Law firm profit less work more pay

A couple of thoughts for today…I trust you find them of interest and some stimulation.

The key to an enjoyable life is spending the minimum necessary time in work, effectively, so you can take full advantage of the abundant rest of what life has to offer.

Today life has more to offer than ever before, and work is not an end in itself. It should be as enjoyable and satisfying as possible, but not the purpose of life!

Getting in early, being effective, and getting out at a sensible time is a desirable approach.

Universally when lawyers and other fee-earners in law firms start to capture their valuable FirmTime, their average capture of ClientTime goes up…

Observing this phenomenon for nearly twenty-four years and discussing it with multiple workshop attendees who agree whole-heartedly, the mind turns to the age-old question, “Why”?

The answer lies in the fundamental change from electing what time to record for ClientTime on a file to simply recording the elapsed time.

The cause of this necessary change is recognising FirmTime as a crucial investment in both the necessary “chores” of the day and the essential building of systems and marketing momentum etc for the future.

When it’s seen clearly that some FirmTime can be MORE important than ClientTime the mindset about tracking how you invest it changes completely.

The important thing to remember in planning an allocation of FirmTime for less experienced team members is that their FirmTime should be much less than your own, not more.

Because you tend to keep staff for shorter spans these days it’s vital that they work more effectively than in the past, or you are locked in to failing to earn anything from them before they leave.

Keeping them truly busy for at least their minimum agreed day, on Client files under close guidance, is the key to them actually making you a dollar, and the key to being able to adjust their remuneration upwards in line with their proper expectations, without having to work harder and harder yourself to be able to “afford” to be doing it.

There’s absolutely no future in that approach, yet it is the main approach applied. It’s the fundamental reason that most small-medium legal practices in Australia and New Zealand do not make any genuine commercial profit after allowing a salary to principals.