Posts in category: Uncategorized

If you’re like me, your e-mail inbox is probably overflowing right now with messages that talk about all of the things that you can do better and “fix” in 2014…Perhaps it’s a gym wanting you to come exercise, a financial advisor with advice on how to get your finances in order, a resort with an invitation to come relax and recharge your batteries… No matter what the directive, it seems like everyone has an idea for what your New Year’s Resolution ought to be.

Well, I’d like to propose something a little different for this year…instead of worrying about what you should be adding to your already busy plate, maybe you should be thinking about what you should quit??

The Freakonomics blog touched on this very topic in 2011, and I think that their message was spot on:

"To help us understand quitting, we look at a couple of key economic concepts in this episode: sunk cost and opportunity cost. Sunk cost is about the past – it’s the time or money or sweat equity you’ve put into a job or relationship or a project, and which makes quitting hard. Opportunity cost is about the future. It means that for every hour or dollar you spend on one thing, you’re giving up the opportunity to spend that hour or dollar on something else – something that might make your life better. If only you weren’t so worried about the sunk cost. If only you could …. quit."

Take a minute or two and reflect upon the different projects you have going in your life…are they truly serving your ultimate goals? And if they aren’t, can they be delegated? Can they be removed from your list completely? And what would you do if you were able to recover that opportunity cost spent on projects that aren’t serving your goals?

To me, it’s all about focus. Focusing intently on the strategies you can employ to meet your goals, whatever they may be. I'd like to challenge you to take the next steps, break through barriers, implement tried and true systems, and (where appropriate, of course) to quit those activities that are getting in your way.

To your success,

David J. Zumpano, Esq, CPA, Co-founder Lawyers With Purpose, Founder of MPS, Founder and Senior Partner of Estate Planning Law Center

Families are wonderful. They set the foundation for how we should act and when. We then call these actions traditions. Except, things change.

When I grew up, we opened presents from immediate family members on Christmas Eve. Then, on Christmas morning, we discovered the delightful gifts Santa had left for us unwrapped under the tree. To this day, as an adult with my own children, we still spend Christmas Eve at my parents’ house. Except, it will just be my mother’s house this year – our first without my father, who died earlier this year.

I started a tradition a few years ago, but I let it lapse. I will initiate it again this year – lighting a blue candle for my father, and for all those who have died whom I want to take a moment to remember. With my children and mother now involved in the new tradition, it should continue year after year.

This happens in our businesses as well. I learned that a seasoned employee was telling a new employee, “that is how we have always done it,” regardless that I had expressed a new way I wanted it done. A new tradition? A new procedure that becomes tradition, until it needs to change.

The five lessons I have learned from our Christmas traditions that I can use in my business are:

1. Each year, review the traditions/processes you want to keep and those you want to change due to different circumstances. (I want to continue going to my mom’s house on Christmas Eve, but now I do Christmas day at my house with my children. Keep doing retail seminars, but begin doing prospective client workshops too).
2. Determine if new traditions/processes should be added to the existing ones. (Add our “Blue Christmas” moments. Add sending an “it was great seeing you” card each week to a new person or client you met.)
3. Don’t change just to change – keep what is working for you and continue to celebrate its benefits. (Keep extended family traditions while creating new ones with new family. Keep calling our clients three days after our initial meeting, just to check in.)
4. Put measures in place for accountability. (Enroll my children and mother in the Blue Christmas ritual. Enroll your firm team members in the new process – I have just enlisted my office administrator to ensure that we set aside a certain percentage of gross revenue for savings each week.)
5. Enjoy the traditions/processes and remember what it is really all about, for you personally and for those you love.

Victoria L. Collier is a Veteran and Certified Elder Law Attorney, Fellow of the National Academy of Elder Law Attorneys, Co-Founder of Lawyers With Purpose LLC, and author of “47 Secret Veterans’ Benefits for Seniors—Benefits You Have Earned … but Don’t Know About.”

“Let go or be dragged.” ~ Zen proverb

“Earlier this week,” is the phrase I used to start the weekly production meeting. Marci immediately cut me off: “Molly, its only Tuesday a.m.” Well, it certainly felt like late Thursday afternoon, with Friday tolerantly waiting on the horizon. I’ve been pondering that simple comment. So many people I talk with have the same theme, feeling like they are white-knuckling through their week. I realized how fast and furious we move through our days, hopping from one task to another, often unaware and unconscious.

In looking back on my week, I’m beginning to notice the absolute necessity for the power of the pause in our lives. We ignore the value of having that transition time between appointments, phone calls, tasks, etc. Most of the time we trick ourselves by saying, “I don’t want to be late,” “It can wait,” “I don’t have to pee THAT bad, it can wait another hour.” But the truth of the matter is, there is little that is more important than the power of the pause to transition between activities and appointments, because those waiting for that next appointment are better off for it. They get your full, undivided attention. They don’t have your rushed energy when you fly into their appointment, meeting, or whatever it is. I can’t tell you the countless times I have personally either been on the giving or receiving end of “Whew, sorry I’m a few minutes late, my last meeting went over.” Next thing you know, the person on the other end is trying to care for you. “Do you need a few minutes to….” “No, no, I’m fine. Let’s get started.”

Ironically, I was late to a call with my coach last Tuesday. I spun into the call with “Sorry I’m late, my last call went over.” She led me into a transformational conversation that started with, “Consider the possibility that when we don’t take the time to properly transition from one action to another that it can be counterproductive. Consider that your rushing because you do not want to be 1 minute late could be actually hindering you from allowing the time you have together to be so much more powerful.” WOW.

What I took away from that call is the necessity for “The 1-minute transition.”

1. Stop and take one deep transition breath (into your belly deep) and repeat, “I am done with X now and I have the follow-up notes there to support me during my office/admin time so I don’t drop the ball.” (10 seconds)
2. Physically get up and MOVE. Grab a glass of water, a bit of food, use the restroom. Do whatever you need to move into your next event while letting go of the previous. (40 seconds)
3. Stop and take one deep transition breath (into your belly deep) and repeat “I am moving into X next and my intention is to be fully present.” (10 seconds)

All it takes is a 1-minute transition to create a conscious shift. Paula taught me that, if I’m authentically going to help others, skipping this time is not an option. If we don’t take that sacred time, it communicates to the person/meeting/event how little we put into being fully prepared to be with them. WOW, what a breakthrough, this 1-minute transition “process.” Because my current reality is that I have an unforgiving calendar, unrelenting follow-up and time-sensitive year-end wrap up, and none of that is going to ease up between now and December 31st – and all without potty breaks.

My weekly planning is going to look a little different come Sunday evening. I’m going to add to the top of my weekly focuser “The 1-minute transition.”

I have also added this to my green “Meeting Focuser” sheets as well as a sticky note next to my phone and on my computer. White-knuckling is nothing more than a habit, a way of being. With the tools and training, it no longer has to be “It is what it is.” If you’re interested in hearing more about weekly planning and how to create safety nets to support you, please join us for a 1-hour webinar on “Effective Weekly Planning” on December 16th. Click here to register.

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

The greatest success that I've had since joining LWP is the fact that I now own a business rather than a job.

Before I joined LWP I was working seven days a week and every evening. I now realize with the assistance of LWP and the LWP tools (the weekly, daily, and monthly planning as well as the time templates) that I can be in control of my schedule and not allow the client to be in control of it. Now, I pride myself that I only work one night a week and spend quality time with my family.

Also, I have implemented the maintenance program which is taking another step towards having a saleable practice as opposed to a job that if I was no longer there the business would not be able to sustain itself.

What is your favorite LWP tool?

My favorite LWP tools are the LWP audit and the vision clarifier. The audit and clarifier allow me to ensure that I am enrolling the client rather than selling the client any product or service. I have gotten great feedback from clients after the vision meeting that they feel like their voices are heard and that I am doing what is best for them and their family and not what is best for my pocket. Clients tell me that our process in the vision meeting is very different than other attorneys. The tools allow the client to be in control of the process and know upfront what the plans will do and also what the cost is. I believe that the audit and clarifier are the two most important tools that I use in that they have increased my business the most.

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

LWP has impacted my practice in more ways than I could possibly express. I joined LWP with one team member and the team has now grown to a team of six and growing in only three years. I never could have imagined that the team would grow and that my enjoyment of practice and the law would grow as well. The systems and processes of LWP enable me the ability to grow but at the same time ensure that the quality and the brand of our firm is not compromised. There is nothing like The LWP community. Each and every year we look forward to the retreat and opportunities to be with the other members of the LWP community. The bonds that we have grown as well as the knowledge that we have gained is immeasurable.

As we enter this week of Thanksgiving, it reminds me of what I was taught as a young child, that November is a month when we reflect upon all of the things we are thankful for, and December begins the period of giving and sharing our time, talent and treasure. As I reflect back over the past year and prepare for this big feast of turkey and lasagna (can’t get away from it), I know that first and foremost I am thankful for God and the blessings he has provided to me. While maybe not politically correct to say so in a blog, I feel compelled to share that it is so nice that, no matter what hits me during the year and no matter who is challenging me, I never feel alone. This is a great time of year for those of you who have a relationship with a higher being to re-establish it, rekindle it and perhaps derive the benefits obtained from it.

The next thing I am most grateful for is my family. Having been married for 23 years to the same beautiful woman and having three children who never cease to amaze me, it is so rewarding to always know that I am loved no matter how bad I’m behaving or how much I may have to work in a particular week. With them and our extended family, there's so much treasure in past history and traditions that we are able to share, and that brings true joy to life.

Perhaps though, it is a triple bonus that I have so much thanks for the people I work with. Having the joy of working with Molly Hall and Victoria Collier as my partners in Lawyers With Purpose has been a blessing rarely achieved. Not only are Molly and Victoria so giving of themselves to me and our great staff, but also to the members we serve. I would not be half the person I am without them constantly reminding me of integrity, kindness and joy.

Continuing, my thanks would be incomplete without including the others I work with. As I was reading the Facebook post of one of our co-workers celebrating how much they enjoy working with us, I felt compelled to reply that the pleasure of working with LWP is a function of the people who are there, including the author of the Facebook comment. What a great joy to work with people you like, admire and respect. We are blessed to have a group of people who are so committed to having an impact on not only the legal community we serve, but also the legal estate planning community overall, not just for the purpose of benefiting themselves, but ultimately for the clients who all of us serve every day.

Finally, but not last and absolutely not least, I am so thankful for our members, who consistently trust us to help them grow their businesses, get balance in their personal lives and continue to strive to create the best strategies for the seniors and families that we serve. It is a little piece of heaven on earth to know that, because of Lawyers With Purpose, seniors who are at a very fragile time in their lives don't have to face it alone and in fear.

So as you go into this Thanksgiving holiday, take the time to thank those who have been important to you over this past year, and consider sharing your gifts and talents to make the lives of others just a wee bit better, if only for the moment of your interaction. And if you believe in God, or something similar, take a moment to reconnect and give thanks for the many blessings you have. Thank you for your patronage and I look forward to having a meaningful impact on the communities we serve, together. Happy Thanksgiving.

David J. Zumpano, Esq, CPA, Co-founder Lawyers With Purpose, Founder of MPS, Founder and Senior Partner of Estate Planning Law Center