Take the Call. Take the Hit.
Back to basics time again. About 2 months ago I was interviewing for a paralegal. When interviewing, one of the questions I asked was ‘In your opinion, what is the difference between a well run law firm and one not so well run?” I also asked “What is the one thing you think most law firms could do better?” Overwhelmingly, the most common response was talk to clients, taking phone calls and returning clients calls.
As lawyers we have great excuses for not taking phone calls. He’s in a meeting, preparing for court, in a deposition, out of the office… it makes it easy to duck calls. I was amazed at how common of a response this was. When talking with Shirley Hughes, this was her response:
The one downfall I have seen with attorneys is they NEVER return their calls on time and caller ID is the bane of our society. No matter who is on that line, take the call and take the consequences right then....it's never as bad as your conscience thinks it will be. Every day the call isn't returned turns up the "guilt factor" until you find you get mad at the client, creditor, or opposing counsel for calling. Just human nature.
Good points. Thanks Shirley.
