A couple of years ago, my family and I went down to Walt Disney World. One day, we were reclining next to a pool. I struck up a conversation with a man seated to my immediate right. His wife and kids were playing in the pool just in front of us, and he was working on his laptop. I asked him what he did for a living. He said he is a solo lawyer in Texas. “How has your trip been?” I asked him. “Not bad. I’ve had to work most of the trip, though.” His comment stuck with me because, just prior to that vacation, I resolved not to work at all on this trip. I was able not only to not work but also not even check in with my office for the four days I was away on that vacation. Here are some things I had been doing and building during the year prior to that trip so that I wouldn’t have to work on that vacation—or any future vacations—and could, instead, spend uninterrupted quality time with my family.
This was the start of more freedom for me. For many months, I created systems for everything I was doing so that I could pass that work to other people to do instead of having to do it all myself. I believe everything in a law office should be systematized and done using a specific step-by-step process. The faster you create systems and processes, the better. ChatGPT can save you incredible amounts of time if you simply provide it with the right prompts regarding which systems and processes you are looking to create.
Once your systems and processes are in place, then you need to hire great people to do the work. I encourage you to write very intentional job ads targeting just the person you are looking for. Then, when you interview people, make sure they align with your core values. Next, I would highly suggest having any applicants you are serious about hiring complete a personality test so that you can learn as much as you can about how they think and what they value as important.
Once you have chosen from among the potential candidates, you must make sure every new hire is thoroughly onboarded. It is important to put them in a position to succeed right out of the gate. That means making sure that they know how to use the technology they will be tasked with using, that they know the systems and processes they are required to master, and that they understand your firm’s mission and values so that they can uphold them as they grow into their role.
Once you have the people on board, you must delegate as much as you can to them. You should aim to delegate those things you have no business doing, whatever those things are, so that you are focused on doing only those things that comprise the highest and best use of your time.
The only way to avoid working while on vacation is to let go of control and let the people you hired do the work you hired them to do without trying to micromanage them. It has been said that you need to let go to grow, so let go and get out of the way of your team. Many law firm owners get stuck because they are the bottleneck. I’ve found that the more you let go, the more you can go on vacations with your family without needing to work. Then, when you come back from vacation and find that everything worked just fine while you were away, you will look for other ways to set up your business to allow you more and more freedom. Don’t get stuck working on your laptop while your family plays in front of you in the pool.
If you have any input or questions about this topic, please email me at [email protected] because I would love to hear from you.
