Happiness in Law is Your Own Book of Business By Sheryl A ...

Happiness in Law is Your Own Book of BusinessBy Sheryl A. OdentzAs attorneys move up the ranks in their law firms, the rules change. Technical proficiencybecomes only one of a number of factors by which they are evaluated. Their ability to generatework to keep themselves and others busy becomes ever more important. It is the key to the lawfirm profitability. Law may still be a profession, but it has also become a big business. Theeconomics are simple: law firms cannot generate million dollar plus profits per partner withoutleverage. Someone has to bring in the business that supports that leverage. Those attorneysown the law firm. They make the rules. They decide who stays, who goes and why.Law firm economics are a zero sum game: the revenue necessary to compensate an attorneywho services clients must be generated by an attorney who originates clients. Life becomesever so much easier when an attorney is regarded as a source of income rather than anexpense by his or her peers and supervisors.Any attorney planning to make a career in a private law firms setting who wants to manage –rather than be managed by – his or her own environment should think about developing theirown book of business.This article focuses on what attorneys should be thinking about during the initial stages ofbecoming a business generator.Myth vs. RealityThe first question attorneys generally ask themselves when they start to think about generatingbusiness is whether they have the aptitude for it. Many of them think they do not. In myexperience, some attorneys have a greater aptitude for it than others, but everyone can learn todevelop business to some degree. So you can do it!The rule of thumb is to be yourself. There are all kinds of business generators: male, female,senior, junior, festive, reserved, Ivy League-educated, regionally-educated, etc. The mostimportant concept is that whatever clients are looking for, if you are genuine, then you will beattractive to a certain segment of those clients. You do not have to appeal to everyone. If youtried, you would fail.For some of you, your stellar credentials are important, but alone are not enough in this hypercompetitivelegal market to attract marquee clients. Most clients assume that you (or your firm)possess the knowledge, qualifications, and experience, except in a few niche areas of practice,to perform the job. Even being incredibly responsive to your client’s needs is not enough; theyexpect that. So what is important to clients?Progress in Work, a career management firm for the legal profession, conducted a survey ofcorporate consumers who buy legal services and asked them that very question. The results inno particular order of priority: 1) trustworthiness and credibility, 2) friendship and easy

a client or potential client in the span of an elevator ride from the lobby of a building to let’s saythe 30 th floor.Who Do You Know?According to consultant Harry Mills, the author of The Rainmaker Toolkit, the chances of sellingto (i) an existing client are better than one in two; (ii) the chances of selling to a former client areone in three; and (iii) the chances of successfully selling to a fresh prospect are one in eight. Ifyou are very junior, you probably do not have existing clients that you have originated. If you aremore senior, there is a better chance that you do. Start to take stock of people you know whoare consumers of legal services or who know consumers of legal services of the type youprovide. Create a networking list, which you can divide into three categories:Prospect – A prospect is any person who can or will buy your legal services now or inthe relatively near future because they have a problem that needs to be solved.Prospects provide most of the opportunities and should be visited and contacted mostoften.Connector – A connector is any person who can or will buy legal services now or atsome point in the near future. They are any person who knows other people in yourtarget market and whom you are prospecting. Connectors are visited less often thanprospects and provide average size opportunities.Alliance Partner – An alliance partner is any person who sells complementary servicesor offerings and who shares your target focus. Smaller opportunities exist with alliancepartners.In conclusion, developing a book of business can take a long time to master. But the good newsis no matter how junior or senior you are, it is never too late to learn.Sheryl Odentz is the founder and president of Progress in Work LLC, a career management firm forattorneys focusing on business development training/coaching, executive coaching, career counselingand outplacement. sodentz@progressinwork.com or www.progressinwork.com.