Managing Time Effectively for Small Firms and Solo Attorneys
There are good time management tips on the web but if you want to learn how to manage your time, get someone who can take care of the business aspect of your firm. Prioritize business consultancy and, eventually, you will be able to manage work hours and quickly do what needs to be done.
Unsurprisingly, the most productive individuals can accomplish more because they know how to set aside or delegate not only non-priorities but those that are better entrusted to others. Effective time management techniques will prevent you from feeling distracted or overwhelmed during the workday.
Establishing routines and effectively managing time can be difficult for many, but it is not entirely impossible. Richard James can provide reliable consulting and marketing solutions for your business.
US Law Firm Management and Prioritizing to Get Work Done
An effective manager is a successful manager, and accomplishing tasks is easier if you use your time wisely. Keep in mind that effectively managing your law firm will allow you to be successful and your legal business to be more productive and profitable.
An excellent sales system allows you to achieve our ultimate goal, which is Freedom. However, while managing sales is important, so is managing time. Make sure you are getting things done by making it a point to write down set goals.
Communicate your concerns with good managers who have extensive experience with US law firm management and can help you make decisions wisely. Start by scheduling a consultation with a legal systems expert like Richard James.
The Value of an Excellent Time Management System
One of the most effective time management tools is to-do lists, which are weapons against distractions. They let you improve time management skills because you'll learn to say no to unimportant time wasters, deadlines that are not urgent, or any other distraction.
You will likely have a lot of questions. Do I have high-priority meetings today? Are there urgent decisions that must be made? What paperwork must be signed before the end of the day? The first step to knowing how to manage time effectively is knowing how to schedule the workload that you must get done.
Some people with outdated management strategies believe that multitasking is always necessary to get things done. However, there will be no need for this if you are efficiently delegating smaller tasks. Through expert business consultancy, you can avoid interruptions, improve your management skills, and effectively manage your time better.
Lessons from an EA Nation Queue Post
In this article, I will refer to a previous EA Nation Queue Post from a Partners Club Captain. Here he asks how to tell the difference between a temporary surge and business from sustained growth. You will notice from my response, I did not quite answer his question regarding the surge in business vs. the sustained growth. Instead, I identified how to fix his recurring problem.
What I find to be true as a business owner is a question that I think I need answered is not always the best solution for my business. When I turn to my peers, I often hear an answer I was not necessarily expecting. That may have been the case here. What I LOVE about the questions, though, is he starts by listing the KPI’s that are relevant to this conversation.
Client:
Hey All, I’m wondering if I'm experiencing a temporary surge or sustained growth and thought I would share some numbers.
- YTD qualified leads up 33.33% from 38.25 per month to 51
- YTD hires up 22.8% over this time last year
- YTD hires average case value (ACV) up 10.23% from 3,099.39 to 3,418.21
- YTD filings (Work Flow) only up 2.4% from 41 to 42 (not sure if the result of attrition or because my pipeline was thin a few months ago)
- YTD filings (Work Flow) in WDMO (Joe’s Market area) are down 9.7% from 1150 to 1040
I need to do some more analysis on the realization rate and tighten my budget to keep more of that cash. But I'm thinking these numbers are pointing towards sustained growth.
I am back to my recurring problem of spending all of my time signing appointments and 341s, so I do not have time for consultations. I need to have 10 consults scheduled each week for my conversion percentages to give me my target number of filed cases. That means I need to either:
- hire an associate to take 341s and sign appointments,
- start using staff for consultations to open the inventory,
- reduce my time in the consultation/signing appointments to open inventory,
- improve my conversion rates to make better use of existing inventory, or
- all of the above
I appreciate any suggestions for a quick fix and look forward to your response.
Richard James:
What a wonderful (or terrific or super) question. First and foremost, congratulations on the increase across the board! As you may have guessed, I believe sales to be the tip of the spear. Without sales, the business cannot grow and will ultimately choke on fixed expenses.
In a nutshell, I believe we save our way to solvency and sell our way to success! That means my focus would be on the consulting room. I want to replace you in a role that requires you to be highly reactive and allow the firm to maximize the realized revenue every week.
The problem is, in your current formula, the busier you become, the fewer available slots you have to meet with new potential clients. Or, if you do maintain the existing allotted new IC slots every week, either the workflow will suffer or your personal life will suffer. It is time to move you out of the consulting room.
This will allow you to maintain a steady level of new clients retaining the firm, serve those clients at a high level, and maintain your family life. Additionally, you will earn more profit, which will allow you to hire support staff and invest in additional marketing, thus enabling you to help more families while gaining ground on obtaining your freedom.
If it were my firm, here’s what I’d do:
Ensure I had enough inventory of IC’s available each week to hit my financial sales goals based on my show and close rate and client value. I would do that by:
Triage:
First, hire a contract 341 attorney to fill in for you. This will free up time for you to sit in on consults while you work to replace yourself in that role.
I’d do my best to personalize the introduction between my client and the contract attorney. I would even go as far as to provide a picture to both parties (we did this in Phoenix). I also obtained an email address for the contract attorneys we hired so it appeared as if they were still working with our firm. And, we were sure that the client and the contract attorney had each other’s cell phone numbers. This was easily automated in Infusionsoft.
Replace yourself in the consulting room:
Use existing staff (ONLY if they can sell and have been trained as a salesperson) or hire a new non-attorney salesperson. Until you hire/appoint that person, you’ll use the free time from the lack of 341s to meet with us.
Once you have replaced yourself in the consulting house, until the increased revenue is realized, and the additional cash is in the bank, time for the next move. Hire an associate who can replace the contract labor for the 341s and some of your legal roles in-house, so you can focus more attention on growing and managing the firm.
It goes without saying, but I’ll say it anyway for the benefit of everyone reading this article. I would also:
- Maximize my fees.
- Ensure I’m being paid.
- Focus like a laser on conversion through the PCLC.
- Measure client satisfaction.
- Hope that helps.
Contact us at Richard James, Your Practice Mastered
One thing I often remind Partners Club members is that good marketing is fifty percent math, thirty percent systems, and only twenty percent new ideas. Marketing activities encompass advertising and sales, and effective marketing bridges the gap between the two. Getting a business consultancy and marketing specialist will make US law firm management a lot less stressful for you. Connect with potential clients and show them that you really know what you are doing.
If you want to have your best month ever, contact our legal management consultant Richard James or schedule a 1-on-1 consulting today.
