Entrepreneurs and Everyone Else

by RJon Robins

Which Are You?

There are two different kinds of people in the world: entrepreneurs & everyone else. If you don’t see the world this way then you’re still in the second category.

Entrepreneurs see the world in a completely different way than everyone else. When you are an entrepreneur, this fact is very obvious. It is, however, NOT very obvious nor is this phenom understood by the rest of everyone. How Do You Know if You are an Entrepreneur?

One way to know if you’re an entrepreneur is to ask yourself what kind of time you use.

Everyone else uses what I call “Clock Time”. How many hours will this take me to do this? How many hours did I work? How many hours are left in the day?

An entrepreneur CAN use clock time but most do not. Instead, we use what I call “Calendar Time” most of the time instead. How quickly can I get this accomplished? How many weeks until I can achieve the next objective? How will I make the most of the next month? What’s it going to cost me
if I can get this done in a year instead of getting it done in a week?

Imagine your car has broken-down and you’re stranded in a town you don’t want to be in. Plus, you are alone and you have no other way to get to the place you want to be. It’s a place where an opportunity awaits that can earn you hundreds of thousands of dollars of sustainable
income for the rest of your life. But, the hitch is, you must get there in two days.

When you ask the mechanic “How quickly can you get this done?” as an entrepreneur, what you really mean is

“How-quickly-can-you-get-me-back- on-the-road-to-my-goals, to-making- a-better-life-for-me, my-children,my-great-grandchildren, so-that-I-may- leave-my-mark-on-the-world?”

When the mechanic answers that the job takes

20 hours, you ask again, “How quickly can you get me back on the road?” The mechanic answers in the only language he knows and that is “Clock Time” language repeating that the job takes 20 hours.

The mechanic doesn’t understand at all when you ask him again so you rephrase it:

“What if you brought in an assistant so that you can work extra-fast overtime and I will pay you “book rate” for the job. THEN could you get me back on the road this afternoon?”

When you say it this way, the mechanic responds: “Sure but it’ll cost you!”

Entrepreneurs know that nearly anything is possible. It is all in the way you look at problems and solutions.

Which are you?

You know how when you feel like your back is up against the wall, you sometimes make decisions you’re not 100 percent happy with? The emotional pressure of a financial situation causes you to take on a client that you know will be a nightmare. Anxiety about an appointment turns into a $20 parking fee you could have avoided by leaving on time. A quick judgment about an employee’s performance presents itself as a heated or bitter reaction … and they walk out on you. You get the idea. The question is, in the context of your law firm and business, where do these issues stem from? Emotional decision making happens when you operate without a plan. In business and in life. Wandering aimlessly, with only a faint idea of where you want to be in two, three, five or even 10 years, doesn’t allow your mind to fix on a goal. And without a goal, you can’t make a plan. What separates the successful from the floundering is a steadfast decision to set a goal and work toward it — tirelessly, day and night. Obstacles appear, successful lawyers keep going. Setbacks happen, they keep going. Milestones are reached … they keep going. Why? Because they know they still have a long road ahead, and that winning the race is about focus and endurance. They are playing for something greater than themselves — goal that almost always improves the lives of everyone around them. When you create a formal plan for your law firm and life, you take the emotion out of it. You look at cold hard facts, real numbers and, often times, a harsh dose of reality. (That $100K in annual revenue isn’t going to pay a hefty mortgage or college tuition.) Then, hopefully, a spark happens. For the first time, you are able to step away, separate yourself from your feelings and realize what you need to do to make your dreams come true. For most attorneys, the business planning process is completely foreign. And that’s surprising, considering most lawyers are very logical people, trained to focus on facts and remove the emotional component from a client’s situation so they can help them resolve a pressing legal issue.

So Why Can’t We Do This for Ourselves?

The day-to-day grind of running a law firm consumes your every thought. Because … until you have a greater plan and purpose, you have nothing else to focus on. Emotional decision making is what keeps a law firm in a revenue slump. It’s what creates employee turnover, and what drives our industry’s skyrocketing depression and substance abuse rates. At How to Manage a Small Law Firm we provide you with an outside Managing Partner, CEO, COO, CFO, or a combination of the preceding. The first order of business is to write your business plan and take you through a 12-week crash course in business acumen. You are immersed in a community of our members — attorneys … just like you. So you can be real, sharing and screaming, “Why is this happening?!” whenever you need to. It’s OK, they’ve been there. Everyone has challenges, everyone has curveballs thrown at them, everyone has cash flow issues. But there’s a point when you have to make a decision to change your course and take matters into your own hands. There is no magic bullet CLE program that can teach you these skills in one hour or even one day. That’s a fact. Every successful business owner has had a stable of mentors to turn to, draw support from, and call upon when times got tough. To build a profitable law firm — one that doesn’t kill your soul in the process — you must remove the emotional component and think like a business owner. The need to focus on metrics, sales and delivery — and finally be honest with yourself about the fees you need to charge — is no longer an option, it’s a requirement. So, here’s how to start building a better tomorrow for yourself, and everyone you care about.

Start Here

So, here’s how to start building a better tomorrow for yourself, and everyone you care about. Download our free “Business Plan Workbook,” then take a good hard look at where you are today and where you want to be tomorrow. Be honest. Don’t adjust numbers to make them feel comfortable or safe. Because at the end of the day you won’t be cheating anyone but yourself. When you’re ready for help or have a question, schedule an appointment with our team and we’ll be here to help. How to Manage a Small Law Firm has built its business on helping small law firm owners grow their organizations from less than $50,000 a year to millions in annual revenue. We believe that building a sustainable law firm doesn’t have to result in depression, guilt, or self-sacrifice. Our goal is to see our members making money, of course, but also building happier lives for themselves and their staff. We start with your goals in mind and work backwards to create a plan that works for you.

How many times have you said this to yourself?

“I’ll get it done later.”

But, did you actually do it?

It’s okay, admit it. I’m not here to judge you. It is important, however, that we get to the bottom of this.

Before we continue, let’s agree on one thing…NO MORE EXCUSES.

If it was up to me I’d say you’re having a hard time keeping track of what needs to be done and keeping things organized. This might have been good excuse before, but we’re past that because you’re about to know better.

And I really hope you’re paying attention because the growth of your law firm depends on it.

Okay, enough ranting. Watch the video above and learn how EASY it is to get over that mountain of things I have to do.

You’re in for a pleasant surprise.

There’s no room for error in the practice of law, but there is in BUSINESS. Either way, get it together!