A Surprising Secret to Growing Your Firm

Attorneys are really good at the daily grind. We spend a lot of our time working inour businesses, doing things like:

• meeting with clients and prospective clients
• drafting and reviewing documents
• answering questions no one else in the firm is qualified to answer
• staying on top of changes in the law
• keeping documents and forms updated
• putting out the myriad fires that always seem to crop up

Problem is, if you want your law firm to grow, you have to allocate time to step outside the daily grind and work on your business. This is where many attorneys go wrong – they spend all their time at the office working in the business and they become really good lawyers. Then they wonder why, despite their legal expertise, their firm is struggling.

Growing a successful law firm means wearing two hats. You’re a technician who uses your legal knowledge and training to provide valuable services to your clients. But you’re also an entrepreneur, and that means thinking strategically about where your business is now, where you want it to go, and how to get it there.

As counterintuitive as it may seem, the simple act of pressing the hold button on your current to do list and taking a critical look at the current state of your practice can lead to some pretty significant results. Allocating regular time for real-world planning gives you the perspective you need to steer your law firm in the direction you want it to go, rather than reacting day-by-day or minute-by-minute to endless pressures and demands.

Scheduling time on your calendar every day for strategic planning – also known as working on your business – is a foundational step in transforming your practice into a successful law firm.

Sanford M. Fisch
CEO & Co-Founder
American Academy of Estate Planning Attorneys, Inc.
9444 Balboa Avenue, Suite 300
San Diego, California 92123
Phone: (800) 846-1555
www.aaepa.com