LMME 061 : How to prepare your law firm for the unexpected...

In today's episode, I wanted to reflect on some of the personal struggles I had to deal with last month in the wake of my Mom's passing. As a solo attorney, dealing with a major life event such as the death of a loved one, divorce, prolonged illness or any number of other issues can have a huge impact on your life and your livelihood.

Today I will be discussing how I dealt with the loss of my mother from the perspective of a law firm owner, and how you can prepare yourself, now, for one of these horrible and unexpected life events.

Enjoy!

Right click here to download the mp3

Items Mentioned in the Podcast

• MyCase - The case management system I use.
• Box.com - My online file repository.
• Dropbox - Used to hold and backup private files that I don't want to share with others, or for podcasts that I need to share with staff.
• Google Drive - Can be used to maintain files online. Completely free.
• Slack for messaging between you and staff
• Traffic and Conversion Summit 2016

Another resource to consider: 10 Benefits of Moving to a Paperless Law Office

In this particular episode, you will learn:

Eight steps you can take to prepare yourself for the unexpected, including:

1. Be Prepared. Have some money in savings to draw on when the unexpected happens.
2. Keep everyone in the loop (clients, opposing attorneys, the courts, etc.). Cancel or reschedule appointments as appropriate.
3. Recurring Revenue. Start thinking about how you can bring a subscription model into your law practice to even out cash flows when times get tough.
4. Become location independent. If you don't already have access to your law practice remotely, start thinking about how you can put systems in place that allow you to continue to practice from anywhere on Earth.
5. Think of your law practice as a business that exists without you. Start to build a practice that works when you aren’t there – this is the essence of a true business.
6. What if you don't have enough cash?  If you don’t have enough cash flow to pay everything, put off the non-essential bills for a couple weeks. Contact your vendors and let them know what is going on.
7. When the dust settles... Re-evaluate your practice and your systems. Revisit your goals and make sure you stay on track. This experience can completely unravel some attorneys – some may decide it is time to close up shop (and that may be the best option for may lawyers), but others will thrive in the wake of this experience.
8. Take as much time as you need. The cases and clients will still be there when you get through this. Make sure you take the time you need to recover mentally or to be with loved ones.

Action Items

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