, it is important that you learn tools to handle your procrastination.