The Perfect Effort Is Not A Fiction

October 1, 2014

by Molly Hall with No Comment Coaching & Implementation Systems & Processes

Fall is on the horizon. This only means one thing: movie theatres are back in the rotation for our potential family outings. Last Monday after school it was an unusually rainy, cold day, so I surprised the kids by picking them up and heading to the movies – one of our favorite, favorite things to do. Our first movie of the new season was “When the Game Stands Tall.” This film is based on the true story of the De La Salle Spartans, a high school football team from northern California. It is a moving plot about a team that didn't lose a game, not one single game, for 12 years from the early '90s to the early 2000s. They ran their record to 151-0. This is not just another movie about football; it tells about a mission to lead boys into manhood and prep them to carry the burdens of the society into which they soon will enter.

The foundation of the movie is Coach Bob Ladouceur’s unique coaching process, which he called “The Perfect Effort.”“Coaching is about human performance and how to get each player to realize their potential through the actualization of their individual talent,” Coach Lad once said. “While winning is important – it is why we play the game and keep score – the emphasis is on ʻthe process,ʼ what each player must do that in aggregate leads to victory. The formula for success in team sports is simple. The implementation of that formula is complex and is the art of human performance.”

“The game stands tall when we display the conduct and actions that not only make our life more productive but also improve our community,” he added movingly.

The Perfect Effort is more about bringing your “A” heart with your “A” game. It is about unwavering perseverance and not being defined by a loss.

Whether it is a football team, an office team, a marketing team, etc., The Perfect Effort process applies wherever you go. The singular success of a 151-0 record was created not because the De La Salle Spartans spent more hours in the gym than any other team. It was not because they fought harder than any other team. The success came from being very clear on what their individual roles were, how to integrate with each member on the team, and the impact of the whole of the process and the team organization – all with integrity and collaboration in mind, never focused on the individual. It was always about The Perfect Effort within the core values of the team first and foremost.

What I love most about movies is how they can deliver powerful messages in 120 minutes that are so relevant to our day-to-day lives. They can break through even if you’ve heard the same messages before, i.e. LWP with our unending stand for embracing of process with a team-centric approach to reaching the goal. Sometimes, most times, it takes a light, fun environment to drive the message across the goal line.

Molly L. Hall, Co-Founder, Lawyers with Purpose, LLC, and author of Don’t Be a Yes Chick: How to Stop Babysitting Your Boss, Transform Your Job and Work with a Dream Team Without Losing Your Sanity or Your Spirit in the Process.

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What Your Team Really Sees

September 30, 2014

by Molly Hall with No Comment Systems & Processes Team Building

Don’t you just wish your team would tell you what they really see day in and day out on the front lines? The opportunities they see that your firm’s not slowing down enough to make a path and plan for. The new additions, 2 mm shifts and prospective pools they easily witness but are hesitant to create more work for you, and the team, so they let the chances pass.

“Business as usual” will not work anymore…Take control and position your company for the future!

Do you need to find a way to get money in the door? Your phone to ring more? Build your team? Actually finish a project from ideation to completion?

A major outcome of Intentional Planning is enhanced strategic thinking and massive mindset shifts. Some of the things you will walk away with from Thursday October 23rd of the Practice Enhancement Retreat:

Generating of new ideas—ideas that, otherwise, would not be considered.
Going beyond the status quo—beyond one’s competitors.
Bringing new perspectives and approaches together—and combining them in realistic ways.
Identification of critical, high payoff strategies and the prioritization of team efforts accordingly.

Firm Retreats ensure that your Big Ideas and Plans will no longer rest on the shelf or be dependent on solely you as the business owner—teach, show, do, go…grow.

In our experience, it is very difficult (impossible) to carve out time to really work ON the business when the phones are ringing and its business as usual.

Register TODAY as you don’t want to miss out on this strategic planning “Money Plan” day led by Dave Zumpano on Thursday October 23rd at the LWP Practice Enhancement Tri-Annual Practice Enhancement Retreat. Contact Marci Otts at motts@lawyerswithpurpose.com to register TODAY!

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Uncovering “Hidden” Pre-Planning Opportunities with the Asset-to-Income Ratio

September 29, 2014

by David Zumpano with No Comment Estate Planning Drafting Software Legal Marketing Systems & Processes

Uncovering “Hidden” Pre-Planning Opportunities is one of the biggest shocks from attendees at our Medicaid training is when they learn about the asset-to-income rule to qualify clients for Medicaid sooner. The Medicaid law states that, when the income of the community spouse of a Medicaid applicant is less than the minimum monthly maintenance needs allowance, then the community spouse may exempt additional assets needed to attain the minimum monthly maintenance needs allowance.

Said simpler, if the community spouse doesn't have enough income, they can exempt additional assets to ensure the necessary income is produced. This situation happens all the time, but the exemption is rarely used.

That's why Monday October 20-22^nd we are hosting a 3 Day Asset Protection, Medicaid and VA CLE Program.

In this event we will be sharing crucial information such as:

● Why clients don't care how much you know, and what they want from you.

● There's no such thing as crisis Medicaid planning, and the preplanning you are missing out on is right in front of you.

● The key features and provisions of grantor, non-grantor, and pure grantor trusts and when to use each for asset protection, Medicaid and VA planning.

● The newest forms and procedures to file VA apps and appeals and receive timely decisions.

● Why annuities are often the "lazy-attorney" approach to Medicaid planning and what that method fails to consider.

● How to calculate whether an IRA should be liquidated and when not to use personal service contracts when Medicaid planning.

At a recent two-day summit we hosted with national veterans expert Victoria Collier, these were the biggest issues raised by your colleagues who attended. Are you prepared? Is your level of understanding in these areas sufficient to serve this growing marketplace? Here is what a few attendees said was the most useful to them:

"The most valuable thing about Day 1 was learning about asset to income rule."

— Carl, Baton Rouge, LA

"The worksheets and having a way to explain Medicaid planning to clients on their level was the most valuable part."

— Susan, Cypress, TX

"Was thrilled to learn there is no such thing as crisis planning and now I have so many more pre-planning opportunities I didn't see before."

— Lisa, West Palm Beach, FL

The asset-to-income rule is just one of several overlooked rules that are overlooked or not fully utilizes to help clients qualify for Medicaid. Feel confident using them in your practice! Click here to to join this must attend event to get the essential strategies you need to protect your clients.

See you there!

David J. Zumpano, Esq, CPA, Co-founder Lawyers With Purpose, Founder and Senior Partner of Estate Planning Law Center

It’s Already Packed!

September 25, 2014

by Molly Hall with No Comment Systems & Processes

Are you going to be in on the groundswell of what is occurring in the Estate & Elder Law Industry right now? We want to make certain you have been receiving our invites to the October 20-22^nd Asset Protection, Medicaid & VA Practice With Purpose CLE Program. Its already a PACKED ROOM. You don’t want to wait to get your seat.

Click here to get the full details, agenda and what to expect.

There are 100 days remaining in the year. Don’t “wait until the next one”, there's just too much opportunity to wait until next year to get in the conversation with clients. Trust me, you need to get going now.

Molly L. Hall, Co-Founder, Lawyers with Purpose, LLC, and author of Don’t Be a Yes Chick: How to Stop Babysitting Your Boss, Transform Your Job and Work with a Dream Team Without Losing Your Sanity or Your Spirit in the Process.

Being A Competent Attorney Is Only Half The Battle

September 18, 2014

by David Zumpano with No Comment Asset Protection Estate Planning Drafting Software Legal Marketing Systems & Processes VA

I've always thought of myself as an excellent attorney — well-versed in all of the strategies that we use on a daily basis to protect our clients, their loved ones, and their legacies.

It wasn't until several years ago, however, that I really began to understand that a thriving practice is built on more than just being a great attorney — it requires systems to handle your marketing, to generate a steady flow of referrals to your door, and a tried and true method to increase your closing rate.

I invite you to take 90 seconds and check out the video – it's all about the systems I've put into place in my office, and how you can do the same in yours. Take your practice to the next level!

Click here if you'd like to look at the agenda and all you'll learn at the Lawyers With Purpose Practice With Purpose Program in Phoenix October 20-22nd.

Warmly,

Jeff Bellomo, Esq., Certified Elder Law Attorney, Bellomo & Associates, LLC

The Initial Contact Focuser

September 10, 2014

by Roslyn Drotar with No Comment Coaching & Implementation Systems & Processes

A few years ago, a federal investigator subpoenaed one of my calendars to prove a local doctor had committed massive insurance fraud. The doctor ultimately lost his license and served prison time, based in large part on my calendar.

About that same time, I received a parking ticket in the mail, and was able through my calendar keeping, to prove that I had been in another city that day many miles away.

Using the Initial Contact Focuser may not help you fight a parking ticket or be used in a federal investigation, but the information it captures cannot be recreated after the fact. The ICF documents the number of prospects who have contacted your firm in any given time period, and perhaps most importantly, documents where those prospects came from. The ICF should guide and measure the results of every marketing decision you make.

When I hear that a law firm is not either using the ICF or capturing this information in some other way, it’s truly difficult for me to understand. That valuable information is forever lost. Putting contact information on a post-it or a phone pad is no way to run a business.

Long-term planning for growth and success can only be successful through systematically capturing, measuring and evaluating information.

A firm that I work closely with recently organized all their ICF information for the prior 12 months and was dismayed to see that a newspaper ad for which they had paid more than $400 per month for more than a year had not generated a single client.

Another firm created lunch & learn opportunities, cooking and paying for lunches at the local senior center for a number of months before reviewing their ICF data, and calculating that the ROI was negligible.

How can you measure the success of any of your professional relationships if the ICF is not carefully maintained?

This sample shows not only the results of professional relationships, but also documents a referral to another law firm.

This tool is available on the LWP members website in both Excel and Word formats and can be found by searching “5 Key.” This information can also be captured through most any database software.

Make reviewing the weekly ICF a part of your weekly team meeting – I promise you won’t regret it. If you need any support please let me know – ncatale@lawyerswithpurpose.com!

If you want to learn more about the systems and tools that Lawyers With Purpose has to offer, please consider joining us in Phoenix, October 22nd – 24th for our Practice With Purpose Program. Click the link to review the agenda and see all that you get in just 2.5 days! Click here to register now.

Nedra Catale – Coaching, Consulting & Implementation, Lawyers With Purpose

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Hidden Dangers of Medicaid Qualifying Annuities

September 3, 2014

by David Zumpano with No Comment Asset Protection Estate Planning Drafting Software Medicaid Systems & Processes VA

Today, many elder law attorneys rely on Medicaid qualifying annuities to get their clients qualified to receive Medicaid benefits. They're also used when clients seek VA pension benefits.

While Medicaid qualifying annuities have become the default solution, they are not without risk. One challenge is that MQA's do not work well for single individuals. Second, even when used in married planning, there is no assurance the amount placed in the Medicaid qualifying annuity will actually be preserved. In fact, it could all be lost with the subsequent disability or death of the community spouse.

These are just some of the issues (not to mention the Veterans Administration's changing position on annuities when applying for veteran pension benefits) that we will be discussing at the Asset Protection, Medicaid and VA Practice With Purpose Program October 20-22^nd in Phoenix, AZ.

National Asset Protection, Medicaid and VA experts and dozens of attorneys like you will be collaborating to identify the hidden risks in the different Medicaid and veterans' benefits strategies. This program promises to be the hands-on strategic solving many lawyers crave in their practice. Click here to get a full outline and to register for the program.

In these three days here is just some of what we will cover:

ASSET PROTECTION:

Recent updates to asset protection and Medicaid compliant strategies.
The new asset protection strategies dominating the marketplace.
The death of DAPT'S, FLP'S, GRATS, GRUTS, and tax planning, and what's replaced them.
The five essential trusts and key drafting needs to serve 99.7% of clients.
The Power of Powers of Appointment, in the right places.
Four "must have" drafting considerations and three "most forgotten" powers in trust.

MEDICAID:

Four steps to Medicaid eligibility for any client.
How to calculate the "breakeven" to ensure the proper filing date for the shortest penalty period.
Medicaid Qualifying Annuities: Hidden risks and how to properly disclose them to clients or protect from them.
The seven key factors to calculate any Medicaid case in seven minutes (or less!).
IRA's: Exemption versus taxes, how to calculate if IRA's should be liquidated or exempted in Medicaid and VA cases.

VETERANS' BENEFITS:

New fully developed claims process for veterans and widows.
Qualifying assisted living facilities as UME's.
Key language to complete the physician affidavit for more timely approvals.
Update on three year look back for VA benefits.
The key reports no longer required for VA applications.
Dangers of annuities in VA benefits planning.
The effects of the Supreme Court decision on DOMA related to veterans' benefits.

HERE'S WHAT YOUR PEERS HAD TO SAY ABOUT THE PROGRAM:

"It will change your practice and your life!" –John Koenig
"Great way to grow into a real firm and help one's community." –Antoinette Middleton
"Go to the training session and consider and evaluate upgrading your delivery of services, for me it's modernizing what I can offer." –Wally Kelleman

Are you going to miss or attend the most important event of the year? Click here now to join some of your most successful colleagues and leave confident in the strategies you provide to your clients every day.

David J. Zumpano, Esq, CPA, Co-founder Lawyers With Purpose, Founder and Senior Partner of Estate Planning Law Center

Balance Your Time – Control Your Practice

August 26, 2014

by Roslyn Drotar with No Comment Coaching & Implementation Systems & Processes

An elephant balanced on a small ball, a tightrope walker, a ballerina en pointe. I am continuously amazed and impressed by balance. To me it denotes focus, grace, concentration, skill, practice, dedication and a sense of victory. After all, what is balance but a victory over gravity achieved by dedicated hard work?

After 15+ years’ experience as a team member in a number of law firms, and the past eight months as a CC&I coach to several dozen firms, one of the most striking differences I’ve noticed between successful firms and struggling firms …. is balance.

What does that mean?

LWP strongly advocates a 40/40/20 split of firm time, held in place by a time template that is honored. This means the firm spends 40% of its time on specific client-related activities, such as appointments, drafting, reviewing and processing. Anything that has a client name on it goes into the 40% client pot. Notice that I didn’t use the word “prospect.”

Anything done to encourage a prospect or prospects to become clients is allocated to marketing, not including the Vision Meeting or Initial Consultation. The rule of thumb here is for the firm to spend 40% of its time finding prospects, getting its message out, and enrolling clients into workshops (and then into a Vision Meeting) or initial consultations. This includes your weekly marketing meeting, time spent developing and cultivating your RMS process, involvement in community events, development of blogs, your website, newsletters … wherever your firm has decided to invest its resources to attract clients.

The remaining 20% of your firm time template should be reserved for firm administration. This includes your weekly staff meeting, paying bills, filing, bookkeeping, cleaning off your desk, taking out the garbage, and whatever needs to be done to oversee the mechanics of your operation.

A firm that sacrifices or neglects its time template to meet client demands is one that endangers itself and its operation. It’s just that simple.

I’ve had team members argue with me that the restrictions of a time template limit their ability to meet their clients’ needs.

A few days ago I was on a commercial airline and heard again for the zillionth time, the instructions that if an air mask drops down, the passenger should first put on his own air mask, THEN assist others. The underlying message is that you’re not going to be much help to anyone else if you don’t see to your own reserves first.

Firms that do not honor a time template that is balanced with these three disciplines are recognizable by these outcomes. See if any are relevant to your team:

Embarrassing mistakes are made in client documents and handling client matters.
Team members are tired, unorganized and discouraged.
Team members must constantly interrupt each other causing productivity to sharply decline.
Revenue can fluctuate wildly from month to month.
Long-Term goals and projects are not completed or are abandoned.
Weekly staff and marketing meetings are hit and miss, often hijacked by more pressing issues.
The firm operates in high-stress mode, focusing on what is urgent and demanding, often overlooking critical, but less urgent issues.
Your RMS process suffers from neglect and prospective synergy partners lose faith in your firm and its promises.

If your firm is not operating under a firm time template that has an effective 40/40/20 allocation and you would like help in structuring a more efficient environment, drop me a line at ncatale@lawyerswithpurpose.com.

To learn more about Lawyers With Purpose and how we can support you in your estate planning / elder law practice, please join us and experience first hand – in the room – for our Practice With Purpose Program in Phoenix, AZ, October 20-22nd. We only have limited space so click now and register today.

Nedra Catale – Coaching, Consulting & Implementation, Lawyers With Purpose

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The NEW Lawyers With Purpose Estate Planning Process™ Binder

August 15, 2014

by Roslyn Drotar with 2 Comments Systems & Processes

If you have not yet noticed, the entire LWP Estate Planning Process™ has been revised with new documents and support tools. Go to the LWP Processes Tab, click on the first tab (LWP Estate Planning Process), and check it out. The first folder – “Estate Planning Process Full Binder” – contains a single link that will enable you to print out 90% of the contents and should replace the 2012 binder you have been using. There are 229 pages of great stuff in there.

The Five Key Focusers™ have been updated to enable your firm to capture additional important information and are available to you in both Word and Excel formats.

The Workshop Outline has additional information about free publication for your workshops, and a detailed but concise follow-up process with supporting letters.

Check out the “Appendices” tab in particular as that contains updated and revised tools for your firm. The organization mirrors the process, so you can easily locate what tools you need for each step of the process.

For example, if you want to figure out what goes into a Vision Meeting™ folder, all the pieces are together, in presentation order. Simply click, insert your firm logo and print.

There are 18 letters that support the process, from workshop enrollment to file closing.

In Appendix “F” we have revised versions of the design templates that more closely mirror the design software.

In Appendix “G” we have included sets of inserts for your client estate planning binders that provide an overview of each document, plus additional client planning pieces such as Memorial Instructions.

In addition, videos and webinars that support each step of the process are in the process of being relocated so that members can more easily educate themselves on specific steps in the process.

As we continue to develop additional tools for our members, they will be search indexed, and added into the appropriate steps of the processes.

I’m personally very excited about these changes, and would love to hear your feedback! Email me directly at ncatale@lawyerswithpurpose.com. And, if you're a member you have access to "How To Fully Implement The LWP Process" webinar on the members website.

If you want to learn more about the Lawyers With Purpose Estate Planning Process, please join us in Phoenix on October 20-22nd for our Practice With Purpose Program. Click here to register now and reserve your spot. Seats fill quickly so register today!

Nedra Catale – Coaching, Consulting and Implementation, Lawyers With Purpose

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Rules of Vacation

August 14, 2014

by Roslyn Drotar with No Comment Coaching & Implementation Systems & Processes Team Building

I’ve had a few implementation calls with a team that is 100% committed to reaching their revenue goal. They’ve got all they need in their pipeline, marketing is producing leads, workshops are getting filled, production is keeping up as much as possible with the growth, etc. They have such determination to reach goal that it’s been inspiring to participate in their conversations, anchor them to the LWP tools and support them.

At this point, the key to their success lies in creating and committing to the old 40-40-20 time split. You know, the “40% lead generation/lead conversion, 40% revenue-producing activity, 20% firm development” ratio. The hardest part is the reality of making it happen AND holding each other accountable that they are doing what they committed to on their time template. So, to make sure they were on the same page, communicating and setting standards and ensuring that their intentions were set in stone, they created their firm's “Rules of Engagement.”

This had such an impact on the team that they decided to take their rules a step further. When talking together and planning for the upcoming vacation for the attorney, the team created some “Rules of Vacation” to make sure he took some much-needed time away without having to worry about the office during his absence.

What’s great about it is they had fun, but they also set standards for what will and will not take place on vacation. They gave permission to check in with the office, but only at certain times and for specific reasons, and that leads to boundaries and standards. The rules also make certain that he is present with his family during the time away. My favorites are #’s 7 & 8:

ATTORNEY RULES OF VACATION

Vacation means vacation – trust your team – you have the right people in the right places – they have your back when you are in the office at all times – they will have your back when you are out of the office at all times!!!
Vacation begins at 5:01 P.M. on ________, 2014. Your spouse has permission to call at 5:02 P.M. to make sure you are on your way home. You have permission to work until 9:00 P.M. on the day prior to your vacation starting, if you choose, in order to “clear the decks.”
Attorney may not call the office unless it is in response to a 911 text, email or voicemail from the team.
Attorney may check and respond to emails at assigned times approved by spouse once in the morning and once in the evening so that they don’t have anxiety about it throughout the day.
Attorney MUST at all times be on vacation.A
ttorney MUST at all times have fun.
Attorney MUST at all times be present to the family.
The family MUST make attorney put on either Mickey Mouse ears or a princess crown and send that picture to the team for future blackmail and accountability purposes.
Attorney MUST tell himself or herself every day that this vacation will not be a repeat of any dreaded prior vacations and remember what a great workplace we have created to permit such a vacation.
Attorney MUST not call the office 100 times a day!
The family MUST hold attorney accountable for any deviation from items 1 through 10 and attorney MUST be willing to accept and suffer the consequences for breaking any of the rules. (The team suggests letting the grandchildren make grandpa into their favorite princess, including putting on make-up, and sending those pictures to the team to provide ample incentive to obey rules 1 to 9.)
Attorney MUST get the initials of family members as proof that they went over the Rules of Vacation together and had fun doing it.

I, _________________, acknowledge that I have read and understand the above Rules of Vacation.

Attorney signature ______________________________

I know we are winding down vacation season and headed back to school and then quickly into the holidays. But grab onto these rules and make them your own and empower your team to communicate so you can power down on that next get away – whenever it is!

If you want to learn more about Lawyers With Purpose and how we can help you take your next vacation AND generate revenue, join us October 20-22nd in Phoenix, AZ, for our Practice With Purpose Program. Click here to register today! Seats are filling fast and October is right around the corner so grab your seat now. If you're a member and would like to come to the Practice With Purpose Program, please contact Angela directly at acrowther@lawyerswithpurpose.com.

Roslyn Drotar – Coaching, Consulting & Implementation, Lawyers With Purpose