Un-Billable Hour: Business Management Strategies for the Busy Lawyer Around the Community Table

 It’s tax time. No, we’re not referring to a specific date. For your business, every day is tax time. Guests Jackie and Adam Williams are married and co-own Pennywise Tax Strategies, a firm focused on helping small businesses navigate tax codes to keep more of their hard-earned money. Jackie Williams is a CPA and veteran tax specialist, and Adam Williams is an attorney and serial entrepreneur who became frustrated with large tax bills. Managing a business and your business taxes is more than handing over a stack of receipts to an accountant once a year. Many business owners don’t know enough about the tax system and miss opportunities to maximize earnings through intentional tax strategies throughout the year. Look at the future, not the past, when you think about taxes. Payroll, cash flow, metrics, records all matter and all fit together every day, not just at the end of the tax year. This requires a shift in your mindset. Keep more of your money, reinvest it in your business, and get more out of life. Tax strategy is not just for billionaires, it’s for you. Understand incentives baked into the tax code and how you can use tactics including the switch from sole proprietor to LLC or S Corp structures. Think this isn’t for you? Wait until you hear how much money, real money, you can save. Hear the actionable things you can start doing today.Mentioned in This Episode:The Un-Billable Hour podcast websiteJoin the next Community Table live. What’s on your mind? 

In this episode’s discussions around the Community Table: PLA? Professional law firm administrators. What you need to know and what they do. It’s not an office manager and it’s not an administrative assistant. Hear why you might need a PLA. As your firm grows, are you spending more time “running the business” than attracting clients and winning cases? Maybe you need a PLA.  While we’re at it, how about a non-attorney salesperson. Someone who is passionate will build your firm beyond simply sales. Propelling your brand is as important as getting a signature on the dotted line. Compensation, goals, motivation, there are so many factors. Understanding the difference between “wealth” and “money” is critical to your business. Money spent builds client lists (SEO, advertising, Google ranking), but building a referral network through a solid reputation builds wealth that never stops. One takes cash, one takes time, effort, and commitment. Mentioned in This Episode:Ask us anything for the Community Table. Leave us a question online.Join the next Community Table live. What’s on your mind? Association of Legal AdministratorsClio Legal Trends ReportClioCliocon 2025

We all try, but who really measures? Who’s paying you on time? If you don’t know, it’s hard to know if the business is working. It comes down to cash flow. And, frankly, lawyering is a business. Guest Karl Maier is a CFO and a business advisor at Abunden. He specializes in helping growing business manage systems and cash flow and putting it all into measurable terms. As you grow, you must know if the cash flow is growing. Maier helps businesses spot problems they aren’t facing today but may need to confront six months down the road.   A growing business can appear profitable in the short term and still face a cash flow problem down the road. Paying staff and keeping the lights on as you grow requires cash and timely client payments. It’s a delicate game. You need to be sure clients are paying, and sometimes that’s elusive. If you’re a growing firm, or you want to be a growing firm, this episode will get you thinking. And it should. Nobody gets excited about spreadsheets – especially lawyers – but if you’re intent on growing your business, you must do this. Mentioned in This Episode:The Un-Billable hour podcast websiteJoin the next Community Table live. What’s on your mind? 

Janet Falk, a public relations consultant and networking expert, shares her insights on how to truly connect at networking events. She emphasizes the importance of preparation and reaching out in advance to event leaders. Unique name tags and memorable attire can make you stand out, while business cards are essential. Janet advocates for teaching younger associates the art of networking, highlighting the shift from transactional interactions to building genuine relationships. She also discusses how networking can drive business growth and enhance professional connections.

Don’t think of December as the end of the year. Think of it as a chance to plan ahead for an exciting, purposeful, and opportunity-filled new year.Guest Andrea Liebross is the founder of her own firm, Andrea Liebross Coaching. She believes setting and achieving big audacious goals are best tackled through the implementation of solid systems, real goals, and the right (and ambitious) mindset. Are you getting where you want to go? Too often, we set our own limits. We stay safe and we stay small. We do things the way we’ve always done them because it’s safe. Hear how setting “big” goals and stretching your thinking helps you become “future you.” Give yourself permission to find out what you really want and where you want to be. And then make a plan to get there. Learn about Liebross’ “Think Big Toolkit” and the five components that can help you become “future you.” Don’t wait for things to happen to you, make the things you want happen.Mentioned in This Episode:“She Thinks Big” by Andrea LiebrossPodcast “She Thinks Big”Join the next Community Table live. What’s on your mind?

In this episode’s discussions around the Community Table: New year, new plan. And that’s the key: plan. Don’t stumble blind into 2025, instead hear what the experts say about reviewing the previous year and setting goals for the new one. Don’t keep doing the same thing and expecting different results. Sometimes your ship needs a rudder. If you need a COO, an “executive officer,” to manage the practice, part-time help is available. Experienced administrators take a load off your shoulders and teach others how to set a course and get where you want to go. What to do when an associate can’t manage retainers and payments? Being a good lawyer is only part of the job, making sure the firm gets paid is the other part. Sometimes an associate isn’t good at communicating financial information with a client. But if you’re a business owner, you have a responsibility to make sure the firm makes money. Mentioned in This Episode:Association of Legal AdministratorsAsk us anything for the Community Table. Leave us a question onlineJoin the next Community Table live. What’s on your mind? Clio Legal Trends ReportClioCliocon 2025

Guest M.C. Laubscher is the founder of Producers Wealth and an author, speaker, and podcaster who aims to help business owners create and build wealth for themselves, their families, and their team. How do you look at the path to building your firm and your wealth? It’s not intuitive. It takes thought, effort, and time. How’s your cash flow, and how much time do you spend thinking about it? Sometimes as a business owner you get so caught up in the day-to-day that you may not be spending enough time working on your financial picture. Hear how finance, scale, and cash flow management can build your business. And make no mistake, a law firm is a business. Hear about the small things you can do within your business that make your business work for you.There may be no greater return than investing in your own business. Never doubt what you can do if you believe in yourself and your business. Hear how you can allocate capital more effectively for greater returns from your own business. As Laubscher says, “You don’t have to be a Rockefeller to do what the Rockefellers do.”Mentioned in This Episode:“Rich Dad, Poor Dad,” by Robert Kiyosaki“Loan on a Life Insurance Policy,” InvestopediaProducers Wealth, Un-Billable Hour page“Get Wealthy For Sure” by M.C. Laubscher, free with paid shippingJoin the next Community Table live. What’s on your mind? 

In this episode’s discussions around the Community Table: There’s a time to take stock and reset. Understanding what you value and your internal motivations will help you guide your law firm’s growth. Think about what gets you out of bed and into the office each day. For most, it’s more than money. Know the difference between growing and truly building. Purpose and intentional goals matter more than billing. It’s the holiday season, and who doesn’t want to take off work for an extended period to be with friends and family. But for law firm owners and leaders, the question is how? Set the pieces in place that will allow you to turn over the business to employees, such as an established chain of command and communication expectations. Try a test period to see how things go when others have to step up and run the office. And finally, let’s talk about recognizing and coming to grips with “red flags” from a job candidate. Sometimes … you just know.  Mentioned in This Episode:Ask us anything for the Community Table. Leave us a question onlineJoin the next Community Table live. What’s on your mind? Clio Legal Trends ReportClioCliocon 2025

Join communications expert Janet Falk, who boasts over 30 years of experience helping small law firms thrive through networking and media relations. She provides invaluable insights on attracting clients and mastering the art of networking, especially for introverted attorneys. Falk discusses creating strategic connections, elevating your personal brand, and crafting a compelling elevator pitch. Plus, learn how to engage with media effectively to boost your firm’s visibility and tell your story. Grab her practical tips for networking events that can transform your client acquisition strategy!

In this episode’s discussions around the Community Table: Returning Guest Danielle Hendon, CPA, founder of 4 Corners CFO, explores what lawyers and law firms should, and should not, be doing in the fourth quarter of 2024. Learn the common mistakes firms make as the year winds down.  Take the time to understand the story your business “numbers” are telling you. Do you see where your business is going and what you should be thinking about as you forecast for next year? Be intentional about your growth. Don’t let things “happen to” your firm, make them happen.  It’s OK to spend as needed at the end of the year, especially if you’re thinking of taxes. But you’ve got to be looking ahead, too. What’s important, how do you manage a budget, understand what’s budgeting and what’s forecasting? Don’t spend just for short term tax advantages, plan for the unexpected too.  Mentioned in This Episode:Danielle Hendon, previously on the Un-Billable Hour, “Is Your Small Firm Missing A Chief Financial Officer? Rent One.”4 Corners CFO, “A Framework to Reveal Your Path to Profit”The Un-Billable Hour, Legal Talk NetworkQuickbooksClio Legal Trends ReportClioCliocon 2025Join the next Community Table live. What’s on your mind?