I was sick last week, so no blog but I did muse. Then I took a friend and went to the beach and this is the result of that musing…..
“DON’T PLAY LEAPFROG WITH A UNICORN”
I came across this saying and thought that the suggestion might be helpful to attorneys. My interpretation, which is always right, is that you shouldn’t engage with someone or thing that might really do you great harm. This brings to mind the defense attorney who just won’t turn away any client even those that are obviously dangerous. Or the family law case in which the client has had 4 prior attorneys and has sued them all.
As attorneys, we need to protect ourselves from those in our society who can cause us more than the normal problems associated with a case. We need the ego strength and our personal greed alert to assist us with getting out of these situations as soon as possible. Or we might get that horn stuck in a very uncomfortable place…..
“DON’T GO TO THE HARDWARE STORE FOR A HAMBURGER”
One of my favorites. For attorneys this pertains mostly in the marketing/network arena. In other words, don’t continue to market to people who are never going to give you leads, let alone support. Don’t spend time or energy on folks who will never take the time to be interested in what you are doing. They may be able to give you a screwdriver but never a hamburger.
Now if you need a screwdriver, you might be in luck but don’t waste the time finding out what they have to offer, if it’s not what you want. To know what you want, you need a marketing plan, have identified your target market and have a clear elevator speech.
“BE UNTO OTHERS AS YOU WISH THEM TO BE UNTO YOU”
This is my interpretation of “do unto others…” If you want someone to be interested in your career and success then you need to be interested in their career and success. This is the solution to people who say they can’t small talk. Small talk equals big rewards because it can turn into big talk. You will never know what the rewards are unless you spend a little time testing the waters.
People have then whined (which you know I hate) that they don’t know what to say to open a conversation for small talking. How about something like “ Has anything new happen in your life last week” or “ What brought you here?” or “ What is your area of practice?” or “Have you been to this event before?”. Smile, that helps and offer them a piece of wrapped chocolate. Big Talk equals Big Rewards.
IT MIGHT BE NICE IF YOU MUSED A LITTLE YOURSELF THIS WEEK. CAN YOU COME UP WITH A SAYING THAT GIVES GOOD ADVICE? SEND IT TO ME AND I WILL PUBLISH IT!!
ALSO, MY NEW LINKEDIN FORUM IS NEEDING NEW MEMBERS. JUST GO TO LINKEDIN “GROUPS” AND SIGN UP FOR ATTORNEYS BUSINESS DEVELOPMENT FORUM and please post a little something.