Attorneys who want to achieve long-term success must take a comprehensive and holistic approach to their professional lives. With the ever-changing legal landscape, attorneys must be proactive in developing skills and strategies to stay ahead of the competition. One of the most effective ways to do this is to work with a business coach. A business coach can provide attorneys with the knowledge and resources to create a solid and successful legal practice. From mapping out goals and objectives to honing communication and marketing skills, attorneys can utilize a business coach to become successful entrepreneurs and stay competitive in an increasingly saturated legal market.
What is a Business Coach?
Before we dive into the ways in which attorneys can utilize a business coach, let’s define a “business coach”.
A business coach is someone who helps people to discover their core values and strengths, then translates those values and strengths into actionable steps. Business coaches help their clients achieve their goals and make their visions a reality. Additionally, business coaches have extensive experience and knowledge in all areas of business and can provide guidance on many different topics related to your business, such as:
- Leadership
- Marketing
- Sales
- Entrepreneurship
- Team Building
- Finances
- And More
Business coaches often work in partnership with their clients over a long period of time, sometimes even years.
Note that there are different types of business coaches that often specialize in different fields. That said, as a lawyer, finding a coach that has worked in/around the legal field, is paramount!
Benefits of Working with a Business Coach
Learn New Skills & Strategies
A business coach can identify both your strengths and weaknesses and provide you with new ideas and techniques, so YOU can grow with your business! Once identified, they can help determine what skills you should learn to bolster your leadership, and where/how to best learn these skills. Likewise, a coach will help you determine which skills should be outsourced. For example, even if you’re a people person, acting as the office’s receptionist is frankly a waste of your time. Therefore, it’s best to outsource this task to a virtual assistant! plug any skills gaps.
Gain More Confidence
In order to be a successful entrepreneur and attorney, you need to feel in control of your path, your business, and yourself. Now, frankly, attorneys aren’t typically the type to feel “less-than” (as you definitely need confidence to even become an attorney). However, when bogged down with work, it can often feel as though you are desperately trying to stay above water. Over time, this will wear down even the most confident attorney!
Setting & Achieving Your Goals
If you want to make a positive change in your life, you need to set process goals and make a plan for how to achieve them. A business coach can help you build a plan for success, and guide you along the way as you put your plan into action while holding you accountable.
Improve Your Long-Term Success
As the legal landscape changes, attorneys must be proactive in developing new skills and strategies to stay ahead of the competition. Working with a business coach can help you build the foundation you need to succeed both now and in the future.
Develop Leadership Skills
This is where attorneys can utilize a business coach! Leadership is a core value for many attorneys however, you went to law school, not business school. That said, a business coach will help you learn to lead while providing an outside perspective! Doing so will enable you to build your team, manage stress and find balance in your life.
Enhance Communication & Networking
At every stage of your career, from hiring employees to networking with colleagues and working with clients, communication is the key to success. A business coach can help you develop those communication skills while building strong, healthy relationships with colleagues and clients.
Refine Business & Marketing Strategies
Every aspect of your business needs to be honed to be as effective and efficient as possible, and oftentimes marketing strategies will get overlooked or placed on the back burner. From brainstorming various marketing tactics to finding a great marketing company or in-house marketing team, this is yet another way a business coach can be very beneficial to an attorney.
Choosing the Right Business Coach
![\"This](\"https://nancybrowncoach.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/01/6-1-300x199.png\")
As mentioned above, there are many different types of business coaches, and they often specialize in different fields. So when choosing a coach consider the following.
Expertise
Becoming a successful influencer is very different than running a law firm! Therefore, you must ensure that your business coach has expertise in your specific field and experience working with attorneys. Otherwise, their guidance and solutions could be irrelevant.
Match
Make sure the coaching style and approach of the business coach you choose matches your personality and needs. You want to find someone who is a good fit for you, and who can work with you to achieve your goals.
Track Record
Make sure the business coach has a track record of helping their clients succeed. To do so, ask for references as this can be extremely helpful in selecting the right business coach.
Cost
Keep in mind that the cost of business coaching varies widely, and you get what you pay for. Think of it this way, will an individual win a case if their attorney is $20 an hour? Probably not… Similarly, a business coach charging $20 an hour likely does not have the expertise to actually up-level your business. Obviously, you need to choose a coach that fits within your budget, but it can be a waste of money if they are unable to assist you due to an unrealistic rate.
Final Thoughts
With the right business coach, attorneys can take ownership of their success and create a long-term strategy that will help them reach their professional goals. If you are ready to take the leap, schedule your complimentary discovery call today.