Starting a law firm takes a lot of patience and an involves an acceptance of a certain amount of controlled risk. In other words, in the beginning, you need to be willing to work very hard to receive very little.
I will admit that I get a little melodramatic every time I drive by a restaurant that is no longer open or a store front showing an empty space where once there was a small business. This got me to thinking about patience and the willingness (stuborness?, stupidity?) to get through the tough times with irregular pay when starting a law firm.
I recently spoke with another solo attorney the other day at a collection hearing. I was trying to collect a judgment against his client. We both understood that we were adveraries in terms of representing our respective clients, but there was also a certain amount of comraderie. This is one of the things I really love about my job – actual professional comraderie in the face of strife. This attorney also appears to be doing well and appears happy. Anyway, we got to talking about starting a law firm and the things we didn’t like about large law firm life. He also mentioned that he is very happy he left his old law firm where he was a partner and that he still very happy being on his own. The discussion was pretty obvious, but he made some good points about starting and building a law practice. The main one being the general advice that “it takes a couple of years.”
I have been doing decently at my own solo law practice while I wrap up client cases from clients that came with me from my old firm. I have had work to do when I want it, but I have realized that networking and marketing needs to be a full-time, ever present job. It takes time. It takes a couple of years. I think I am ok with that. Luckily, I have always made marketing a big part of my practice – perhaps because I actually enjoy it. As I’ve already posted, having a law firm marketing plan has helped my firm in a big way. Developing a niche practice has also been a good idea. But, I have also fazed out my Indiana practice and will be doing this all over again in Minnesota.
In sum, I hope to be more like the attorney who kept at it and is still practicing as a solo attorney. I also hope that I’m not easily satisfied and that I continue to stick with my desire and goal to build a thriving law practice. I hope anybody reading this post feels the same way.
It takes time and effort and sometimes it is a difficult mental struggle. Starting a law firm, is about patience, mental fortitude, and commitment. In short, it takes a couple of years.