Smart Lawyers Leverage Technology For Pleasure

Last Thursday, my client decided to settle a case scheduled for trial in two weeks.  Within 24 hours an e-ticket from Northwest Airlines arrived in my
in-box courtesy of my beautiful wife and
three sons.  If I worked for a traditional law firm, I would  not be joining  my family in Florida for 9 days.   

THE WORKING VACATION…

I have always believed that it is preferable to mix business and
pleasure, rather than stay home while my family goes on vacation.   I have always been pretty good at balancing family and clients while on a working vacation (which as a litigator is most of them).   I am putting this post in the non-solo category because it should be an inspiration for any attorney who values the  flexibility which technology make possible.

Working vacations are great time to under promise and over perform to both family and clients.   Well implemented technology means you can work from anywhere.  The trick of course is to avoid juggling family and work, and instead effectively and fairly manage both.

Not that I don’t worry whenever I leave the office behind.  I just worry about the right things.  I work on the kind of things that are meaningful to an effective and successful working vacation:

1. leveraging all available technology to work remotely and efficiently,
2. buying additional roaming minutes for the load which will  be placed on my cell phone,
3. using gotomypc.com to access files and applications securely,
4. preparing task lists to make sure things move forward for clients;
5. using the QuickScribe digital dictation system (I love this software program) on my Compaq nc6220 to keep the paper flowing ;
6. ensuring all incoming mail is scanned, meta-tagged and emailed to my laptop each day;
7. waking up early to get things done before the family wakes up;
8. working after the kids go to bed;
9. managing phone calls but letting almost everything go to voice-mail and setting aside blocks of time to respond;
10. setting two ‘no work’ days.
11. fighting off (or ignoring if necessary) any interloper clients, counsel or other malcontents whose negative karma  would seek to ruin that ever-so-delicate working vacation balance.

I am more efficient on my computer dictating directly onto my Adobe .pdf files sitting poolside than most lawyers are sitting at their desktop computers.  As they scramble to find paper files and run cassette tapes to secretaries for dictation, I’ll be e-filing digital briefs.

The big firm life of the Anonymous Lawyer would never allow for this level of flexibility.   A non-solo answers only to him/herself, his/her family and the client.   He/she works efficiently and flexibly focusing and resolving specific tasks.  The fact that they wear a bathing suit while solving problems or educating clients detracts nothing fro the bottom-line and make most everyone else just happy enough.

GO Non-SOLOs!