All posts by : Lawyers With Purpose

I am excited about the upcoming Enhancement Retreat. Not only will it allow me to get out of my pajamas and put on “big-girl clothes” (those who work from home offices will understand the importance of that!) but this year we are doing some things that are new and exciting! I was asked to share what I’m most looking forward to about the retreat, and I honestly could not settle on only one thing. So, I’m going to cheat and say what I’m most looking forward to is the entire Day 2 of the program!

This year, we are allowing team members to have a session of their own away from the attorneys. So, while the lawyers are reviewing in-depth legal technical information (which is usually incredibly interesting to them and puts the team into a coma-like state) we will be “doing our thing” as team members in a different room.

The more I work with attorneys, the more I realize their mindset is drastically different from that of the support team. The overall goal and commitment is the same, but even after 15 years in this industry, the vast difference in perspective still surprises me at times. Having a separate session for team members is going to allow us to explore their mindset and support their needs directly.

We’ll be covering a lot on this day, but the three things I’m most excited about, and that I think will make the biggest difference for team members, are:

1. What is YOUR story and how is this conveyed by the role you fill? So often a firm’s marketing and message revolve around the attorneys and why they do what they do. Today, we will take a look at why team members do what they do, and how that makes a difference for the clients you serve. I know that sounds mushy, and some of you are surely thinking, “I don’t need to know why – I just do my job and I do it well!” But it is important. We spend too much time at work to not connect the dots on what it’s all really for. For example, I’ve stayed in the estate planning industry, in some way or another, for over 15 years. (Ouch! It hurts to count those years up, but considering my 20 year high school reunion just passed, the numbers don’t lie!) By mid-morning every team member will connect with why they do what they do, and what all the effort is for. Sometimes you need to know that to deal with getting through the tough and stressful times.
2. I also cannot wait for the afternoon of team day. We have some incredibly smart and innovative team members across the country in the LWP community. We are going to break into groups based on your role in your firm and lead conversations about how you succeed there. Funding coordinators will talk with other funding coordinators; drafting coordinators will share with other drafting coordinators; client service coordinators will connect with other client service coordinators, and so on. Putting all that brain power and experience together will result is some powerful learning.
3. One of the things about team day that will make a huge difference in the day-to-day life of support team members is the level of detail we will go through regarding the LWP process. Whereas attorneys need to understand it and know how to conduct the workshops and meetings, team members need an entirely different level of detail to be able to confidently do their jobs without chasing their tail all day. What do you print for meetings? What is the follow-up? Where do you find the items you need? What goes in the file? We will even be providing sample client “cheat sheets” so you can see what goes where.

We will cover all these details so you can go back to your firm and reduce the stress and confusion you can sometimes experience when you are implementing a system.

I love that in this retreat, attorneys and their team members will start off together, break apart for a day to receive training for their respective needs, then end together again with a powerful planning day. Members will connect, train and then put it all together in an action plan for 2014 so they can hit the ground running. I’m excited and I hope to see you there.

Are you registered for our 2013 Member Enhancement Retreat? If not, there is still time to invest in your firm, in your team and in your upcoming year. The hotel is sold out but we have made accommodations with another hotel and shuttle services. Click here. Register today.

Laney Lyons-Richardson, Implementation Coach for Lawyers with Purpose, LLC, and author of Don’t Be a Yes Chick: How to Stop Babysitting Your Boss, Transform Your Job and Work with a Dream Team Without Losing Your Sanity or Your Spirit in the Process.

What is the greatest success you’ve had since joining LWP?

We were able to increase our revenues with the support of LWP and by following the LWP systems and processes.  Our success enabled us to add an additional team member.  This addition of another team member is helping us to more fully implement the Referral Management System (RMS), expand our marketing efforts, and keep our promises to our clients.

What is your favorite LWP tool?

Tough question.  My number one favorite is the Asset Protection Analysis Interview that results in the creation of four (4) extremely helpful asset risk/protection documents.  A very close second is the Estate Plan Audit that facilitates a very thoughtful discussion with prospective clients that helps them realize that there are solutions to their estate planning concerns, lets them know that we are very thorough, and instills confidence in our firm.

How has being part of LWP impacted your team and your practice?

We know that if we anchor to the systems and processes we will continue to succeed.  We don’t have to survey the entire landscape and try things to see what works.  We have the benefit of the decades of estate planning experience of the LWP team, particularly including the implementation coaches who have been so very supportive and helped us beyond measure.  Finally, we have the LWP Listserv as well as the weekly Live List Serve, and the LWP members we have come to know at the Graduate Enhancement Retreats that we can confer with to be sure that we are doing the best for our clients.

Do you find your role as a leader sometimes exhausting?

It may be because you are managing, not leading, which is a huge distinction. It’s a slippery slope to be an individual whom provides leadership and direction and one who takes on motivating other people and enrolling them into a greater life – day in and day out. It’s the key difference between managing versus leading.

You might be in a management role, which means you have specific job duties and results to achieve. However, you don’t ever want to find yourself “managing” employees if you are working for an entrepreneur. Entrepreneurs are in the business of change that is an absolute. Until you can truly understand and embrace that, you will find yourself feeling like you are “on the hamster wheel” every day trying to manage people and goals that are ever-changing.

People need to manage themselves. You can hold them accountable to the results they are supposed to achieve, but the team needs to come with “batteries included.” It is one thing to train a team member, help them solve a problem, or give them advice. It’s totally separate and not advisable to convince them they want to be on your team. Trying to motivate, encourage learning and find ways to grow while trying to make a moody or negative team member happy and see the positive will simply waste your time and emotional energy.

Running around managing and motivating your team allows you to become their emotional crutch. They will lean on you for inspiration, and when you can’t provide it, they will quit and leave. And when they leave, they leave you with a team of others who you may have neglected and who now see they get more attention and allowance with negative and non-productive energy.

It’s your job to provide leadership (what direction should they be working towards, a common goal and a vision they can buy into) but the team needs to bring their “batteries” to the table. This means coming with solutions to problems, not just complaints, and taking a stand for what the company is about and trying to achieve – for themselves, for their team and for your clients.

If you are ready to stop giving pep talks and start creating an empowered team who comes to work every day ready to solve problems and achieve goals, join us for the LWP Practice Enhancement Retreat. Day 2 has a full team track training day on Performance Driven Solutions – How to Have Control in Your Role, Versus Letting it Control You. Register Today!