Sometimes You Have to Spend Money to Make Money
As a lawyer, you identify with being a professional. Strongly and consistently. Perhaps, not as much with being a business person (even if you play a leadership role at your firm)?
Most of the time, that’s just fine. Some of the time, it’s not.
If you don’t see yourself as a business person, not meeting practice goals can become frustrating:
- We used to get a steady stream of referrals. Where have they gone?
- We have a good reputation among our network. Why aren’t we receiving more resumes from talented recruits?
- We hired good people. Why isn’t morale higher?…
You may need help with marketing, leadership, operations, human resource management… But you may not be sure which issue is the most pressing. Or how to even get started. Do you need to embark on a planning exercise? Hire a consultant? Bring new skills in-house?
While it may be easier to simply focus on your work and your clients, good business people know that’s simply not enough. Sometimes, you need to spend money to make money.
So, this week’s tip is about remembering that you aren’t just a lawyer. You’re also, from time-to-time, a business person. And if your firm needs some assistance, it’s your job to investigate what, how and who can help. You don’t need to have the answers all of the time. You just need to find people that do, get through that initial learning curve and set up systems that will allow you to monitor… progress!
Start the discussion!