The Game Changing Attorney Podcast with Michael Mogill 57. Bob Tharp — 1% Better Every Day
"It's not one little thing. It's a lot of continued, consistent effort to get where we are. But I think for other people, they sit there and go, ‘Well, I can't do that.’ You may not be able to do everything we're doing today, but you could do one thing, and after that, you can build to other things. I think that's the opportunity that people could really grow from.” - Bob Tharp
- How has Bob Tharp managed to grow his firm for 23 years without ever backsliding?
- What are the values that Meriwether & Tharp is built on?
- How does Bob ensure continual improvement for his business and himself?
- What can attorneys learn from going to Disney?
A Full Trophy Case
Bob Tharp is a Founding Partner of Meriwether & Tharp, an 8-figure family law firm in Atlanta, as well as a nationally-recognized family attorney in his own right. He has earned awards for his work with clients, including being named Family Law Monthly's 2016 Family Lawyer of the Year and a Super Lawyer by Super Lawyers Magazine for the past 6 years.
Bob has also taken the lead on M&T's extensive content generation efforts and has overseen the creation of thousands of educational materials, including podcasts, blog posts, white papers, and speaking engagements. This too has garnered him awards, including the Omni, Muse, W3, and Communicator awards for his work on the M&T website and library of resources.
Consistency is Key
How do you get where you're going? One step at a time. Bob is a champion of persistent, steady progress. He starts each morning by evaluating his analytics to see what areas of his business can be improved and what processes can be optimized.
Since launching the firm in 1998, Bob has increased the company's value year over year for 23 straight years. Meriwether & Tharp has also been listed on the Inc. 5000 list of fastest-growing private companies in America for 4 years in a row.
The Pursuit of Perfection
Self-improvement is a core value for M&T, and it infuses every aspect of their business, from how they train their lawyers to the resources they provide clients.
And it's not just lip service for Bob — he lives and breathes it. He's always striving to make himself and his practice better. It's what keeps him engaged. He's constantly creating new goals to make M&T the best firm it can be.
Key takeaways:
- Learn from anything and everything. How does Disney do their customer service? How do football coaches dissect their previous games? Keep your mind open and you can find applicable lessons for your business everywhere.
- Know before you grow. You can't build your business without understanding the ins and outs of your analytics, your strategy, and your clientele.
- Build systems now, save time later. They take time to perfect and implement, but the investment is worth it in the long run.
Links and Resources