In order to do law differently you need to let go of traditional ways of working, release yourself from preconceived expectations about what law should look like and think outside the box. 

Here are three mindset shifts I think are essential to transform your practice. 

Sell solutions, not skills 

Client’s don’t want to buy legal services. What they really want, is the result that your services help them to achieve. They want the outcome.  

Do a Google search of your practice area and look at the websites you find. I guarantee the majority of them are not much more than a list of practice areas, skills and expertise. This is wonderful for the lawyers involved, but clients aren’t looking for practice areas, skills and expertise. They’re looking for a solution to their problem. Sure, your skills and expertise might be what gets them that solution, but are they looking for “Commencing an Action”, “Pre-Trial conference”, “Business recoveries” or do they just want to get their invoice paid? 

Work hard once 

Although we’re often described as a profession steeped in tradition and precedent, when it comes to knowledge management, we often let slip. We’re knowledge workers, which means we work with information, much of which is in our heads. What we don’t do so well is record that information in ways that let us use it time and time again.  

Here’s a challenge: every time you learn something new, come up with a clever new tactic or give some nifty advice, ask yourself if there’s a chance that information could come in handy again, either to you or to your team. If the answer is yes, how can you store it so you can easily find it again. 

You don’t need to design a whole knowledge management system to do this. Start simply: 

• Write an article or blog about it for your firm’s intranet 
• If your files are electronic, tag the file with a meaningful tag that you can search or use to refine files in the future 
• Keep a file note with links to documents, advices and files along with a short description  
• Start a precedent library   

Find your niche – and stick to it! 

You can’t be all things to all people and do it well.  

It seems counter-intuitive to design services that appeal to a small, specialised section of the population, but a narrow focus on core business sustains profit and growth.  

In a world where information is free, vast and openly accessible, customers aren’t looking for generalists. They want specialists who know how to implement that information to achieve that solution I spoke about before. 

I see this as a big positive. Take the opportunity to work out what work you enjoy doing and set about narrowing your niche so you can do more of it.  

Ready to simplify your business, escape the billable hour and do more of the work you love? Find out more about my coaching program Productise and Profit! or book a discovery call to learn how productised services can transform your business.