Maximum Lawyer – Détails, épisodes et analyse

Watch the YouTube version of this episode HERE

In this episode of the Maximum Lawyer Podcast, hosts Jim Hacking and Tyson Mutrux explore the milestones and challenges of achieving stability and success as a law firm owner. They share personal experiences, emphasizing the importance of financial stability, client acquisition, and effective management systems. 

This episode highlights the emotional rollercoaster of running a firm, the significance of cash flow management, and the impact of personal financial decisions on business growth. Jim and Tyson also stress the need for clear benchmarks to measure success and the value of setting meaningful, personalized goals. Their insights offer valuable guidance for law firm owners striving for sustainable success.

Jim’s Hack: Re-read books. Like:

•  Atomic Habits: An Easy & Proven Way to Build Good Habits & Break Bad Ones by James Clear 
• Traction: Get a Grip on Your Business by Gino Wickman 
• Limitless Expanded Edition: Upgrade Your Brain, Learn Anything Faster, and Unlock Your Exceptional Life by Jim Kwik 

Tyson’s Tip: Rethink the things that you are saying

04:15 Recognizing financial stability 

06:47 The necessity of focusing on acquiring clients for law firm success.

09:19 The importance of managing cash flow

12:59 Different growth stages of a business 

16:25 Essential benchmarks for managing a law firm effectively

18:35 The challenges of taking time off as a law firm owner

20:29 The pressure to respond to clients promptly, affecting his mental health

21:39 The importance of aligning goals with personal aspirations for success

22:10 Understanding what one truly wants in their practice

Tune in to today’s episode and checkout the full show notes here. 

Resources:

• Join the Guild Membership
• Subscribe to the Maximum Lawyer Youtube Channel
• Follow us on Instagram
• Join the Facebook Group
• Follow the Facebook Page
• Follow us on LinkedIn

Watch the YouTube version of this episode HERE

Grab David's Freebie: The 2-Step Mindset Hack to Reprogram Your Life for Success

Are you a law firm owner who is thinking about improving the culture of your firm? In this episode of the Maximum Lawyer Podcast, co-hosts Jim and Tyson welcome back David Neagle, a bestselling author and founder of a global consulting company. The discussion centers on fostering a culture of success within law firms.

For David, fostering a culture of success within law firms involves a mixture of different things. One of these things is for those in the legal field to understand that there are no mistakes, only lessons. Focusing on mistakes can make employees feel guilt and shame for doing something wrong. But, if a mistake is turned into a lesson, people are more likely to be open and trustworthy with what they do. Thus truly leads to a healthy and successful business.

The internal voice of a business owner can affect the culture of a firm. These voices can be fear or the ideas from friends and family. It is important to separate those voices to understand what you want for yourself and your business. Other people’s ideas can control how you think and view your success and can drive a wedge between you and success. David suggests to determine what it is that you want and make a decision to follow the voice that will get you there.

Take a listen to learn more from David Neagle!

Jim's Hack: Listen to the speech called “The Day You Turn Your Life Around” by Jim Rohn to help get your mindset right.

David Tip: Read Netflix CEO Reed Hastings’ book, which delves into how to step into your genius.

Tyson's Tip: Spot check core values with your team.

5:07 The importance of embracing mistakes to foster a successful law firm culture

5:34 The need for law firm leaders to view mistakes as opportunities for learning

9:41 The process of shifting firm culture 

15:47 How individuals' internal voices affect their mindset and firm culture

Connect with David:

• Website
• Podcast 
• Instagram
• Facebook 
• Linkedin 
• Youtube 

Tune in to today’s episode and checkout the full show notes here.

Watch the YouTube version of this episode HERE

Are you looking to scale your law firm? In this episode of the Maximum Lawyer Podcast, hosts Jim Hacking and Tyson Mutrux engage in a conversation with Dawn Smith, a managing partner at a law firm specializing in nursing home litigation. Dawn shares her unconventional journey to becoming a lawyer and some of the things she has learned.

Dawn provides some insights on her learnings when she scaled her law firm. One of these learnings was the importance of having defined written processes. Hiring new attorneys means different perspectives and ways of doing things. Without a defined process, it is easy for things to get out of hand and for attorneys to handle things their own way that don't align with the vision of the firm. Some simple processes that should be outlined are how demand letters are written and how mediation sessions are handled.

Since practicing law can have an emotional toll, Dawn speaks to the importance of supporting staff when handling tough cases. It is crucial to have open dialogue with those who are hearing horrific cases over and over. Building a culture of openness within a firm is key to making sure the mental health of staff is always prioritized and people are not negatively affected.

Take a listen!

Jim's Hack: Read the book “The 15 Commitments of Conscious Leadership” which talks about taking radical responsibility and learning through curiosity. 

Dawn’s Tip: Choose one area of law and niche down. Be a specialist because it makes a difference in the work you do.

Tyson's Tip: Use a resource that allows you to negotiate through tips and tricks.

Tune in to today’s episode and checkout the full show notes here.

02:15 From bartender, to forming her own firm specializing in nursing home litigation

04:33 How the firm expanded its practice to multiple states

06:35 Importance of written processes 

08:39 Handling emotional aspects of tough cases 

10:04 Having a positive mindset, the importance of support networks, and the belief in hard work and achieving ambitious goals!

13:03 The firm's marketing approach and obtaining success stories from clients

14:55 Navigating the challenges of partnership in a law firm

Connect with Dawn:

• Email [email protected]
• Website https://fightingelderabuse.com/
• Instagram: @smithclinesmithllp
• Facebook: @smithclinesmithllp
• LinkedIn: @smithclinesmithllp
• Twitter: @smithclinellp
• TikTok: @smithclinesmithllp
• YouTube: @smithclinesmithllp
• Instagram: @dawnsmithlaw
• LinkedIn: @dawnsmith

Are you looking for tips on how to use your phone more efficiently?  In this episode, Tyson discusses various tips and tricks for iPhone users and shares advice on how to use different features.

One feature Tyson talks about is text replacement, which allows you to set up shortcuts for phrases you use frequently. This is great for those that use their phones a lot, especially for work. The pathway to do this is Settings, then General and then Keyboard/Text. Another great feature that many people deal with is silencing unknown and spam callers. We all get those spam calls that just cause frustration. The pathway is Settings, then Phone and then Turn On Silence Callers.

Tyson shares an interesting trick that allows people to create different ringtones and vibrations for different callers. The pathway is to go to the individual contact, then select edit ringtone. This can be done for each person. Another trick for all the headphone users is Siri announcing messages through your headphones. This is really handy if you work with headphones in and don't want to glance down at your phone every time a message comes through. The pathway is Siri and search Announce Messages

There are ways to connect your phone with your computer to work better. There is a feature called handoff that allows you to start something on one device and finish it on another. For example, if you are typing an email on your phone but then you get distracted, you can use the feature to finish it on your laptop. You simply turn on the handoff feature in your settings. 

Listen in to learn more!

1:13 Setting up shortcuts for frequently used phrases on iPhone

2:04 Avoiding spam calls by enabling the "Silence Unknown Callers" setting in iPhone

2:57 Using the back tap feature to execute different actions

🎥 Watch the full video on YouTube here.

Resources:

• Join the Guild Membership
• Subscribe to the Maximum Lawyer Youtube Channel
• Follow us on Instagram
• Join the Facebook Group
• Follow the Facebook Page
• Follow us on LinkedIn

Do you need a tip to help with organization while completing a project? In this episode, Tyson discusses the use of Kanban boards for task management and improving productivity. 

Kanban boards are a great way to improve productivity in your firm. Kanban boards are divided into columns, with each representing a stage in your workflow. It shows the start to finish of a project. It is a great way to visualize how your work is getting done. It is perfect for visual learners and working with a solid team. There are many variations of a Kanban board. They can be used in an app or even put up on a wall in your office for everyone to see and add to. A really great way to utilize a Kanban board is to have 4 columns: to do, in progress, review and complete. This way people can move sticky notes from one column to another, depending on where that task is along the cycle of a project.

Kanban boards can also be used for your personal life. If you have a busy life, where personal and business tend to mesh together, you can build a physical one on your wall at home. Add all the different tasks you need to get done: walk the dog, cook dinner, help kids with homework, read a chapter of a book, workout. etc. The list is truly endless. This will allow you to visually see what you need to get done and when.

Kanban boards provide a birds eye view of all ongoing tasks. You can easily see what is happening now and what will happen later on. It also helps to promote better work habits with your teams. Honestly, who doesn't want to have a giant board of sticky notes that everyone is moving around as things get done!

Listen in to learn how to better communicate with your team and enhance productivity.

2:08 Tyson explains the concept of a Kanban board.

9:44 Tyson discusses different ways Kanban boards can be used.

11:28 Kanban boards provide a bird's eye view of ongoing tasks.

🎥 Watch the full video on YouTube here.

Resources:

• Join the Guild Membership
• Subscribe to the Maximum Lawyer Youtube Channel
• Follow us on Instagram
• Join the Facebook Group
• Follow the Facebook Page
• Follow us on LinkedIn

Are you struggling with knowing how to build a business from the ground up? In this episode, Jessica Gonifas shares her insights on building a successful law firm. She provides some tips on how to gain the confidence needed to run a business. 

In order to run a business, you need to have a good understanding of your firm’s numbers and where your firm sits financially. Jessica shares some questions to ask when you get your books in order. Ask yourself: Where is the revenue coming from? So what are the types of cases you take and how much profit are making from these cases. Another question is where is your money going? How much is going towards salaries, softwares, training, etc. The last question is what is the firm’s profit margin? With this, it is important to partner with an accountant that understands law firms who can help determine this margin.

When starting out as a new firm owner, it is important to understand what your personal and work goals are as well as the time you are willing to commit. For personal goals, consider how much money you want to take out of the firm and how much your family needs on an annual basis to keep afloat. In relation to work goals, understand what your purpose is at work. Are you reviewing technical work, doing technical work or going out and getting clients? The time you dedicate to your firm is so important because it will determine how much you make. Decide how many hours a week you want to work.

Jessica emphasizes the importance of having a big picture goal. What do you want your firm to look like in 5 years? What steps will you take to get there? In doing this, think about what you need to do as an owner and what your staff need to do as they help you run the business. Think about all the things you want to accomplish (ie. a certain number of cases, a new intake system, a new tech tool for the firm, etc.) and outline exactly how to get there. It might be good to break them down into quarterly objectives, that way it is spread out over 4 periods and you can take time throughout the year to plan.

Listen in to learn more!

1:12 The importance of financial structure and asking key questions

4:16 What about personal goals, work responsibilities and time commitment?

8:16 The importance of setting big picture goals

🎥 Watch the full video on YouTube here.

Connect with Jessica:

• Website 
• Facebook Page 
• Facebook 
• LinkedIn 
• Instagram 
• TikTok 

Do you need help in maximizing productivity as a lawyer? In this podcast episode, Jim and Tyson talk to solopreneur Lauren Lester, who runs her own estate and family law firm, Lester Law. She shares her journey into law as a second career. 

Lauren shares a few tips attorneys can use to maximize productivity. For new attorneys, it is important to identify where inefficiencies lie in the repetitive tasks. Because you are doing things over and over, it makes sense to see what is not working or how to develop a system to do that thing better so it becomes easier and faster for you. For Lauren, she uses technology as leverage to make these tasks more efficient. For those that are too busy to develop systems, it might be best to focus on the one task that either takes the longest to do or is extremely important and build something around it.

Another tip Lauren shares is how to manage a busy personal life with an equally busy business. It is really important to schedule time for yourself when you have a busy life. One thing to do is protect your time. For example, Lauren shares how a client really wanted to meet with her the following morning at 9am, but she already booked an hour 1 gym session. She responded back saying the earliest time available was 11am. Clients do not need to know your work schedule. Doing this will allow for a more structured day where you can fit in time for personal care.

A lot of attorneys struggle with the billable hour, which is charging clients a fee by the hour. You will always hear people say “They charge by the hour” or “I pay $200 for a client call with my lawyer”. For attorneys, it is important to have value based pricing. In this profession, most have worked in the industry for a long time and have a lot of experience and expertise, but do not bill clients based on that. A shift in mindset towards billing based on the value you bring to a client is needed to succeed.

In this day and age, there has been a shift in having a better work life balance. No one wants to work 80 hour weeks, feel burned out and not enjoy the money they make. Lauren provides advice on how older attorneys can work with the younger generation to learn this. The value of an employee is not the time they spend sitting at a desk, but hitting benchmarks in a time that works for them. For example, an employee may be able to accomplish a task in an hour as opposed to spending their whole work day doing it. That person should not be punished because they did their job quicker. As long as the objective for the business is being met, who cares how fast it took them to complete it. 

Take a listen to learn more!

8:17 Tips for solo attorneys or attorneys starting out to maximize productivity

10:49 Tips for managing personal and business life

15:45 Discussion of the challenges attorneys face with the billable hour

18:33 Advice on how law firm owners can work with the younger generation

Jim's Hack: Read or listen to $100M Leads: How to Get Strangers to Want to Buy Your Stuff Alex Hormozi https://amzn.to/4998nkv

Lauren’s Tip: Tech tool called Text Expander, which allows you to create little snippets of things you are constantly writing. Whether it be closing out an email with a signature phrase or acronyms that you need to spell out, the tool allows you to get emails out faster.

Tyson Tip: Use Teleprompter when creating videos, which allows you to copy and paste text into it and then adjust the speed.

🎥 Watch the full video on YouTube here.

Connect with Lauren:

• Website
• TikTok 
• LinkedIn 
• Instagram 
  
  

Do you want to learn how to become a keyboard wizard? In this episode, Tyson shares an important tip lawyers can use in their practice, which involves using a keyboard. 

Lawyers are very busy people and usually don't have a lot of time. There are keyboard shortcuts that attorneys can use that will make work more efficient, especially if you do repetitive tasks. 

Some of these shortcuts include functions like: 

• Copy: Control + C or Command + C to copy 
• Paste: Control + V or Command + V to paste
• Delete: On a Mac, you click Command + Delete OR on a PC, you click Command + Shift + Delete.
• Entire screen screenshot: Click Shift + Command + 3 for a Mac OR on a PC, you select the print screen button on the keyboard

There are some advanced functions that Tyson shares. If you want to quickly lock your screen, you press Command + Q for a PC. If you want to open your emoji keyboard on your screen, it's Control + Command + Space for Mac. For a PC, it is “Windows.Windows;” Another interesting function is looking up a definition. For a Mac, click Command + Control + D, all while hovering above the word you want to look up. For PC, it is Alt + Click.

All of these shortcuts take practice to learn and master. Sooner or later, you will be able to use them to streamline your workflows.

Listen in to learn how to master using your keyboard!

1:10 Why keyboard shortcuts are important for efficiency

4:49 Basic keyboard shortcuts for common actions

10:11 How to quickly lock the screen on a Mac or PC using keyboard shortcuts

11:03 How to quickly show the desktop on a Mac or PC

🎥 Watch the full video on YouTube here.

Resources:

• Join the Guild Membership
• Subscribe to the Maximum Lawyer Youtube Channel
• Follow us on Instagram
• Join the Facebook Group
• Follow the Facebook Page
• Follow us on LinkedIn

Are you looking for a way to organize your firm better? In this podcast episode, Tyson discusses the benefits of organizing law firms into pods or teams. 

Tyson talks about the benefits of splitting up people within law offices to really maximize the talent that exists. Within Tyson’s firm, staff are a part of different teams that are colour coded. Ultimately, it is a way of organizing an agile team that is composed of an attorney, a case manager, and a litigation assistant. There are many reasons why a system like this is effective. 

One reason is that it allows for clear communication. All members (especially when looking at small teams) know their roles inside and out, which means less chances for misunderstandings and better opportunities for streamlined operations. Looking at the trio of an attorney, case manager and litigation assistant, everyone has a role. The attorney focuses on complex legal stuff, case managers focus on client relations and the litigation assistants focus on the administrative work.

At its core, law is the business of people. Pod systems allow for clients to have consistent, attentive services from the same group of people who know and understand their case. This makes the client management aspect of a firm so much better. Clients can trust the people who are helping them in the journey and don't have to worry about talking to different people.

Small pods can create a close knit nature among the people who work together. People can deliver better if the dynamic and vibe of a team is top tier!

Listen in to learn more about setting up pods in your firm.

2:22 The advantages of organizing a law firm into pods

4:25 How the pod system allows for seamless coverage

7:24 The close-knit nature of pods

🎥 Watch the full video on YouTube here. https://youtu.be/hDZi1y_Uc6I

Resources:

• Join the Guild Membership
• Subscribe to the Maximum Lawyer Youtube Channel
• Follow us on Instagram
• Join the Facebook Group
• Follow the Facebook Page
• Follow us on LinkedIn

Are you looking for systems to manage your tasks better? In this episode of the Maximum Lawyer podcast, Ryan Anderson discusses the concept of task-based management in law firms. 

A lot of people run their business using calendar and email based management. It’s so easy for most because many people use their calendar and email frequently. But, Ryan shares how these methods are not efficient to manage your to do lists. He shares how using task based management systems are the way to go when it comes to staying organized and on top of all your tasks. 

Ryan shares its own platform, FileVine. FileVine is a task based management system that allows you to know what you have to get done for the day and what you have assigned to other people. So many lawyers have a million things to do from meetings to research to court. Having a system that lays everything out is ideal for this type of work. What makes FileVine and other project management systems so great is you remove the “email me” from your language. Most times, people will say “just email me”, but that can get lost in a flurry of other emails and priorities. With these systems, you can say “task me”. This allows you to task things out quickly to other people. If not, you are emailing, calling and messaging multiple people to get things done.

Ryan shares that people should be able to use case management systems with no more than their voice. He announces the creation of a voice interface that FileVine will have. With a voice interface, more tasks and communication will get onto the platform. What this feature does is allow someone to make a call to the platform where an AI bot will answer and ask what you would like to do. Let's say you realize at 10pm that you have to do something right when you get into the office, but you are worried you will forget. Call into the platform and let the AI bot know to leave a task for you and have it added to whatever case file. That way in the morning, you will get a notification that the task is waiting for you.

Listen in to learn more!

00:24 The concept of task-based management

6:31 The benefits of using a task-based management system

11:27 Using task-based management to keep track of important information

🎥 Watch the full video on YouTube here. 

Connect with Ryan:

• Website
• Instagram
• Facebook
• Twitter 
• Linkedin

Resources:

• Join the Guild Membership
• Subscribe to the Maximum Lawyer Youtube Channel
• Follow us on Instagram
• Join the Facebook Group
• Follow the Facebook Page
• Follow us on LinkedIn