Too Much Work Can Be Just As Bad As Too Little For Solo Lawyers
Solo lawyers can have too much work yet struggle with fees, cash flow, staffing and burnout. Why being busy doesn't always mean running a profitable practice.
Having too much work is a problem many solo lawyers face.
This is a typical solo lawyer scenario we are faced with.
There's more work coming in than they can reasonably handle.
They're working long hours, struggling to find the right support and the fees being generated don't reflect the time and effort they're putting in.
They feel overwhelmed, know something needs to change, but aren't sure where to begin.
It's easy to assume the answer is more, more and more.
However is that really the solution?
Being busy and have more and more clients doesn't necessarily mean you’ll end up running a profitable, viable or sustainable legal practice.
So What's Really Going On?
Before jumping to any solutions, we want to understand what's actually happening in the practice overall.
We call this the diagnostic phase.
What sort of work is coming in?
Is it the right work?
How much of it is genuinely profitable?
If the lawyer is working long and hard but those hours aren't translating into fees, where is the time going?
What's happening between workflow and cash flow?
Is work being completed, billed and paid for in a timely manner?
Is the lawyer spending too much time on tasks that someone else could be doing?
And what has already been tried to improve the situation? What worked, what didn't, and why?
These questions all matter before offering any advice.
Too Much Work Can Hide Other Problems
Ironically most lawyers suffer from too much as one of their main practice problems.
A practice can have plenty of work and still have serious underlying issues.
Poor work selection can mean taking on matters that consume significant time without producing an adequate return.
That classic disconnect between workflow and cash flow can mean there's plenty happening but insufficient money coming into the business.
Sometimes there's no real strategy at all.
The practitioner is simply responding to whatever comes through the door.
Where Do You Begin?
From our perspective, you start by diagnosing what's actually happening.
Not assuming that the problem is staffing, technology, productivity or a shortage of hours in the day.
You need to understand the underlying issues, identify anything requiring immediate attention and then work out what needs to change.
The stuff that needs to be done asap - we call this the triage and urgent rectification phase.
That might involve work selection, pricing, better practice oversight and management, workflow systems or delegation.
It also means considering the wellbeing of the practitioner.
Are they exhausted? Are they heading towards burnout?
Can they realistically sustain the way they're currently working?
There's little point operating a practice that's successful by the volume of work standard, if the demands of running it are becoming personally unsustainable.
So it is important to act quickly on the most important thing or things first
Regaining Control Of Your Solo Practice
Ultimately, the issue isn't simply whether you have too much work.
It's whether you have a practice that is properly structured, commercially viable, profitable and manageable.
That requires understanding what's going on, making decisions about what needs to change and following through.
We call that the strategy and implementation phase
Too much work can be just as damaging as too little.
Sometimes the most important thing a solo lawyer can do is stop reacting to the demands of the practice long enough to properly examine how it's being run.
