The importance of mentors

While the subject line of this post is a no brainer, I wanted to share my thoughts and experiences on the subject.  Without a doubt, mentors are essential to the development of every lawyer.  This is just as true for the newly minted lawyer as it is for more seasoned attorneys.  The reason is simple: law and the practice of law - very separate entities - are two vast oceans that can easily swallow up the unwary practitioner.  Mentors, function like life lines - or a walking/talking GPS, if you are very lucky.  With the help and guidance of a mentor, you are that much more likely not to stray into the path of an iceberg (Read: most sticky situations you thought back in law school would never happen to you as a lawyer).  

Mentors come in all shapes, sizes and from all different walks of life.  There's no set criteria for finding one and no rule that says you are limited to just one mentor.  I consider myself lucky to have no less than three solid mentors, as well as two or three other back-up mentors.  Solid mentors are those attorneys who have not only expressed their committment to helping you, but have demonstrated it time and again.  These are the lawyers who are willing to take your "urgent" call even though its 5:35 PM.  These are the same people who reply back to your email, on the same day, to give you feedback on a pleading you asked them to look over.  Put simply, these are the folks that sincerely want to help you succeed as an attorney.  

Back-up mentors, for lack of a better term, are no less committed or sincere about helping you succeed.  However, because of their own work/life committments, they aren't able to devote as much time as your solid mentors.  Even so, it's important to have these kinds of mentors in your life if only to give your solid mentors a much needed break.  Afterall, the last thing you want to do is be a pest.  Also, this type of mentor is more likely to be closer to you in terms of years of experience practicing - roughly within five years of your experience level.  So the relationship is more on the level of colleagues, rather than the master-apprentice relationship of a solid mentor.  

A healthy mix or ratio of solid and back-up mentors provides a good wealth of experience from which to benefit.  It can also provides you with a strong support system.  Inevitably, there have been times when I doubted my decision to open my own practice.  There have even been times when I doubted my decision to become a lawyer. The latter usually coincided with some extremely complex legal or procedural question that I just could not figure out for the life of me.  My mentors have all played key roles in helping me through difficult times or solving tough issues. 

So this post is as much to thank them for their help and guidance as much as it is to urge you, dear reader, to seek out some mentors of your own.  

Rainmaking: Contract work and hearing coverage

Yesterday brought a profound and sweeping change to what has felt like years of dreary dreams without any sense direction or financial stability.  And on top of that, the 44th President of the United States, Barack Obama, took office yesterday too!  Without a doubt, President Obama's inauguration was beyond profound and captured the hopes of the nation.  But, of much smaller significance in the grand scheme of things - but of great personal significance to me - yesterday marked my first real foray into the world of contract legal services.  And just over twenty four hours later, I was asked to take on two more projects!

I'm finding that contract work can be rewarding both professionally and financially.  First off, it is a wonderful opportunity to network with other attorneys that you might not otherwise meet.  Second, depending on the nature of the work, it is a chance to take a closer glimpse at other areas of law.  Third, from a financial standpoint, it can help supplement your revenue and improve cash flow during these lean times.   All of this can be accomplished regardless of whether you offer to cover hearings, draft documents, or simply take on a legal research project.

While contract work might not lead to the kind of "rainmaking" that will buy you a vacation to Hawaii for a week, it could lead to a steady stream of work that pays the rent or a much needed CLE course.  There are a number of books and blogs on the subject that cover everything from marketing to malpractice insurance issues.  Likewise, those considering adding contract work to their practice should consult their state bar's code of professional responsibility as well.  

Rainmaking: To Craigslist or not to Craigslist?

Over the past month I've been keeping a close watch on Craigslist.com.  Okay, to be fair, I check out the website every day to see who is selling what.  It's amazing to see all of the different items that people are selling.  You can imagine, then, my intrigue when I came across the "legal" link under the "services" section for my local area.  Each posting date was packed with no less than a dozen different ad listings for lawyers offering their services.  

After checking my state bar association's ethics rules on advertising, I posted my first Craigslist ad about a month ago.  Less than two weeks later, after not so much as a nibble, I tried it again.  And then again two days after that.  Maybe I'm better at fishing than advertising on Craigslist.  See Recharging and Reflecting.  In all fairness though, my sporadic posts were likely swallowed up by the numerous ads that appear like clockwork in that section.  

I've recently heard from the local-lawyer-rumor-mill that some small firms have broken advertising on Craigslist down to a science.  In a nutshell, they have an assistant post their Craigslist ad as that assistant's very first task in the morning.  This can be tedious and time-consuming considering that Craigslist doesn't allow you to post the same or strikingly similar ads within a thirty day period from the same user account.  This means you have to either create another account to repost the same ad, or tinker with it just enough so that the website system will accept the ad.  In terms of time spent versus results, I'm not convinced yet that this would be the most effective use of my time - since I'm the one who'd be doing all of the morning posting.  Even so, it's hard to argue with free advertising.  

2009: A New Year with New Possibilities

Happy New Year everyone!  It's taken longer to get back to blogging than I thought it would.  So far, 2009 is off to a good start.  Where December was a relatively quiet month in terms of potential new business, January has been anything but quiet.  And the month has just started!  Although I'm a cautiously cynical optimist, I think that 2009 will be full of new possibilities.  

Late last month and recently, I've been busy researching new ideas for marketing and rainmaking.  Additionally, I've been looking into ways to fully utilize the technology I'm currently using in order to improve client services.  Finally, in light of the current market condition and demand for legal services, I will likely add a third area of practice.  I'll be covering these topics and more over the next few weeks.  

Meanwhile, what do you think 2009 will have in store for the legal profession?  Many are forecasting a tough year that may see more layoffs.  Others see an opportunity to reorganize and diversify legal services in direct response to issues that contributed to, or were spawned by, the current economic climate.