Stop doing all these tasks today

Some barristers are resistant to the idea of letting go of routine tasks.  Yet the economic argument to do so is compelling.

“A man is rich in proportion to the number of things he can afford to let alone.”  Henry David Thoreau

Letting go is your liberation

“No-one can do this better than me. I have to do it all. This is what my clients pay me to do”.

This belief is what stops many small businesses from growing and will limit the growth of your practice too. A successful barrister keeps an eye on the source of income and spends time on those activities, exclusively.   Here are three ways to reclaim your time for fee-earning activities.

1. Stop using LinkedIn

Today, you could stop:

1. Making connections on LinkedIn.  Supply your Virtual Assistant (VA) with a standard template to initiate new connections. You can follow up with a personal message when your new contact accepts.
2. Connecting one-on-one. A LinkedIn Ad can be set up once and left to run for months, automatically reaching your target clients all over the world. Your VA can track engagement.
3. Analysing your LinkedIn Analytics. Your VA can set up a system to analyse the stats on your LinkedIn profile. This will allow you to target the clients who are already reading your brilliance online.
4. Posting eye-catching imagery. Text no longer cuts it on LinkedIn.  Your VA can source unique images from one of numerous free image libraries for you to use, creating a consistent look and feel to all your posts, which helps engagement with your practice ‘brand’.

2. Stop worrying about marketing

Today, you could stop:

1. Monitoring social media: Using your list of target clients, instruct your VA to monitor your social media feed(s) for their comment and opinion and provide you with a summary.
2. Stalking your clients: Set up a Google Alert so you find out automatically what your clients are up to in the media. Your VA can summarise the weekly news.
3. Scheduling networking events. Being strategic about networking means time off for your family and friends. Your VA can research those you really need to attend and those you can skip.
4. Creating attention-grabbing headlines: The headline is what will cause a scanner to pause and read your opinion on social media. Your VA can create a bank of headlines from which to lift and drop.

3. Stop administering your practice

Today you could stop:

1. Proofreading documents. Your VA can proofread the final drafts of journal, directory and award submissions for typos, duplications and edits.
2. Creating your social life: A VA can research and book a more exciting life than the one you have time to create for yourself.
3. Keeping your files in order: Are you using the best secure online storage system for your files? A VA can research, buy, set it all up and give you instant access.
4. Buying cutting edge technology. Technology changes all the time. A VA can assess your technology needs, research the options and make a recommendation for you to click ‘buy’.

A privilege of position

Buying time is your aim. Once purchased, don’t spend it on more work. Spend it on more life.

In the QC Practice Booster Programme we help you work out which areas of your practice are generating low or no income and help you stop doing them.  We work with you to change your habits, cut the waste and give your time to revenue-generating activities, exclusively.  Book a call today to find out how we have helped the most successful QCs working at The Bar today to connect with clients, raise their profile and take their practice to the next level.

By Heidi Smith
Creator of Jurilogical.com