At this time of year, most attorneys set ambitious goals and identify new marketing thrusts to realize these goals.

Fast forward to the end of the year, and what typically happens? In most of these cases, attorneys end up producing pretty much more of the same results.

Preparing to Originate Start shifting your mindset by removing the obstacles to your success Stop doing business development in your spare time Stop working without a week-to-week plan and daily to-do list  Stop waiting for people to call you Stop seeing business development as being a social activity Stop being passive with fellow partners and allies Stop winging sales calls and meetings Stop relying on other partners to feed you business Stop depending on firm newsletters, the web site and other firm efforts to market you Stop seeing asking for business as being unprofessional Stop investing time in organizations with no business development results Stop being a lone wolf

Now, I contrast these traditional results with a group of 6 attorneys that I just worked with at a law firm for the past year. Each of the attorneys generated an increase of $ 400,000-600,000 in fees.

What makes this even more remarkable is that all of these attorneys were young and certainly not accomplished business developers. And the firm was located in Michigan – a state facing some dire economic times in the past few years.

What I have found in this work is that individual attorneys almost always have a wealth of business development opportunities. The obstacle to realizing this potential is the attorney, not the practice area, market or marketing programs.

Attorneys are either not recognizing their opportunities, lack the skills to convert them or are not putting in the work to get the business.

For those 6 Michigan attorneys, there were a lot of improvements and actions they took that led to these results. But the foundation for their success really came done to their mindset.  In each case, they were:

• Entrepreneurial: this means that they wanted to put their success under their own control
• Humble: they knew that they didn’t know how to do business development – so they were teachable and open
• Action-oriented: change requires that you take different actions on a consistent, systematic basis
• Willing to take a risk: typically, this requires that attorneys have direct and clear business development discussions with clients, prospects and referral sources – and ask them for their business or introductions.
• Disciplined: they executed their plan on a week to week (and day to day) basis

The Decision for You to Make In 2010

So what lessons can you learn from the successes of these attorneys (and many more like them)? There are three essential lessons as your starting point:

1. Changing your habits is hard.  Getting better at business development is hard work and requires that you change the way that you address your work.  You have to do more business development, adopt a results orientation and develop some basic selling skills.
   
2. You have to stop doing those things that block you from changing: This means that there are habits that keep you from doing the right kind, amount and form of business development.
   
3. You have to avoid pursuing marketing mirages and magic bullets: Attorneys often look for easy answers and half measures rather than making the hard changes. It is also easier to do marketing that looks good or sounds good – like getting on a lawyer ranking list or writing articles for the firm newsletter. Most of these are marketing mirages – something illusory, without substance or reality. And the real danger is that they keep you for doing the harder work required for real change and personal growth.

So here is the point of this article. Are you prepared to make a decision to do the hard work required to become a rainmaker in 2010?  Hold on! It is easy to say yes. But, before you do, take a look at what is required. Don’t fool yourself.  

What to Stop Doing In 2010:

Out of our training and coaching work, we have identified the mindset and habits that form the biggest blocks to business development. Here is what you must be willing to stop doing to make a serious business development shift:

1. Stop doing business development in your spare time: The two biggest excuses – “I’m too busy” and “Other work crowded out business development”  – have to be eliminated from your mindset and vocabulary. Rainmakers are the busiest people in the firm, yet they do more business development than anybody. Eliminate other activities to focus on business development. Get into work early. Use your down time to do business development.
   
   
2. Stop working without a week-to-week plan and daily to-do list:  Business development is simply work. Like your other work, you need to have a plan, schedule and daily to do’s.
   
   
3. Stop waiting for people to call you:  Business development is a contact sport. Have a list of people that you plan to contact and follow through with each week. Have a purpose and goal for each call.
   
   
4. Stop seeing business development as being a social activity: Business development is not about going to lunch, playing golf or going to ball games. It is about making contact, conducting interviews and finding ways to help each other. You need to have business dialogues and get a result.
   This can be done through phone calls and scheduled meetings other than lunch.
   
   
5. Stop being passive with fellow partners and allies: It is easy to be passive with people who can refer you business. Instead, you have to develop a “make it happen” mentality. Identify co-marketing opportunities. Ask for (and give) regular introductions. Schedule quarterly meetings where you review results and plans. Double team business organizations and find each other business opportunities.
   
   
6. Stop winging sales calls and meetings: A sales call should be treated like a business meeting – with objectives, agendas and next steps. Prepare and send these items out in advance. Identify the results you seek and ask for them, Have a clear next step and path forward.
   
   
7. Stop relying on other partners to feed you business:  While you do need to support your firm and other partners, you also have to make your own opportunities. Have a list of actions and opportunities that you “own”. Aim for signature projects, clients and opportunities. Focus on a service niche that you can champion. Originate your own work.
   
   
8. Stop depending on firm newsletters, the web site and other firm efforts to market you: While these can be worthwhile vehicles for promotion, consider them as secondary or complementary to your personal marketing program. Building your practice is up to you, not the firm.
   
   
9. Stop seeing asking for business as being unprofessional: I have seen aggressive attorneys shiver when we suggest asking clients or prospects this question, “What will it take for us to win your business (or more of your business)”. Why?  Either they are afraid or feel uncomfortable. Well, get over it. If you don’t ask, then you may never receive.
   
   
10. Stop investing time in organizations with no business development results: Lots of attorneys attend meetings, seminars or events to do business development. There is just one problem. They don’t target and engage people in business development dialogues. These events are “sales calls,” where you need to uncover a business problem or “pain” that leads to a follow up. If you go to meetings without generating business, there are two possible reasons: 1) you are in the wrong organization (there are no ideal clients or referral sources – so pick another one, or 2) you are not working the meetings to generate business. So set a goal to meet and qualify 1-2 target people at each event.
    
    
11. Stop being a lone wolf:  You need the help of other to succeed. Get a coach and mentor. Form or join a small team of entrepreneurial colleagues and allies. Ask your friends and contacts for help. Pick one organization as your business development platform and forge relationships.
    

Winning “The Biggest Loser”

Have you ever seen the NBC show “The Biggest Loser”?  In the show, obese contestants compete to see how much weight they can lose. And there are some miraculous transformations.

So, do they discover some new miracle way to lose weight? No, they pretty much diet and exercise. But, they are motivated to do it, make a decision to go on the show and work at it intently. And, secondly, they move them out of their homes to a secluded facility – and away from their bad habits and influences.

As in most programs for growth or change, getting better at business development starts with finding you own motivation to change – and making an informed and committed, decision to do so.

Unfortunately, there is no business development rehab center that you can go to. It’s up to you to make the decision, admit past failures and commit to the program. Without this commitment to change, there is no hope for real progress.

Look at the list above and decide that you don’t want to settle for the results that you produced this year. Stop letting these barriers and half-hearted efforts defeat you.

© 2010 PBDI/SAGE PDI. This article comes from the January 2010 Issue of ORIGINATE!, the online monthly newsletter (with ongoing support resources) dedicated to helping individual lawyers develop business successfully in order to build their careers. Our September 2008 anniversary issue and September 2007 inaugural issue are complimentary; otherwise articles are usually available to subscribers only. Find out more about subscribing at www.pbdi.org/originate.