The 80/20 Principle

For your practice to run smoothly you need systems. But why is creating & documenting systems so difficult for lawyers? Listen and discover the “magic” process. Below are links to resources or services that were discussed in this episode: The Power of a System, by John Fisher (downloadable PDF) Systems Brainstorming Worksheet(Based on Patrick Slaughter’s process) Dropbox Paper (collaborative document creation used by Patrick) Lawclerk.legal; (virtual assistance from lawyers) Hire an Esquire (virtual lawyer staffing) FancyHands; (online virtual assistance - general) GetMagic; (online virtual assistance - general) General Resources Learn to use technology to reduce friction & gain freedom with this resource: https://www.the8020lawyer.com/ Focus on these essential tech tools for maximum traction in your practice. Take this short law practice assessment to identify your main strengths & weaknesses. Follow and Review: We’d love for you to follow us if you haven’t yet. Click that purple '+' in the top right corner of your Apple Podcasts app. We’d love it even more if you could drop a review or 5-star rating over on Apple Podcasts. Simply select “Ratings and Reviews” and “Write a Review” then a quick line with your favorite part of the episode. It only takes a second and it helps spread the word about the podcast. Thanks to My Sponsor Ruby Receptionists Ruby is a virtual receptionist service that provides all of your law firm's callers with first-class service. I used them for my solo practice and they were phenomenal in helping me surprise and delight my callers. I've been enthusiastically recommending Ruby to hundreds of lawyers and they also have been amazed by the quality of service and its affordability. To learn more about Ruby Receptionists’ exceptional services (and get a special discount for podcast listeners only) click here. Episode Credits If you like this podcast and are thinking of creating your own, consider talking to my producer, Emerald City Productions. They helped me grow and produce the podcast you are listening to right now. Find out more at https://emeraldcitypro.com Let them know we sent you.

Managing documents is vital for lawyers, but today the documents are mostly digital. So you need a good system for doing this well. Craig Bayer has helped hundreds of solo and small firm attorneys boost their efficiency by better managing their documents. In the past he also helped lawyers with practice management software. So he’s in a unique position to offer insight into how you should use practice management technology to streamline your law practice. To learn more about Craig’s work visit his company website: Optiable.com. General Resources Learn to use technology to reduce friction & gain freedom with this resource: https://www.the8020lawyer.com/ Focus on these essential tech tools for maximum traction in your practice. Take this short law practice assessment to identify your main strengths & weaknesses. Follow and Review: We’d love for you to follow us if you haven’t yet. Click that purple '+' in the top right corner of your Apple Podcasts app. We’d love it even more if you could drop a review or 5-star rating over on Apple Podcasts. Simply select “Ratings and Reviews” and “Write a Review” then a quick line with your favorite part of the episode. It only takes a second and it helps spread the word about the podcast. Thanks to My Sponsor Ruby Receptionists Ruby is a virtual receptionist service that provides all of your law firm's callers with first-class service. I used them for my solo practice and they were phenomenal in helping me surprise and delight my callers. I've been enthusiastically recommending Ruby to hundreds of lawyers and they also have been amazed by the quality of service and its affordability. To learn more about Ruby Receptionists’ exceptional services (and get a special discount for podcast listeners only) click here. Episode Credits If you like this podcast and are thinking of creating your own, consider talking to my producer, Emerald City Productions. They helped me grow and produce the podcast you are listening to right now. Find out more at https://emeraldcitypro.com Let them know we sent you.  

Patrick Slaughter runs a small firm in Knoxville, Tennessee that does mostly family law work and some immigration law. He built his practice quickly relying on marketing skills he gained working as a magician (before law school). He also makes sensible use of technology. We talked about how he grew his practice, and how he manages it today. We talked about the challenges he’s faced and how he addressed them—including the challenge of harnessing technology to create a practice that’s almost completely paperless. Show Notes Microsoft 365 (Office suite of software, including Word, Excel etc.) Fujitsu ScanSnap iX1500 (document scanner) PDFPen Pro (Mac-based PDF software) Dragon Professional (Mac version is now discontinued) Dragon Anywhere (smartphone version) Sennheiser OfficeRunner Wireless Headset (Amazon link) Xero (cloud-based accounting software) Rocket Matter (cloud-based practice management software) Lexicata (cloud-based CRM & intake software) Michael Hyatt (productivity & management expert) Free to Focus (productivity book by Michael Hyatt) General Resources Learn to use technology to reduce friction & gain freedom with this resource: https://www.the8020lawyer.com/ Focus on these essential tech tools for maximum traction in your practice. Take this short law practice assessment to identify your main strengths & weaknesses. Follow and Review: We’d love for you to follow us if you haven’t yet. Click that purple '+' in the top right corner of your Apple Podcasts app. We’d love it even more if you could drop a review or 5-star rating over on Apple Podcasts. Simply select “Ratings and Reviews” and “Write a Review” then a quick line with your favorite part of the episode. It only takes a second and it helps spread the word about the podcast. Thanks to My Sponsor Ruby Receptionists Ruby is a virtual receptionist service that provides all of your law firm's callers with first-class service. I used them for my solo practice and they were phenomenal in helping me surprise and delight my callers. I've been enthusiastically recommending Ruby to hundreds of lawyers and they also have been amazed by the quality of service and its affordability. To learn more about Ruby Receptionists’ exceptional services (and get a special discount for podcast listeners only) click here. Episode Credits If you like this podcast and are thinking of creating your own, consider talking to my producer, Emerald City Productions. They helped me grow and produce the podcast you are listening to right now. Find out more at https://emeraldcitypro.com Let them know we sent you.  

Theoretically using practice management software will make your practice easier to manage. In practice, it’s not as effective for some lawyers as they thought when they initially decided to use it. In this episode we find out why, as Ernie interviews someone in a unique position to help solo and small firm lawyers figure out the best option for their practice type and overall situation: i.e. Jared Correia of Red Cave Consulting . General Resources Learn to use technology to reduce friction & gain freedom with this resource: https://www.the8020lawyer.com/ Focus on these essential tech tools for maximum traction in your practice. Take this short law practice assessment to identify your main strengths & weaknesses. Follow and Review: We’d love for you to follow us if you haven’t yet. Click that purple '+' in the top right corner of your Apple Podcasts app. We’d love it even more if you could drop a review or 5-star rating over on Apple Podcasts. Simply select “Ratings and Reviews” and “Write a Review” then a quick line with your favorite part of the episode. It only takes a second and it helps spread the word about the podcast. Thanks to My Sponsor Ruby Receptionists Ruby is a virtual receptionist service that provides all of your law firm's callers with first-class service. I used them for my solo practice and they were phenomenal in helping me surprise and delight my callers. I've been enthusiastically recommending Ruby to hundreds of lawyers and they also have been amazed by the quality of service and its affordability. To learn more about Ruby Receptionists’ exceptional services (and get a special discount for podcast listeners only) click here. Episode Credits If you like this podcast and are thinking of creating your own, consider talking to my producer, Emerald City Productions. They helped me grow and produce the podcast you are listening to right now. Find out more at https://emeraldcitypro.com Let them know we sent you.  

I studied high performing business leaders who are amazingly proficient at managing email. Then I identified common tactics and strategies they used and then adopted those tactics as my own email processing system. My new system is radically more efficient, simpler and less stressful. Best of all: I can run it easily from my smartphone. Show notes for Email Effectiveness podcast (#46) Resources Mentioned in Show Followup.cc; - tool for deferring emails Ari Meisel - Less Doing website Ari Meisel’s books on Amazon Sanebox; - intelligent automated email filtering Boomerang; - delayed sending for emails FancyHands; - affordable virtual assistance (use to schedule appointments that show up in email conversations) Spark email client (Mac only on desktop) - but also has iOS app and Android; app for smartphones. Textexpander; - rapid text & document creation for Macs, PCs and iOS devices (has a free trial option) General Resources Learn to use technology to reduce friction & gain freedom with this resource: https://www.the8020lawyer.com/ Focus on these essential tech tools for maximum traction in your practice. Take this short law practice assessment to identify your main strengths & weaknesses. Follow and Review: We’d love for you to follow us if you haven’t yet. Click that purple '+' in the top right corner of your Apple Podcasts app. We’d love it even more if you could drop a review or 5-star rating over on Apple Podcasts. Simply select “Ratings and Reviews” and “Write a Review” then a quick line with your favorite part of the episode. It only takes a second and it helps spread the word about the podcast. Thanks to My Sponsor Ruby Receptionists Ruby is a virtual receptionist service that provides all of your law firm's callers with first-class service. I used them for my solo practice and they were phenomenal in helping me surprise and delight my callers. I've been enthusiastically recommending Ruby to hundreds of lawyers and they also have been amazed by the quality of service and its affordability. To learn more about Ruby Receptionists’ exceptional services (and get a special discount for podcast listeners only) click here. Episode Credits If you like this podcast and are thinking of creating your own, consider talking to my producer, Emerald City Productions. They helped me grow and produce the podcast you are listening to right now. Find out more at https://emeraldcitypro.com Let them know we sent you.  

Figuring out how to harness [80/20 efficiencies](https://ernietheattorney.net/strategic-prioritization/) takes thought and experimentation. But the payoff of exponential efficiency is always worth the effort.    Sometimes you just need someone to point out a new more effective way of doing things. I feel like that’s my role here in this podcast, and in my online programs. General Resources Learn to use technology to reduce friction & gain freedom with this resource: https://www.the8020lawyer.com/ Focus on these essential tech tools for maximum traction in your practice. Take this short law practice assessment to identify your main strengths & weaknesses. Follow and Review: We’d love for you to follow us if you haven’t yet. Click that purple '+' in the top right corner of your Apple Podcasts app. We’d love it even more if you could drop a review or 5-star rating over on Apple Podcasts. Simply select “Ratings and Reviews” and “Write a Review” then a quick line with your favorite part of the episode. It only takes a second and it helps spread the word about the podcast. Thanks to My Sponsor Ruby Receptionists Ruby is a virtual receptionist service that provides all of your law firm's callers with first-class service. I used them for my solo practice and they were phenomenal in helping me surprise and delight my callers. I've been enthusiastically recommending Ruby to hundreds of lawyers and they also have been amazed by the quality of service and its affordability. To learn more about Ruby Receptionists’ exceptional services (and get a special discount for podcast listeners only) click here. Episode Credits If you like this podcast and are thinking of creating your own, consider talking to my producer, Emerald City Productions. They helped me grow and produce the podcast you are listening to right now. Find out more at https://emeraldcitypro.com Let them know we sent you.  

The kid played by Ralph Macchio didn't understand that in life you can have what you want if you're willing to work for it. And if you aren't fixated on how you'll get it. Oh, and it helps to have a good guide to help you stay on track. This was good advice for the kid in the movie, but it also relates to building the law practice of your dreams. General Resources Learn to use technology to reduce friction & gain freedom with this resource: https://www.the8020lawyer.com/ Focus on these essential tech tools for maximum traction in your practice. Take this short law practice assessment to identify your main strengths & weaknesses. Follow and Review: We’d love for you to follow us if you haven’t yet. Click that purple '+' in the top right corner of your Apple Podcasts app. We’d love it even more if you could drop a review or 5-star rating over on Apple Podcasts. Simply select “Ratings and Reviews” and “Write a Review” then a quick line with your favorite part of the episode. It only takes a second and it helps spread the word about the podcast. Thanks to My Sponsor Ruby Receptionists Ruby is a virtual receptionist service that provides all of your law firm's callers with first-class service. I used them for my solo practice and they were phenomenal in helping me surprise and delight my callers. I've been enthusiastically recommending Ruby to hundreds of lawyers and they also have been amazed by the quality of service and its affordability. To learn more about Ruby Receptionists’ exceptional services (and get a special discount for podcast listeners only) click here. Episode Credits If you like this podcast and are thinking of creating your own, consider talking to my producer, Emerald City Productions. They helped me grow and produce the podcast you are listening to right now. Find out more at https://emeraldcitypro.com Let them know we sent you.  

There are several ways to gather client feedback and testimonials. In this episode, we’ll discuss the pros and cons of each way. We’ll talk about the best tools to use, and the optimal form questions for getting great feedback answers AND testimonials in a single survey. Links to resources mentioned Book: The Ultimate Question 2.0, by Fred Reichheld: Outline of Discussion (PDF) Survey Monkey form I discussed Birdeye (online review service) Podium (online review service) General Resources Learn to use technology to reduce friction & gain freedom with this resource: https://www.the8020lawyer.com/ Focus on these essential tech tools for maximum traction in your practice. Take this short law practice assessment to identify your main strengths & weaknesses. Follow and Review: We’d love for you to follow us if you haven’t yet. Click that purple '+' in the top right corner of your Apple Podcasts app. We’d love it even more if you could drop a review or 5-star rating over on Apple Podcasts. Simply select “Ratings and Reviews” and “Write a Review” then a quick line with your favorite part of the episode. It only takes a second and it helps spread the word about the podcast. Thanks to My Sponsor Ruby Receptionists Ruby is a virtual receptionist service that provides all of your law firm's callers with first-class service. I used them for my solo practice and they were phenomenal in helping me surprise and delight my callers. I've been enthusiastically recommending Ruby to hundreds of lawyers and they also have been amazed by the quality of service and its affordability. To learn more about Ruby Receptionists’ exceptional services (and get a special discount for podcast listeners only) click here. Episode Credits If you like this podcast and are thinking of creating your own, consider talking to my producer, Emerald City Productions. They helped me grow and produce the podcast you are listening to right now. Find out more at https://emeraldcitypro.com Let them know we sent you.  

To grow your practice you need more than just information. You need timely insight from folks who've been where you are now. Folks who've attained success and have helped others succeed too. The best resource is something called a mastermind group. To learn more about how they can help you listen to this episode. And check out a book called Mastermind Group Blueprint, by Tobe Brockner. General Resources Learn to use technology to reduce friction & gain freedom with this resource: https://www.the8020lawyer.com/ Focus on these essential tech tools for maximum traction in your practice. Take this short law practice assessment to identify your main strengths & weaknesses. Follow and Review: We’d love for you to follow us if you haven’t yet. Click that purple '+' in the top right corner of your Apple Podcasts app. We’d love it even more if you could drop a review or 5-star rating over on Apple Podcasts. Simply select “Ratings and Reviews” and “Write a Review” then a quick line with your favorite part of the episode. It only takes a second and it helps spread the word about the podcast. Thanks to My Sponsor Ruby Receptionists Ruby is a virtual receptionist service that provides all of your law firm's callers with first-class service. I used them for my solo practice and they were phenomenal in helping me surprise and delight my callers. I've been enthusiastically recommending Ruby to hundreds of lawyers and they also have been amazed by the quality of service and its affordability. To learn more about Ruby Receptionists’ exceptional services (and get a special discount for podcast listeners only) click here. Episode Credits If you like this podcast and are thinking of creating your own, consider talking to my producer, Emerald City Productions. They helped me grow and produce the podcast you are listening to right now. Find out more at https://emeraldcitypro.com Let them know we sent you.    

Your ideal clients are looking for you, their ideal lawyer. But they don't know how to find you, so you have to find them. And strategic marketing is the way you can do that. Unfortunately, too many lawyers have no idea how to market strategically. And copying other folks who aren't properly informed about marketing isn't a good strategy. General Resources Learn to use technology to reduce friction & gain freedom with this resource: https://www.the8020lawyer.com/ Focus on these essential tech tools for maximum traction in your practice. Take this short law practice assessment to identify your main strengths & weaknesses. Follow and Review: We’d love for you to follow us if you haven’t yet. Click that purple '+' in the top right corner of your Apple Podcasts app. We’d love it even more if you could drop a review or 5-star rating over on Apple Podcasts. Simply select “Ratings and Reviews” and “Write a Review” then a quick line with your favorite part of the episode. It only takes a second and it helps spread the word about the podcast. Thanks to My Sponsor Ruby Receptionists Ruby is a virtual receptionist service that provides all of your law firm's callers with first-class service. I used them for my solo practice and they were phenomenal in helping me surprise and delight my callers. I've been enthusiastically recommending Ruby to hundreds of lawyers and they also have been amazed by the quality of service and its affordability. To learn more about Ruby Receptionists’ exceptional services (and get a special discount for podcast listeners only) click here.  Episode Credits If you like this podcast and are thinking of creating your own, consider talking to my producer, Emerald City Productions. They helped me grow and produce the podcast you are listening to right now. Find out more at https://emeraldcitypro.com Let them know we sent you.