Staying positive, of course, is easier said than done. How are you supposed to project happiness and confidence when you don’t feel cheerful? Some of my favorite practical advice on this topic comes from former Columbia University Assistant Clinical Professor of Medical Psychology Erin Olivo. In her Psychology Today blog, Dr. Olivo has promoted a number of methods for increasing and maintaining positivity.

While each attorney or firm should factor in their own expenses, expertise, and other factors listed in the Indiana Rules of Professional Conduct Rule 1.5 to arrive at an appropriate billable rate, it definitely helps to know where the market is generally at. This tool breaks down the average rates by state as well as practice area.

The article focuses on using technology and innovation to develop a law firm culture that docuses on client needs and client retention. 

This is a great article on law firm atmosphere and culture and provides some anecdotal advice along with major points to consider when running a practice.

This article does a great job of summarizing some of the important ways that improving your personal well-being can help you grow and improve a successful law practice.  

How many solo attorneys do you know that work a 9-5? The ones who eat well, work out an hour a day then sleep a solid 8 hours at night.

Being a solo practitioner puts you in a position to actually reap the rewards of your hard work, rather than pass a big chunk off to the firm you work for. The flip side of a solo practice is the fact that you are responsible for more, including fee collection (that is, making sure that your clients actually pay).

A man much wiser than myself once said, “If you’re not making mistakes, you’re probably not doing anything. Doers make mistakes.” I have no ax to grind with big law, and in my heart, I believe we’re all responsible for our own actions. We all know what it’s like, though, to have our priorities misaligned. We all know what it’s like to lose our balance.

That’s right kids, it’s that time of the year again: that magical time of year when our favorite magistrates and commissioners shuffle off to new courtrooms and we are left shrugging our shoulders in confusion as to when/where we may meet again.

Would that we all were an attorney with Cravath Swaine & Moore, LLP. In case you’ve been in incommunicative hiding, the old white-shoe law firm announced in 2017 that they were awarding $15,000 bonuses for the holiday season. For the second year in a row.