Successful Barrister

As a leader in your firm, you are not paid to get bogged down in the day-to-day tasks of your practice –you are paid to think. This can be difficult for many of us, because thinking is amorphous and unstructured. However, Paid to Think: A Leader’s Toolkit for Redefining Your Future by David Goldsmith gives a structure for your thinking. Learn how you can think and plan more effectively, how to project the future, and how to broaden your perspective to benefit your firm.For detailed show notes, navigate using the time stamps below:[1:16] Today, Marc and Diana will be discussing Paid to Think: A Leader’s Toolkit for Redefining Your Future by David Goldsmith. The book’s thesis is that thinking is the hardest work there is, which is part of why so few engage in it. [4:05] The leader of your firm should be spending around 90% of their time thinking and around 10% executing. Leaders are paid to think about the big picture, not to get bogged down in day-to-day tasks.[7:04] Part of the firm leader’s job is forecasting the future. You need to make plans for different potential futures and responses.[11:06] Goldsmith identifies four categories for how you think. They include strategizing, learning, performing, and forecasting. Strategizing involves planning – determining your niche, and coming up with a plan to beat your competition in that niche. [15:17] Strategizing involves developing a plan, choosing your service, establishing alliances, and leveraging technology. [17:50] Establishing alliances as a firm looks like finding firms that you do not compete with who have some relation to what you do. For Marc Whitehead & Associates, this involves partnerships with lots of personal injury firms.[24:30] The next step is learning, and you do not necessarily have to learn with a specific goal in mind. This helps you expand your perspective to come up with better strategy.[29:50] The political landscape determines the economic landscape that you will have to operate in. Understanding the political landscape will help you adapt and adjust before major changes catch you off guard.[32:28] Moving onto performing and leading, you need to empower your organization to execute on your ideas by getting them to buy in to their ideas.[35:30] Diana points out that one aspect of getting buy-in is making sure your team understands and agrees on the problem before trying to implement a solution. Marc explains that meetings can contribute to buy-in because meetings are group thinking exercises. [38:19] Part of performance is learning how to sell continuously. This involves self-promotion and marketing your firm to new clients.[42:08] None of us can predict the future, but we can make contingency plans. This is how your firm can prepare for the future – by preparing for the three most likely possible outcomes of a decision.[47:10] Trying to forecast what the future will look like in law involves forecasting the decisions of lawmakers, which requires you to understand the political landscape. Marc Whitehead & Associates has to think about what it might look like if the Social Security Administration being defunded could look for the firm.Buy Paid to Think: A Leader’s Toolkit for Redefining Your Future by David Goldsmith: https://www.amazon.com/Paid-Think-Leaders-Toolkit-Redefining/dp/1480527637 Listen to Paid to Think: A Leader’s Toolkit for Redefining Your Future by David Goldsmith: https://www.audible.com/pd/Paid-to-Think-Audiobook/B00AYJY1K2 Visit the Successful Barrister website: https://www.successfulbarrister.com/ Visit the Marc Whitehead & Associates website: https://disabilitydenials.com/ Email Marc Whitehead: marc@marcwhitehead.com 

In today’s episode of the Successful Barrister, Marc and Diana discuss the Stay Interview, a concept introduced by Richard P. Finnegan. The idea of a stay interview is simple – companies conduct exit interviews to understand why employees are leaving, but if they had that information before they left, they could have prevented that turnover. Marc and Diana explain the questions Finnegan coined, and how Marc Whitehead & Associates handles its version of stay interviews.For detailed show notes, navigate using the time stamps below:[1:07] Keeping your best people doesn’t have to be difficult, and Marc has a tool to keep them – stay interviews. This concept was popularized by Richard P. Finnegan, who has written multiple books on the subject. [4:03] Stay interviews are about proactively talking to your best people about their experiences to help them stay engaged and prevent them from being picked up by another firm. Replacing an employee costs roughly 6-9 months of that employee’s salary. [9:22] According to Finnegan, poor leadership causes 60% of all employee turnover. The best conversations have two engaged people, and it is not fair to ask your employees to be vulnerable without admitting any room for improvement yourself.[14:10] Finnegan suggests five interview questions. The first is “what do you look forward to each day when you commute to work?” The second is “what are you learning here, and what do you want to learn?”[17:22] The third question is very straightforward: “why do you stay here?” The fourth is very loaded, “what is the last time you thought about leaving us, and what prompted it?”[18:34] Finally, the fifth question is “what can I do to make your job better?”[20:49] Before adopting EOS, Marc Whitehead & Associates did not have a formalized system for stay interviews. He assumed that periodically taking staff to lunch and checking in on rumors he heard was enough to keep most employees. [25:11] People problems require different interventions than resource or circumstantial problems. You can’t process your way around people, and often you have to deal with them more directly. [30:21] The firm does the People Analyzer quarterly, which starts with an evaluation on six core values and three questions. The 5-5-5 tool discusses how staff feels about their role and their rocks, or long-term goals. [35:58] Ultimately, the stay interview is about being proactive, which is the best way to prevent burnout.Buy The Stay Interview: A Manager's Guide to Keeping the Best and Brightest by Richard P. Finnegan: https://www.amazon.com/Stay-Interview-Managers-Keeping-Brightest/dp/0814436498 Listen to The Stay Interview: A Manager's Guide to Keeping the Best and Brightest: https://www.audible.com/pd/The-Stay-Interview-Audiobook/B00U0NMYYM Visit the Successful Barrister website: https://www.successfulbarrister.com/ Visit the Marc Whitehead & Associates website: https://disabilitydenials.com/ Email Marc Whitehead: marc@marcwhitehead.com 

Productivity might be even more important than you realize. As Marc describes it, productivity is about buying back your time – it allows you to work faster, make more money, and spend more time living the life you want to live. In today’s episode, Marc and Diana discuss productivity through the book Smarter Faster Better: The Secrets of Being Productive in Life and Business by Charles Duhigg. They pick their favorite tips and explain how they apply to Marc Whitehead & Associates and firms more generally. Marc and Diana begin by discussing the importance of productivity. Then, they move into discussing how to set aside time to think, delegate tasks, and make changes in your firm. For detailed show notes, navigate using the time stamps below:[1:45] Today’s episode is about the lessons Marc and Diana learned from Smarter Faster Better: The Secrets of Being Productive in Life and Business by Charles Duhigg. You may know of Charles Duhigg from his bestselling book The Power of Habit. In Smarter Faster Better, he walks readers through eight points to help them become more efficient.[5:29] Marc defines productivity as profitability and the ability to live a stress-free life, particularly by buying back your time. The more productive you become, the less time you have to spend working, and the more time you can spend living the life you are working to live. [10:51] Thinking is a time to free yourself and your mind from your responsibilities and envision the big picture. Setting aside time to think is a great way to make sure you don’t get bogged down in the day-to-day functions of your firm.[14:41] Once you have that time set aside, you create your mental models. There are two components to a mental model: what is working, and what is not. When something is not working, there are multiple approaches you can take to address it. You may need to abandon that problem, or you may just need to innovate. [17:48] Often, incremental innovation can be more effective than trying to make changes in your practice all at once. It is important to be open to change, which can be difficult as a firm working in government regulations that rarely change.[20:53] After creating your mental model, you can move into “who not how.” This involves delegating decision making to a qualified person near you. If you only rely on yourself, you become a bottleneck and limit your firm. [25:31] Part of empowering your team to make decisions is allowing them to make mistakes. While you can and should set up guardrails, there is no way to prevent mistakes completely when delegating. [29:43] Businesses are complex organisms. When you make changes in one part of your firm, those changes will ripple through other parts of your firm, often with unintended consequences. Failure to anticipate these consequences accounts for many of the mistakes that firms make.[34:33] A major change Marc Whitehead & Associates is making that is starting to work is moving into elder law. Elder law allows Marc Whitehead & Associates to follow its clients into the next step of their journeys as they age.Buy Smarter Faster Better: The Secrets of Being Productive in Life and Business by Charles Duhigg: https://www.amazon.com/Smarter-Faster-Better-Productive-Business/dp/081299339X Listen to Smarter Faster Better by Charles Duhigg: https://www.audible.com/pd/Smarter-Faster-Better-Audiobook/B017WRZO9U?source_code=AUDORWS0718179KY7 Visit the Successful Barrister website: https://www.successfulbarrister.com/ Visit the Marc Whitehead & Associates website: https://disabilitydenials.com/ Email Marc Whitehead: marc@marcwhitehead.com 

Is your firm afraid of AI? Or are you one of the many of firms who have adopted it? While AI has a mixed reputation in the legal industry, it can be extremely useful when applied responsibly. In today’s episode, Marc and Diana discuss their firm’s adoption of AI and advise listeners on how they can adopt artificial intelligence responsibly. For detailed show notes, navigate using the time stamps below:[1:17] Today’s episode is about the latest CLIO trends report, which was published at the end of 2024. This year, the report is focused on law firms’ usage of artificial intelligence. AI has gotten a bad reputation in the legal world in the past, but there are many real uses for AI.[4:45] Atticus offered monthly AI training sessions through Steve Riley through 2024, and will continue to offer them quarterly through 2025. From those sessions, a key takeaway was that AI will not replace lawyers. Instead, AI can help firms shift their business strategies. [9:10] The CLIO report states that 79% of legal professionals surveyed are now using AI. Marc believes the real number is closer to half, which is still a large shift. [11:49] AI will affect different business models differently. For billable lawyers, the adoption of AI can be scare because adopting AI reduces your billable hours substantially. [13:30] For flat fee models, the goal is the opposite – you want to work as few hours as possible because you will make the same amount regardless of how long you work. Marc encourages listeners to shift to a flat-fee model to adjust to the technological shift. [17:33] Flat fee lawyers can leverage AI to complete routine tasks that do not require their specialized expertise. For example, ChatGPT can help write emails, summaries, and more. It is important to keep in mind that public chatbots do not protect the information entered into them, so avoid entering personal information.[23:53] Marc Whitehead & Associates recently signed a contract with Westlaw to use their AI CoCouncil. CoCouncil is a closed AI, so lawyers can safely enter client information when prompting it. Marc suggests asking for small, specific outputs.[29:38] Diana explains the factors that made the firm comfortable with working with CoCouncil. One of those factors was the longevity of the firm’s relationship with Westlaw, and how long Westlaw’s technology has existed. Another factor was their monthly plan.[33:04] One reason the firm adopted AI is to help with recorded calls. The AI listens to and summarizes the calls, looking for certain patterns for quality control.[36:20] Diana and Marc discuss an AI vendor that the firm temporarily worked with and why the contract did not last. They found that the AI component was oversold and that the team did not buy into the new technology.  [38:40] You don’t have to adopt all AI technology right now. Your firm can start small and adopt new technology slowly overtime. Diana explains a promising vendor she is interested in working with that the firm has not adopted yet.[43:47] Another factor in AI adoption is your type of practice. If it is highly specialized to the needs of individual clients with a smaller caseload, you may not need AI services to the same extent as a larger and more routine-based practices.Visit the Successful Barrister website: https://www.successfulbarrister.com/ Visit the Marc Whitehead & Associates website: https://disabilitydenials.com/ Email Marc Whitehead: marc@marcwhitehead.com 

In this episode of the Successful Barrister, Diana and Marc give you the secrets to being brilliant. While that may sound a little far-fetched, they have the tools to do it; specifically, they are pulling from The Personal MBA: Master the Art of Business by Josh Kaufman. The book asks a series of 49 questions to help you become brilliant, guiding you through topics like your health, your focus, your fears, and your fulfillment. With the insights from these questions, you can learn new insights about yourself and bring brilliance into 2025. For detailed show notes, navigate using the time stamps below:[1:45] Today’s episode is all about how to be brilliant going into 2025. Specifically, Diana and Marc are discussing The Personal MBA: Master the Art of Business by Josh Kaufman. Often, lawyers are hesitant to look outside the legal profession for tips on running their firms – but they shouldn’t be![5:00] The Personal MBA provides 49 questions to ask yourself to be brilliant. The first set of questions is about how you use your body optimally – how you manage your diet, your sleep, your exercise, and more.[11:32] The next set of questions is related to knowing what you want. It’s important to check on your priorities, which naturally shift over time. This includes questions about which achievements would make you excited, where you focus your energy, and how you define your values and priorities. [16:55] Next, what are you afraid of? This set of questions asks you to determine what is holding you back, and importantly, why it is holding you back. You have to get to the “fifth why” of your fears to fully understand where they come from and how to conquer them. These questions also help you understand and mitigate risk.[22:10] Is your mind clear and focused? The next set of questions asks about how your organize your ideas, capture your thoughts, and guide your attention. [27:00] Next, are you confident, relaxed, and productive? This involves regularly reviewing your commitments, forming new positive habits, and learning to say no. Diana explains a four-quadrant technique that she used to set goals in the new year – “keep,” “improve,” “start,” and “stop.”[31:06] The next section, Marc’s favorite, asks how you perform best: how you learn, how you like to work, and what you’re good at. Diana points out that this also has to do with your health.[39:45] The final section asks what you need to be happy and fulfilled. It asks how you define success and how often you compare yourself with others. Marc defines success as helping as many families as possible through his work.Read the 49 Questions from The Personal MBA and buy or listen to the book: https://personalmba.com/ Visit to the Atticus website: https://atticusadvantage.com/ Visit the Successful Barrister website: https://www.successfulbarrister.com/ Visit the Marc Whitehead & Associates website: https://disabilitydenials.com/ Email Marc Whitehead: marc@marcwhitehead.com 

In this episode of the Successful Barrister, Diana and Marc discuss one of Marc’s biggest pet peeve: new years resolutions. Most people do not stick to their new years resolutions – they tend to be lofty and ill-defined, and few people hold themselves accountable to them. Because of this, this episode focuses on setting realistic goals – helping you avoid “shiny object” thinking, create milestones to track your progress, and get your team on board. For detailed show notes, navigate using the time stamps below:[1:40] Happy new year! Today’s episode is about Marc’s pet peeve: new years resolutions. He believes that waiting for the start of a new year to improve yourself is pointless. What really matters is executing on your plan for the year.[2:36] Marc Whitehead & Associates looks at the results from the previous year to set new goals starting in November. Then, the firm goes through all aspects of its activities to set small goals to reach throughout the new year. [6:55] The firm started using EOS (Entrepreneurial Operating System) a little over a year ago. EOS has helped the team understand and take accountability for this year’s goals, and will help them continue to do so moving into 2025. [9:07] Diana and Marc share their best practices for goal setting. To begin, Marc explains his fear of coming up with the wrong “rocks,” or long-term goals. He has people come into goal-setting meetings with ideas to avoid getting attached to “shiny object” ideas.[15:19] Marc always looks about two components when setting goals: profitability and growth. As his goals filter into other departments, factors like complexity and capacity become more relevant. Diana is a key player in making sure the firm has the capability to accomplish Marc’s goals. [20:25] Another component of good goal setting is making sure everyone in your organization is on board. If your goals only matter to upper leadership, they will not be accomplished by your team. [26:36] Marc’s 2025 professional goal is to get back to being more of a one-on-one marketer. He used to go to more lunches and networking events, but he has not gotten back to it since the pandemic. His SMART version of this goal is to go to at least two lunches each month. [29:27] Diana’s professional goal is to attend the EOS Integrator Masterclass. She believes it will help her be the best integrator she can be for the firm. [31:15] Marc’s personal goal is to build his relationships. He wants to spend more time and have more conversations with his wife. He also wants to spend more time with his friends and building new friendships.  [34:35] Diana wants to work on her flexibility by stretching five times a week. She learned recently that flexibility is important to your bone health and mobility as you age.  Visit the Successful Barrister website: https://www.successfulbarrister.com/ Visit the Marc Whitehead & Associates website: https://disabilitydenials.com/ Email Marc Whitehead: marc@marcwhitehead.com 

In this episode of the Successful Barrister, Diana and Marc are reviewing their top takeaways and presentations from the Atticus Summit they recently attended. Focusing on mental and physical health, the summit included a variety of keynote speakers and experts with tips on how to build a better life outside of your practice. Marc also discusses his work with Atticus and offers a free call to discuss the benefits to listeners who are interested in becoming members.For detailed show notes, navigate using the time stamps below:[1:40] In today’s episode, Marc and Diana will discuss the Atticus Summit they recently attended. The summit involves presentations and speeches from keynote speakers, lawyers, and other experts. This year’s theme was “Great Practice, Great Life.”[4:47] According to Mark powers, you need to establish a “health reserve” for when you will need it. Everyone will start to experience health challenges in older age, but those who are healthier to begin with will be more likely to survive them. [7:52] Diana’s first highlight is Colleen Goldenfarb’s presentation, “Why Does Work Get the Best of You, and Your Loved Ones Get the Rest of You?” One aspect that resonated with Diana was the idea that time does not equal presence. [13:05] Marc’s first highlight is Glen Finch. Glen has been an Atticus advisor for over 20 years, but he is also a Colonel in the army. He spoke about the ability to manage your thoughts and feelings and how emotional intelligence can improve your work. [19:05] Victor Medina’s presentation, “The Perpetual Law Firm” also stood out to Diana. Only lawyers can own law firms, so selling your law firm can be difficult. He discussed how to maintain your law firm as an asset without having to work there. [22:34] Another highlight for Marc was Jennifer Felton’s presentation on building her practice and taking control of her health. She said that greatness lies at the intersection of passion, skill, and monetization. [27:14] Diana’s final highlight is Max Lugavere’s talk on unlocking your brain’s potential. He gave actionable tips about improving your brain function and preventing dementia.[31:09] Marc’s last highlight is Robert Rose’s presentation on harnessing the power of your brand’s voice – in other words, making money off of your brand. The process involves building your audience and then finding ways to monetize that audience. [39:44] Marc is a spokesperson for Atticus and credits them for the success of his practice. You can go to https://atticusonline.com to learn more about Atticus’s programs and offerings. There are lots of free opportunities to explore Atticus’s benefits, and you can also email Marc to set up a call with him on Atticus’s benefits. Visit the Successful Barrister website: https://www.successfulbarrister.com/ Visit the Marc Whitehead & Associates website: https://disabilitydenials.com/ Email Marc Whitehead: marc@marcwhitehead.com 

Are you managing your time effectively? In this episode of the Successful Barrister Podcast, Marc and Diana give listeners their guide to managing your time (or focus) more effectively. Time management sets the best firms apart, and mastering it can help your firm run efficiently. Learn how to delegate your tasks, schedule time to think, and minimize your distractions.For detailed show notes, navigate using the time stamps below:[1:11] In this episode, Diana and Marc are discussing time management (or “focus management,” as Marc prefers to call it). Focus management is all about managing how you think. [4:26] The ability to focus on the right things sets the best apart. What are you supposed to think about as the leader of organization? Thinking correctly means thinking about strategy and the future of your firm.[8:22] The first tenet of time management in Time Management for Attorneys is prioritization. You have to prioritize the “highest and best use” of your time.[11:27] The next step is delegating tasks so that you can spend your time where it matters. Ask yourself what you are doing that you should not be doing.[12:41] One often overlooked piece is marketing – you have to spend time on marketing if you want to attract cases. You also have to spend time on management. In a well-run organization, these should be the key focuses of the head of the organization.[14:22] Think about your goals – from daily goals to five-year goals. Write down your plans to track and execute on them. [18:22] The next tenet is “blocking and tackling.” This is essentially thinking time. Blocking off time to think will allow you the space to think through your goals instead of getting stuck on the day-to-day minutia of your firm.[23:51] There are two parts to delegation: delegating the task itself and delegating the authority to execute and finalize the task. If you need to review all materials before they go out, you are creating more work for yourself.[28:03] The final tenet is managing your interruptions. Marc closes his door when he needs to focus, and tells people to meet him at other times when he is busy. [33:38] Email can be a big distraction because it can parachute into your day at any point. Marc manages his email through Outlook and organizes his emails into folders. He created a rule that court emails go into one folder, outside attorney emails go into a second folder, and staff emails go into another folder.[40:13] Marc also has a “for further study” where he puts emails that he wants to go back to – usually emails from vendors making offers. His system helps him prioritize emails and frees up his time. Visit the Successful Barrister website: https://www.successfulbarrister.com/ Visit the Marc Whitehead & Associates website: https://disabilitydenials.com/ Email Marc Whitehead: marc@marcwhitehead.com 

Marc’s Marketing Plan, A Free Marketing Plan for 2025, Giving the Gift of MarketingHappy Holidays! In the spirit of the season, Marc has a gift for you in today’s mini-episode: a free copy of his marketing plan. He has presented his plan to lawyers across the country.For detailed show notes, navigate using the time stamps below:[2:12] Are lawyers too focused on being profitable? Marc believes this is the wrong framing. Lawyers have an ethical duty to be wildly profitable – to help the most people and give them the best service. [4:15] Marc gives an outline of the marketing strategies covered in his plan – from intakes to referrals. [5:25] To get a copy of the marketing plan, email Marc at marc@marcwhitehead.comVisit the Successful Barrister website: https://www.successfulbarrister.com/ Visit the Marc Whitehead & Associates website: https://disabilitydenials.com/ Email Marc Whitehead: marc@marcwhitehead.com 

Marc has a second gift for you! As he has discussed on the podcast, Marc is a coach for Atticus and helps lawyers build successful practices (not prisons). Normally, these courses cost money, but Marc is giving you a freebie in the spirit of the season.For detailed show notes, navigate using the time stamps below:[0:50] This episode is about Marc’s coaching work. For well over a decade, Marc has coached lawyers through Atticus. [2:17] This week, Marc is offering a free one-on-one conversation about building a practice, not a prison. [3:21] If you’re interested in setting up a conversation, email marc@marcwhitehead.com.Visit the Successful Barrister website: https://www.successfulbarrister.com/ Visit the Marc Whitehead & Associates website: https://disabilitydenials.com/ Email Marc Whitehead: marc@marcwhitehead.com