Posts in category: Uncategorized

We are major advocates on team goals. Having each team member have individual, professional goals is a great way to keep each team member not only playing as a team, but growing individually. And the same goes if they don’t have balance in personal and professional goals.

We start a new team member with goal setting at their 30 day review. This provides enough time for them to have figured out the basics and at 30 days, they start getting overwhelmed at how much they don’t know and want to start feeling like their creating value. Setting goals of what they should be trained on, etc. over the next few months gives them something to focus on and see they are making progress. From there, a 90 Day, 6 month and then annual review is a great place to review and update your new team members goals. Creating and sharing their goals is always a great way to find that they each like a certain part of their job and then you can start training them and letting them grow into pieces of the job. That means they can then move up and grow into new opportunities as well. If we can’t free up some of our time, we can’t grow either! Knowing each other’s goals lets us all grow together.

Everyone working together on goals first and foremost, allows you to use all of your unique abilities to get something completed. You have talent, use it! Second, it allows your team to focus and work together which avoids a lot of “territorial” issues, such as the marketing department thinking they are more important than the accounting department. And the accounting department thinking the marketing department spends too much money on useless stuff. Team goals allow everyone to understand the purpose of an overall goal and how each person contributes to it. For example, if you set a quarterly revenue goal to meet, the accounting department might appreciate that the “fluffy marketing cocktail hour” the marketing department is hosting will bring in a flood of new client appointments to follow. They may offer to help prepare a budget since that’s what they are good at. The receptionist may offer to make outgoing confirmation calls in her spare time to help the event be a success. After all it’s not the marketing department’s event now; it’s a team event that benefits a team goal.

Incentivize!

Every single time we teach or meet entrepreneurs we are asked the exact same question – every time! “How do I get my team to implement when they are so busy already?” The answer is really, really, really simple. Pay them. It’s funny what we find time for when a bonus is attached to its completion. It’s usually not conscious. I rarely meet a team member that refuses to do something because they aren’t being paid extra for it. And they typically get offended when we recommend it, “I don’t need to get paid extra to do my job…I just simply don’t have the time.” But if you bonus a team member on the completion of something, that makes it stand out in the crowd of “to-do’s” screaming for their attention. It also lets them know it is really important – it draws their focus to what you consider most important for them to complete. We recommend:

1. Quarterly Team Revenue Bonuses – Always have a team bonus that focuses on bringing money in the door. Brinting money in the door makes sure that the company is profitable. We recommend quarterly bonuses. A month is too quick and a year is too long to run at a high intensity without reaping the rewards to get keyed up for next quarter and monthly is not big enough of a check (after taxes) to get very jazzed or committed to the goal;

2. Project Bonuses – these are group projects with one or more team member working together to implement or create something. A project can be an event, a new marketing brochure, a new website, a huge clean up in the office, remodeling….anything that is important to your business to be completed.

3. Individual Bonuses – Designed around the three most important things the team member does for the company so the company makes money. We hate to keep going back to money, but remember, a company without profit + out of business = you out of a J-O-B. And your clients will lose out as well.

If you give great client service, you can serve your clients and make money at the same time! Examples are: for a marketing or sales person, the bonus may be around # of appointments booked, new clients closed, money collected. For a behind the scenes team member, the bonus may be around billings collected, work completed before a deadline or cost cutting project on office supplies. Individual bonuses should be reviewed annually and adjusted as a team member masters how to achieve what you are incentivizing, move the goals so they grow and achieve.

For instance, begin with a bonus for number of appointments scheduled, and then adjust the bonus after a year to number of appointments that go forward and hire the company to encourage the team member to help close the deal by getting preparatory materials out in time and following up to close the deal.

It's tough leading. Learn to balance the needs of yourself with others needs of you. Remember that the stronger the team you build, the more they can support you and provide you the opportunity to grow as an entrepreneur and owning a business versus owing a job. If you let yourself be surrounded with mediocre team, you are boxing yourself into a corner where you can’t get out because you have no one to help you.

This information was shared by Molly Hall, co-author of Yes Chick. To learn more about team building

For six months my energetic, vivacious daughter has been bent over in pain and fearful of riding in a car to go over bumps. After every possible exam, sonograms, scan, endoscopic, colonoscopy, and every other exam that could be done, the doctors were stumped.

We went to our local Children's Hospital who were prepared to do surgery on what they thought was appendicitis. After a second opinion they reneged their opinion and decided to send us to a bigger city. After a trip to Boston, the chief of staff of pediatric gastroenterology in 45 minutes diagnosed my daughter with "chronic appendicitis."

What was different about chronic appendicitis was that it does not host the usual symptoms of acute appendicitis which occurs when the appendix is about to burst. Instead, the appendix doesn't work properly and causes pain. As a result, for six months my daughter suffered severe abdominal pain in her lower left section from her pelvic bone to her ribs.

Unexplained to all doctors finally the pediatric gastroenterologist at Massachusetts General Hospital declared "get the appendix out." When bringing my daughter back to the local hospitals they were hesitant to do it nonetheless. After persistence by my wife and I they agreed to remove it reluctantly.

Amazing and as predicted by the gastroenterologist all pain was gone upon the completion of surgery. We later found out that the appendix was actually acute not chronic. Wow! Wow! Can you imagine this? All these doctors, all these exams, and no one caught it. So, if any of your loved ones have this pain in their lower abdomen region that's unexplained and can't be traced, consider chronic appendicitis. My hope is that a loved one of yours never has to spend the six months in paid as our daughter did.

In retrospect however, I forgot how vivacious my daughter was. Her full personality is back. She sings and dances and is back into the full swing of things. It's great to have her back.

David J. Zumpano

As College Football comes to an end with Alabama crushing Notre Dame to take the BSC Title Championship, College Basketball is gearing up for March Madness.

Historically, Veterans receiving Pension benefits, to include Aid and Attendance, also experienced a March Madness of their own. On March 1st of each year, the annual Eligibility Verification Report (EVR) was due to the VA to substantiate that the Veteran was rightfully eligible for and receiving tax free income, called Improved Pension, to help offset medical expenses.

This year, the VA decided to dispense with the red tape and is eliminating the need for Veterans to complete an annual EVR. Instead, the VA is implementing a new process for confirming eligibility for benefits. The new process will involve the VA working directly with Social Security and the IRS to verify the Veteran’s annual income.

This will, presumably save the Veteran and the VA a lot of time and money, while allowing the VA to redirect staff to more pressing issues – claim backlogs.

Unfortunately, as a practicing lawyer who assists Veterans with their annual reports, I see a madness of another kind about to happen in March! The EVR did not just verify annual income. It also verified net worth, which now will not be verified. But, more importantly, the EVR provided a means to advise Veterans that they can and should submit an accounting of all unreimbursed medical expenses they pay out of pocket for on a regular basis. Many people would not be eligible for the pension but for the amount of money they personally pay for medical care. Without being prompted to submit this report each year, many Veterans will inadvertently lose their VA pension. This will lead to appeals and more backlog. But, more devastating than that, most Veterans will not seek the advice of counsel to see how they can get benefits reinstated. Instead, sacrificing medical care they no longer can afford.

For information on how you, as an attorney, can help, contact Lawyers with Purpose.

By Victoria L. Collier, CELA

I speak with so many lawyers who crave their document creation software. As a practicing estate and elder law attorney I couldn't agree more, but, it's really a false sense of security. In reality what lawyers really crave is the confidence that the trust they provide their clients is legally correct.

As a result many attorneys settle for a short-term solution in trying to solve their long-term needs which is being effective for clients. The problem with most document creation software today is that it is so attorney dependent. While that sounds good, the reality is the result is that lawyers are working 60‑plus hours a week.

A good document creation software should have the legal technical sufficient to provide the client what they need, but more importantly, should be able to be generated by someone other than the lawyer. For example, a good document creation software should have a design template which allows the attorney to customize the estate plan they want for the client, without having to physically enter the software to do it. This is something that I have become very comfortable with in the legal document creation software that I utilize because it allows me to be creative and create a custom plan for each client, without having to physically open up the software.

Instead, I can document my wishes on a design template and provide that information to a key member who can generate the trust just as I designed it! The distinction between traditional document creation software and the software I use is systemization. I can identifying the core elements necessary to design an effective and efficient estate plan that allows the client access to all legal avenues, not just the same ones you consistently do.

With most lawyers, if you take a look at the last ten trusts they did, they're all the same with the exception of the names. While the attorney feels good, the reality is the quality of the customization is minimal. Even worse, to customize a plan requires excessive work for the attorney because they have to manually do it in the software.

Bottom line is that good document creation software will not only allow the attorney the freedom to customize each plan, but also will allow them to delegate the drafting confidentially so that he can focus on the real needs of the client not the technical applications of the software. So does your software allow you the freedom? If not it's time to consider changing. Dave Z

We’re not big fans of January 1. Doesn’t matter what year we’re talking about. The deflation and confidence thievery of January 1st that leaves attorneys in a place of paralysis, is out-and-out unlawful. Its 7 days into the “new year” and collectively our implementation team conducted 13 law firm Implementation calls across the country and then led 1 national marketing roundtable. And the collective energy was frozen. Solid.

In typical LWP fashion we already started New Year Goal setting at our annual practice enhancement retreat, on November 16th. 50 law firms across the country left that retreat with a tremendous amount of intentionality, purpose and very clear monthly gals and how they were getting there. Crystal clear, with team on-board and excited to hit the ground running. In December we conducted follow up calls with folks to start creating the path and plan to get to goal. And who’s doing what to reach goal. People were clamoring to turn the page and start the 2013 books.

Well, the “New Year” is here and that’s no longer the song people are singing from the rooftops. Society, media, etc., have already told them they won’t make it the 1st 10 days. But thankfully for the 13 firms we had the honor of working with today… we provided the safety net. We talked them off the ledge and re-anchor them to the path and plans they created 6 weeks ago. And that’s the beauty of accountability and implementation. Society teaches us that “you-gotta-push thorough” mentality that is destroying business owners.

You don’t have to muscle through and create goals that don’t work for you and that scare you to the point of paralysis. That doesn’t excite you. that you can't find an ounce of joy and ease in. The shelf life of that new year’s plan, resolution, goals…call it what you will….is roughly 10 days.

People are taught they need to get their butt kicked day in and day out. Operate like a pack mule and feel awful when they lay their head on the pillow at night because your plowing through to get to goal. That’s just the way it is for entrepreneurs. But what we know to be true in the LWP Coaching, Consulting and Implementation program is: you should feel better, dare we say excited, at the end of the day than you did at the beginning. And certainly 7 days into a new year. And that’s the name of the game, folks. Goals, resolutions, plans, road maps; etc., etc., are meant to be kept to be very much alive.

Our members are very fortunate that they began their new year on November 16th and were fortunate to start hitting the skids 7 days into the new year, because the path, plan and accountability were already in place to allow for a very safe place to fall, all while providing the safety net to not only catch them but re-anchor them to their goals and how they are getting there.

If you don’t have an consistent, committed accountability structure in place, we would like to invite you to experience the LWP CCI Program and explore if this would be a good fit for you –join us in Dallas,TX January 30,31, February 1st as our guest.

If your interested please email Roslyn at rdrotar@lawyerswithpurpose.com or call 877-299-0326 x 105.

The VA Benefits rates have now been Officially Published and can be found at the following links:

Veteran’s Pension: http://www.benefits.va.gov/PENSIONANDFIDUCIARY/pension/rates_veteran_pen12.asp

Widow's Pension: http://www.benefits.va.gov/PENSIONANDFIDUCIARY/pension/rates_survivor DIC: http://www.benefits.va.gov/COMPENSATION/resources_comp03.asp

Compensation: http://www.benefits.va.gov/COMPENSATION/resources_comp01.asp

Special Monthly Compensation: http://www.benefits.va.gov/COMPENSATION/resources_comp02.asp

Parents DIC: http://www.benefits.va.gov/COMPENSATION/resources_comp04.asp

Birth defects: http://www.benefits.va.gov/compensation/sb2012.asp

Automobile, clothing, medal of honor: http://www.benefits.va.gov/compensation/special_Benefit_Allowances_2012.asp