How to be an effective lawyer?
In Law Firms as in any company, there is an underline purpose: a happy customer. Many times, we forget that, and we don’t consider it precisely, the main objective. From that moment begin complaints, anxiety, lack of trust, and in many cases the closing of the contract.
So that this does not happen, anyone who works for a public service must know very well wish are the ways to please the client, and keep the client satisfied.
In the case of lawyers, efficiency is and should be characteristic par excellence. But how can a lawyer increase his level of efficiency? Then I will give some recommendations that after much research seemed the most successful.
- Regardless of what type of lawyer you are, you should not have just billable hours: No attorney would say that he or she enjoys tracking billable time, but most would agree that it’s a necessary evil. To understand where you are squandering valuable hours (if not days), try tracking how you spend all your time, even if you only do it for a week. It is a simple exercise that will show you exactly where you are wasting time.
- Each day, prioritize: Once the phone starts ringing and the inbox starts percolating, it’s not hard to lose sight of what you set out to accomplish that day. As soon as you sit down at your desk, take a few minutes to jot down your top priorities. It will help you subconsciously keep these tasks front and center.
- Upgrade to the experts: Clients come to a lawyer because the lawyers understand the law and they don’t. How much time in a day or week do you spend on things you don’t really understand – and don’t care to? Marketing is the lifeblood of your firm, but many attorneys have little enthusiasm for it. Consider hiring outside help. It can be daunting to sign up for auxiliary services but think of the precious hours you stand to regain.
- Compare notes: If you have a trusted colleague, it can be enlightening to compare your days. There are portions of the workday that can feel like sunk costs. However, you might only see them that way because you don’t see an alternative. Gaining a sense of how someone in a similar position allocates their time can be very eye-opening.
- Experiment with monotasking: Multitasking has become the norm, not the exception. However, some successful businesspeople insist they accomplish more by focusing on one task at a time. Different styles work for different people, but since we all just accept multitasking as the status quo, it might help to try something new. If it means getting more done in less time, it’s certainly worth it.
Many students and professionals, read always about the following: skills to be a good lawyer. But, what does that really mean? It doesn´t always depend on the firm, the company or the school. It depends on the person.
The following are major characteristics that any client would greatly appreciate from his or her attorney:
- Ease of oral expression and mastery of language,
- habit or aptitude for reading comprehension,
- sociability,
- discipline and order,
- flexibility and spontaneity,
- conciliatory and
- diplomatic character.
With most of those qualities, and following the advice, you can easily become in one of the most efficiency lawyers.