The practice : brutal truths about lawyers and lawyering

In The Practice, Tannebaum riffs on everything from asking yourself what type of lawyer you want to be, to the most effective way to market yourself in an industry where lawyers increasingly over-rely on social media to prove their relevance. It also discusses other important topics, including the proper way to handle referrals, rainmaking, reinventing yourself as a lawyer, personal branding, and much more. This book offers a no-holds-barred "truth" about the legal profession in the author s honest and at times humorous signature voice. Readers will find clear and truthful advice on a wide range of topics that will help them become a better, and more informed lawyer."

• Foreword p. xi
• Introduction p. xiii
• Chapter 1 What Type of Lawyer Do You Want to Be? p. 1
• Some of Us Get Tired of Hearing ... p. 4
• Something LeBron Said p. 6
• What Is Your Code of Ethics? p. 8
• Do You Want to Be a Top Lawyer or Just a Good Lawyer? p. 12
• "I Don't Do That Work" p. 14
• Strengthening the Attorney/Client Relationship p. 16
• Does Anyone Want a Mentor Anymore? p. 18
• Bill Hodes Sends an E-mail about Lawyer Ethics p. 21
• When It Costs You to Be Honest p. 23
• Creating Time p. 25
• What (Some) Clients Want in a Lawyer p. 28
• Lawyers: In This Economy, Be as Smart as You Think You Are p. 30
• The Danger and Pleasure of a Niche Practice p. 31
• Where Have All the Lawyers Gone? p. 34
• Chapter 2 What Is the Future of Law? p. 37
• The Future of Law is Officially a Joke p. 38
• What Makes You More Money, the Past or the Future? p. 40
• RIP: The End of the Law Futurist p. 43
• The Technology Curmudgeon Gives His Technology Secrets p. 48
• A Note about the iPad p. 50
• Chapter 3 Getting That First Job, or a New One p. 53
• Jobless? OMG, Maybe It's You 54 Eight Ways Law Students Get Their Cover Letter and Resume in My Garbage p. 58
• Five Thoughts on Going Solo p. 59
• Leaving Biglaw to Become a Relevant Real-World Lawyer p. 60
• The Stupidity of Associates with Golden Handcuffs p. 63
• A Word to Government Lawyers Taking the Plunge p. 65
• Chapter 4 The Great Office Debate p. 69
• The Great (Stupid) Office Debate p. 70
• Moving Offices 72 The Future of the Legal Profession: How to Ethically Lie about Your Fake Office p. 74
• Dry Cleaners, Rental Cars, and the Practice of Law p. 76
• Chapter 5 Networking p. 79
• Enough with the Worthless Networking p. 80
• How Networking Really Works p. 83
• Getting Involved in the (Offline) Community p. 86
• Get a Hobby p. 89
• Political Networking p. 92
• Chapter 6 Marketing-In Real Life p. 95
• What Will Always Matter in the Legal Profession p. 96
• Are You a Great Lawyer, or a Great Marketer? p. 99
• Why Would Anyone Hire You? p. 101
• A Google Search Tells All: "How to Market Yourself as a Good Lawyer" p. 103
• How to Get the Client and Lose Your Law License p. 104
• Writing for Lawyers p. 105
• The Truth about Media Appearances p. 107
• Lawyer Consultant on Lawyer Directories p. 110
• An Actual True (No, Really) For-Real Marketing Secret by a Credible Person (Seriously) p. 112
• Are Public Relations Firms Still Relevant? p. 114
• The Best Marketing Tool for Lawyers p. 117
• Lessons Learned from Hanging Out with 75-Year-Old Lawyers p. 119
• What Matters in a Lawyer's Offline Presence? p. 121
• Creating a "Brand" while Others Create Your Reputation p. 123
• Free Advertising p. 126
• The Ethics of Lawyer Marketing, and Other Lost Ideals p. 128
• Chapter 7 Of Course, Social Media p. 131
• The Definitive (All You Need to Know) Guide (This is It) to Social Media for Lawyers p. 132
• Can We All Just Shut Up about Social Media Changing the World, and Actually Change the World? p. 135
• The Art and Science (and Scams) of Lawyer Bios p. 138
• The Tweet Heard 'Round the Social Media Marketing World p. 141
• The Finest Expose (Ever) of the (Fraud That Is the) Social Media Guru p. 144
• The Online Ethics Slide: When Does It Hit the Ground? p. 147
• Because First You Have to Be Dead p. 150
• Blogging and Other Social Media: Like a Search Engine Whore p. 154
• Final (Free)Tips p. 157
• Chapter 8 Referrals, and the Feeding and Proper Care of Referral Sources p. 159
• Who's the Idiot That Invented Three Name Referrals? p. 160
• Are You a Referral Source or a Name Collector? p. 163
• Do Your Referral Sources Get It? p. 165
• The Ultimate Small-Law Gift Guide (Even If You're Cheap) p. 167
• Following Up on Referrals (Non-Beggar Edition) p. 170
• Do You Want More Clients, or More Referrals? p. 172
• When the Referral Source Is a One-Way Street p. 176
• The Most Important Referral You'll Ever Receive p. 179
• Chapter 9 Money p. 183
• Is It OK to Make Money as a Lawyer? p. 184
• How to Make Money as a Lawyer: Forget Law School p. 186
• How to Make Money as a Lawyer: Rainmaking Is for Losers p. 188
• Setting, Earning, and Keeping Fees in Small Law Firms p. 190
• When You're Not Getting Paid at Your Small Law Firm p. 193
• How Much Money Can You Make at a Small Law Firm? p. 196
• The Free Consultation and the Fee Secret p. 199
• Fewer Clients p. 201
• When Things Are Slow p. 204
• The Dangers of Hitting Your Stride at a Small Law Firm p. 207
• The Lawyer Economy: It's Like an Art Festival p. 210
• Tale of the Big Legal Fee p. 212
• Chapter 10 What Law School Doesn't Teach You about the Practice p. 215
• What No One Can Teach or Sell a Lawyer p. 216
• Manners p. 217
• Do You and Your Client Understand the Scope of Representation? p. 219
• The Mid-Representation Conversation p. 223
• Dealing with Threatening, Demanding, Opposing Counsel p. 225
• It's Not Always about the Clients p. 228
• Firing Clients p. 231
• "Money's Not a Problem" and Other Reasons to Hang Up the Phone p. 234
• A Case Too Big p. 236
• (Almost) Never Be the Second Lawyer p. 239
• Looking for "Free" p. 241
• No, I Won't Help Incompetent Lawyers Take My Business p. 244
• The Partnership Split p. 246
• Spring Cleaning for Law Firms p. 249
• Closing Out the Year p. 252
• Chapter 11 Reevaluating the Whole Thing p. 255
• Finding Meaning p. 256
• When Nothing Is Working p. 258
• What I Did on My Summer Vacation p. 261
• Growing p. 264
• Fun and Happiness in the Practice of Law p. 266
• Technology and the Lost Art of Unavailability p. 268
• Bad News: To Remain in the Profession, You Have to Love the Law p. 270
• Who Are You Listening To? p. 273
• Asking Why p. 275
• Leaving the Law p. 277
• Reinventing Yourself as a Lawyer p. 280
• Epilogue: The Cause of the Defenseless or Oppressed-15 Years Later p. 284
• Acknowledgments p. 290
• Notes p. 292
• Index p. 294