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Building a profitable legal practice is a result that’s achieved through a set of behaviors engaged in consistently over a long period of time.
There’s no one way—a single playbook—to build a practice that everyone must follow. However, there are not infinite options either. The choices you make, or don’t, related to the actions you take, or don’t, matter greatly.
These principles apply no matter what goal you’re striving for.
Nick Saban, perhaps the greatest college football coach of all time, who recently announced his retirement from the University of Alabama, was once asked a question at a press conference about what his players needed to do to excel and his answer was instructive.
“These guys, they all think they have this illusion of choice. Like I can do whatever I want to do … But the fact of the matter is, if you want to be good you don’t really have a lot of choices. It takes what it takes. You have to do what you have to do to be successful. You have to make the choices and decisions to have the discipline and the focus to the process of what you need to do to accomplish your goals.”
As Saban reminds us, it’s easy to harbor an “illusion of choice” that stands in the way of us getting what we want. It’s easy to believe that there are infinite options available to us. But in most cases, there are certain foundational elements for success—non-negotiables—in any endeavor.
To continue with the sports analogies, consider the approach of John Wooden, legendary basketball coach for the UCLA Bruins. His coaching methods rigorously adhered to a three-part philosophy that he famously referred to as the "Pyramid of Success": condition, skill, and team spirit. Conditioning referred to physical and mental preparedness, skill meant both individual and team competence, and team spirit revolved around selfless cooperation for the common good. Each principle was essential for the team’s success.
So what are some of the non-negotiables of building a legal practice?
Time: You have to carve it out and protect it at all costs.
Relationships: Clients do business with lawyers they know, like and trust, so if you’re not continually building and nurturing relationships, you’ll miss out on opportunities.
Consistency: Building a legal practice is something that’s done over the course of a career—not a day, month, or even a year.
Value: The best way—indeed, the only way—to build and nurture strong relationships is to add value. Be helpful. Give without expecting anything in return, and ultimately you’ll get what you want.
Commitment: To sum all this up, you have to be committed. To succeed at building a legal practice, you must fully commit—not only to your goal but also to the actions necessary to achieve it. This kind of deep-seated commitment is the foundation upon which great achievements in any field are built.
It’s important to keep in mind, however, that great achievements that require great commitment all start by taking small, simple steps forward. Act with urgency while understanding that the outcome you seek will take time.
Entrepreneur and investor Naval Ravikant has a great phrase that encapsulates this mindset: “Impatience with actions, patience with results.”
Focus on the fundamentals and commit to getting started, because once you start, you can build.
Jay Harrington is president of our agency, a published author, and nationally-recognized expert in thought-leadership marketing.
From strategic planning to writing, podcasting, video marketing, and design, Jay and his team help lawyers and law firms turn expertise into thought leadership, and thought leadership into new business. Get in touch to learn more about the consulting and coaching services we provide. You can reach Jay at jay@hcommunications.biz.