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Atticus Law Firm and Attorney Coaching Workshops

Author: Steve Riley

Home / Articles posted by Steve Riley
Posted on February 7, 2023
Public Resources

Working five hours a day as an attorney sounds like a fantasy. Increasing your revenue six times as well? Impossible. The key is in the method, it's doable, and it won't cost you any money. Your law firm can achieve greater success by focusing on a niche and being unafraid of attempting new things. Marc Whitehead is a lawyer with double-board certification who focuses on disability cases. His business has more than 50 employees and is expanding. He spent the first half of his career representing clients in personal injury trials, including those involving slip-and-fall accidents, car accidents, and other similar situations. At roughly the halfway point of his 30-year career, Marc started switching to Social Security disability cases and found he could schedule his days, months, and even vacations rather than being a slave to his trial schedule. Marc finds disability claims gratifying and chose to shift his practice after being introduced to the concept by a marketing firm. Since first attending the “Double Your Revenue” workshop in 2015, he has grown his practice’s revenue six times and now co-teaches the workshop. Marc also serves as Atticus's adjunct practice advisor. One key strategy he uses in growing his business is limiting who he...

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Posted on February 6, 2023
Podcast

In the legal world, most attorneys hyper-focus on their particular area. Often, they’re afraid to hire more staff because more staff means more money spent. What they fail to recognize, though, is that a carefully curated team can increase the quality and revenue of their practices multiple times. It seems counterintuitive that hiring more people could lead to more revenue, yet hiring the right team members can do exactly that. They can remove the tasks from your plate that you don’t want to focus on or simply no longer have the time for. Along with having your finances under control and a marketing strategy, you can set yourself up for greater success. Marc Whitehead is a double board-certified attorney who specializes in disability claims today. His firm has more than 50 employees and continues to grow. A self-described recovering personal injury trial lawyer, he spent the first half of his career taking on car accidents, slip-and-fall incidents, and other cases of that nature. Marc began the transition to Social Security disability claims about halfway through his 30-year career and discovered he could plan his day, month, and even vacations instead of being a slave to his trial calendar. This episode is part two...

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Posted on January 31, 2023
Public Resources

Danny Mazza graduated from law school believing he would take the bar and create a career in politics and government. After his parents died within 43 days of each other, his career focus shifted to estate planning and probate law. He worked at a larger firm, and within just a few years, he knew he wanted to start his own practice. Bri Niro joined Danny at his small firm and became his partner after meeting him during law school. Together, they’ve created a successful law practice that continues to grow and thrive by identifying their unique gifts and complementing one another well. How You Can Use Networking and Referrals to Build Your Business 1. Identify your strengths.  Danny knew he was good at networking and remembering people. It’s his gift, and while he could employ it in his own firm, working for a larger firm meant his hands were tied in many ways. Putting out his shingle allowed his outgoing personality to shine. Bri’s gift that complements Danny’s so well is that she knows how to engage and nourish new relationships. She recognizes that it takes effort, so when Danny brings in new relationships to their firm to encourage, Bri steps in with intentionality to maintain...

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Posted on January 30, 2023
Podcast

As an attorney, working five hours a day sounds like a dream. And growing your revenue six times? No way. It is possible, it doesn’t have to cost you any money, and the secret is in the strategy. Being unafraid to try new things and zeroing in on a niche can take your law firm to the next level of success. Marc Whitehead is a double board-certified attorney who specializes in disability claims today. His firm has more than 50 employees and continues to grow. A self-described recovering personal injury trial lawyer, he spent the first half of his career taking on car accidents, slip-and-fall incidents, and other cases of that nature. Marc began the transition to Social Security disability claims about halfway through his 30-year career and discovered he could plan his day, month, and even vacations instead of being a slave to his trial calendar. You’ll hear Marc describe how he decided to transition his practice, why his niche is so satisfying, and why he enjoys it so much. He now co-teaches the “Double Your Revenue” workshop and has increased his revenue six times since first attending the workshop in 2015. Additionally, Marc is an adjunct practice advisor for Atticus. In this...

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Posted on January 24, 2023
Public Resources

Attorneys often struggle with relinquishing control of certain areas of their businesses. Today’s guest, Patti Paz, is an expert at initial client meetings and isn’t a lawyer. Patti is a law firm's adjunct practice advisor, paralegal, and team leader. She also co-leads Practice Growth Programs and is Steve’s co-instructor for a program teaching non-lawyers to do initial meetings. Lawyers frequently conduct their own client intake meetings, but as a non-lawyer, Patti is adept at teaching other non-lawyers how to perform these introductions and save the practicing attorneys time. How You Save Time and Money and Increase Cash Flow with Delegation Stop believing you’re the only one who can do it. It’s hard to relinquish control--especially when you’re accustomed to being the only person in your firm who knows how to do something. But what if you could save hours and increase your firm’s cash flow by delegating a task to another capable team member? You know the answers to the legal questions, and by conducting all of your initial client meetings, you’re probably giving away free legal advice in addition to valuable time that could be spent on cases instead of intake. By delegating initial client meetings to a qualified team member, you can...

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Posted on January 23, 2023
Podcast

Young attorneys face big decisions when they leave law school. Should I start my own practice? Should I join a firm? What will I specialize in? Even if they’re just starting out, young lawyers can have a big impact in the legal field. Their fresh ideas and willingness to try new things can give them a distinct advantage over their more seasoned colleagues. Danny Mazza and Bri Niro, partners in the firm Mazza + Niro, are experiencing rapid growth. Danny and Bri officially became partners just in the past year, but they have a fantastic rapport--each having unique, complementary skills. In this episode of Great Practice, Great Life, you’ll hear Danny and Bri share how they met, why Bri decided to join Danny in a partnership, and how they’ve used what they’ve learned from Atticus to propel their practice forward. In this episode, you will hear: Danny Mazza’s background and how he decided to specialize in probate law after losing his parents 43 days apart How Bri Niro met Danny and why they decided to become law partners Why Bri decided from a young age what kind of career she wanted and how practicing law became her goal How Bri and Danny grew their...

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Posted on January 17, 2023
Public Resources

As in many other parts of the economy, law firms are experiencing the squeeze of inflation. Today’s guest, Glenn Finch, shares some key ways he’s learned to combat its effects. Glenn Finch is a longtime friend of Steve’s and a partner at Atticus. Married for 20 years with four children and five grandchildren, Glenn is also a Colonel in the Florida National Guard, has a black belt in martial arts, is a master scuba diver, and served for 12 years as a Senior Pastor for three multi-staffed churches in Florida. While anyone can throw more wages at employees, Glenn believes satisfaction is key to retention. How Creating Employee Satisfaction and Sharpening Your Client Mix Can Fight Inflation 1. Increasing employee wages isn’t the only way to ensure employee satisfaction. While increasing employee wages during record inflation seems like a no-brainer, it isn’t the only way to keep your firm’s employees happy. Wages are only one part of the compensation package. Get creative. Maybe offer a gas card to them to offset their commuting costs. Offer an alternative work schedule. The bottom line: A paycheck isn’t the only way to compensate someone for their work and time. 2. Don’t stop reaching for the A clients. Depending on the type...

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Posted on January 16, 2023
Podcast

It can be hard to let go of control--especially as an attorney running your own law firm. One advantage of relinquishing it can be increased profitability and taking back your time to accomplish more important tasks. Can non-lawyers successfully implement the initial meeting process with prospective clients? Steve believes they can. Attorneys often become bogged down in the details--especially in initial meetings--and spend valuable time responding to emails and offering free legal advice. Steve’s guest on this episode of Great Practice, Great Life is Patti Paz. Patti is an adjunct practice advisor, paralegal, and team leader. She also co-leads Practice Growth Programs and is Steve’s co-instructor for a program teaching non-lawyers to do initial meetings. You’ll hear the three common objections attorneys have to non-lawyers conducting initial client meetings, the five Ps of an initial meeting for non-lawyers, and why a process map is crucial to teach non-lawyers how to navigate these intake meetings. In this episode, you will hear: The three common objections attorneys have to non-lawyers conducting initial client meetings Why emotional needs are about the attorney and not the client How positivity and actively listening to your team member can help make the transition to non-lawyer initial consults smoother The five...

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Posted on January 10, 2023
Public Resources

Here at Atticus, we have a Double Your Revenue™ Workshop. It’s a one-day workshop designed to help lawyers do just that: double their firm's revenue.  We hear lots of attorneys state reasons why they are scared to take part in this workshop. I recently had a conversation with my friend Denise Gamez about these fears. Denise is the Director of Member Services at Atticus. She started with our company as a salesperson. However, she showed such tremendous talent and understanding of our customers’ challenges that she began doing the Practice Growth Diagnostic which is the first step of the client journey inside of Atticus. She also started speaking on behalf of Atticus at various engagements.  Today, I’m sharing some of the things Denise and I talked about regarding what scares most attorneys and stops them cold as they go through this one-day workshop for reframing their mindset and up-leveling their firm.  Fear of Doubling Revenue The first main fear we hear from attorneys is the entire thought of doubling their revenue.  They think that if they double their revenue, they’ll double everything else: their stress level, workload, staff, and more. The thing you must understand is that there is a methodology to doubling your revenue. If...

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Posted on January 9, 2023
Podcast

In a booming economy, running a successful law practice can feel effortless. The engine chugs along--often with only minor supervision. But when the economy changes and inflation comes into play, the practice model must also evolve. This episode of Great Practice, Great Life explores how to maintain a well-oiled machine when attorneys and practice employees alike are struggling to overcome increasing expenses and stagnant wages amidst inflation. Glenn Finch is a longtime friend of Steve’s and a partner at Atticus. Married for 20 years with four children and five grandchildren, Glenn is also a Colonel in the Florida National Guard, has a black belt in martial arts, is a master scuba diver, and served for 12 years as a Senior Pastor for three multi-staffed churches in Florida. From their perspectives as experienced Practice Advisors, Steve and Glenn explore different and unique ways to continue marketing a law practice when clients tighten their budgets in the face of increasing necessary expenses. In this episode, you will hear: Why Glenn is passionate about creating resilient practices while facing inflation. Why competing with increasing wages is a zero-sum game. How satisfaction helps retain employees. What “sharpening the client mix” means and why it’s a key strategy. The...

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