The NonBillable Hour

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Help Clients Worry Less

If you are a lawyer, your clients worry.  They worry about their case, their upcoming deposition, even your bill.  Here is a good checklist to share with them to help them worry less.  I really like this one as a way to keep those daily (hourly?) phone calls from freaked out clients to a minimum:

Write down your concerns and worries in a journal.

    Reserve a time for your worries and concerns at daytime. So you should try to develop a routine and reserved time for all the concerns and problems of the day. By writing your worries you will identify your common negative thoughts and worries. It will be much easier to find solutions when you’ll know the exact content and meaning of your worries.

    Take your time for these worries but not in the evening. The best time might be late afternoon. Sit down with a journal and write down your concerns of the day. This will take at least 30 to 60 minutes. Force yourself to think about all the worries and problems of the past and coming day.

Promise the clients a weekly phone call to go over their journaled "worries" and see how many of those "emergency" issues have already resolved themselves before the call.