Category: Best Practices
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Staying On The Right Side Of The Legal Advice Line
As a paralegal, it’s not unusual for me to find myself in a tricky situation with clients of the attorney. What often happens is the client asks me directly for legal advice or shares information about a case that I know requires immediate legal advice. If you have any non-lawyer staff in your practice, this…
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Best Practices to Get Your Clients Talking
Tips: – Do not look at a client’s questionnaire until you have established rapport and trust. – Take notes on a yellow pad, not a computer. – Have tissues and water in reach of the clients. – Plants make people feel calmer – green your office! – Never ask “WHY” – it puts people on…
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Business Succession Planning In The Internet Age
This article first appeared on Forbes. Many business owners build their businesses hoping that they will continue to generate income for their heirs after they pass away. However, businesses often die or lose significant value when the owner dies. When strategizing how to make sure your business continues to thrive, it is important to know…
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Who Do You Love? Who Do You Trust?
I ask every client “Who do you love. Who do you trust?” Initially, no one knows how to respond to these questions. Everyone wants to talk about who will receive their assets. That is not why I ask. The people we love and trust, the people who love and trust us, are the best people…
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Why Becoming More Argumentative Will Make You Smarter
When I saw that headline, I thought “Gosh, that’s not what my folks and teachers told me!” I read the BBC on my computer every morning. Obviously, the title caught my eye. It certainly wasn’t what I was taught when I was young–which was, admittedly a very long time ago. I was always told “Don’t argue!” It’s rude, disrespectful It was specially not okay for girls/ women to argue. Arguing was usually looked at as being loud and threatening. Raised voices…
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Vicarious Trauma and Compassion Fatigue
Last month, in my blog on workplace bullying, I referenced a phenomenon called vicarious trauma and I’ve gotten a number of questions about what that is and what to do about it. Vicarious trauma is the cumulative effect of witnessing trauma or its after effects. Most people are not confronting trauma on a daily basis…
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Do It Now: Name a Guardian for Your Minor Child(ren)
I know it’s hard. Thinking about someone else raising your children can stop you in your tracks. It feels crushing and too horrific to consider. But you must. If you don’t, a stranger will determine who raises your children if something happens to you – your children’s guardian could be a relative you despise or…
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Bully-Proof Your Workplace
In my last blog, I talked about the prevalence of workplace bullying. Across industries, 27% of people will experience bullying. That number is significantly higher in the healthcare field however. Why is that? Any organization is more vulnerable to bullying during times of change and increased workload. In addition, healthcare organizations tend to have dense…
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Don’t “Should” on Me
The above statement is one of my favorite bumper stickers. It is a reminder of one of the ways in which we both allow others to tyrannize us and tyrannize ourselves. When partners, whether business or personal, try to “should” on each other, intense conflict almost always results. “Shoulds” come from cultural, parental and peer…
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The Attorney Action Club’s Growth and Shaping the Future
The Attorney Action Club (AAC) is a community of legal professionals that exists to help lawyers succeed in life and business. Our membership includes both practicing lawyers and legal professionals who help lawyers succeed. The AAC helps shine a light on the importance of taking care of yourself and learning to create commercial profitable legal…