Futurelawyer

#WhyIAmASolo - No Hierarchy To Impress.

It is difficult enough to navigate our competitive society. In order to be financially successful, lawyers and other professionals need to impress Judges, clients, colleagues, and opponents, with their ability and competence. Why do we complicate things by joining a hierarchy, such as a large corporation or institution, or Big Law, and then spend valuable living time trying to impress those higher than us in the hierarchy, and even those lower than us? What a waste of energy. What a waste of our precious little time on this earth? Mitch Albom said a wise thing, when he said:    

If you're trying to show off for people at the top, forget it. They will look down on you anyhow. And if you're trying to show off for people at the bottom, forget it. They will only envy you. Status will get you nowhere. Only an open heart will allow you to float equally between everyone.”

                                                                                                                                                           Mitch Albom

This is actually a sister principle to the Stoic advice that we should never consider the opinion of others; but, to live our lives according to our own light. This is much easier to do in an environment where others have less of an effect on your life. 

 

Kofax Power PDF Advanced - Make Sure You Buy The Correct Version.

Comparison Version 4 Power PDF Advanced Versus Version 5. If you decide to take my advice and purchase Kofax Power PDF Advanced, make sure you buy the new version, Version 5. It contains features useful and essential to lawyers too many to list. This page makes all the comparisons. Suffice it to say, it is worth paying full price of $179 to buy it from Kofax directly. I have been able to get along with Version 4 for several years; but, I am upgrading to Version 5. It has PDF/A compliance checking, which is essential of online filing of pleadings, the ability to do complex text and graphics redaction, and much more. I have only recently discovered some helpful features, such as scanning directly to Kofax PDF. This is the best $179 a practicing lawyer can spend, and they don't pay me to say that. Of course, I won't send back any checks, if they come my way. If you are a Microsoft Word user, or any of Microsoft's products which use the ribbon interface, you will be immediately at home. 

I May Be Deluded...But Delusion Has Its Benefits.

Delusion is a sure fire way to practice the Stoic virtue of not caring what other people think. After all, you can't control other people all the time; and, recognizing this brings peace and contentment. I am very happy in my delusions... I am great, in fact. I will always assume that others have only my best interests at heart, and never criticize me. Stoicism is my armor against the tide of fortune.

Kofax Power PDF Advanced - Full Featured For Less Money.

Kofax Power PDF Advanced. Lawyers these days spend much of their time with documents created in Word or WordPerfect. However, modern efiling systems require PDFs for filing purposes, and an adequate PDF software application is essential to modern lawyering. For a long time, the best was Adobe; but, it is really expensive. Some of us looked around for a cheaper alternative that was easy to use and had all of the features. We found it in the original Nuance PDF software. Now named Kofax, I use the Power PDF Advanced version every single day, multiple times. All of Florida's pleadings, in all 67 counties, must be efiled, and PDF/A format is required. So, every Wordperfect document I create, I immediately make a PDF version, which I use for sending to clients and colleagues, and for efiling. A 3 year subscription to Adobe costs $540, while Kofax Power PDF Advanced costs $179, and you only pay once. Sometimes, it can be found on sale for as low as $110. Sounds like a no brainer to me.

 

What Is Your Favorite And Most Useful Gadget?

Believe it or not, my constant companion, and something that is in my briefcase all the time, and my favorite and most useful tool, isn't computer or tech related. It is a pocket knife that I purchased many years ago at the Museum of the Cherokee Indian, in Cherokee, North Carolina. This wonderful museum has, as its purpose,

“To  preserve  and perpetuate the history, culture, and stories of the Cherokee people.”

The native Indian culture of our country needs to be preserved, and its lessons are similar to Stoic philosophical belief systems. 

The knife has many uses, from saw to bottle opener, and, while I have a large knife collection, I love this little pocket knife the most. What's in your brief case? 

 

How About We Accept Reality?

New Year's Resolutions are for dreamers. At my age, reality sets in. We are who we are. Fate will do what it does. I resolve daily to live at least one more day, and to be what the Boy Scouts taught me: Trustworthy, loyal, helpful, friendly, courteous, kind, obedient, cheerful, thrifty, brave, clean and reverent. I fail a lot; but, I get up the next day and run that play again. Not making New Year's Resolutions is a sign of maturity. Just try to be the best human you can be. If you fail, try to make it right, and move on. Now, spend your time doing something fun, or useful, or both, if you can swing it.

I Want To Run Something By You.

Running It By You. My favorite blogger and management consultant, Michael Wade, at Execupundit.com, wrote this post six years ago. He speaks, in the post, about clients calling often and saying something to the effect of: "Let me run something by you". As a consultant, he gets such inquiries often, and his opinion matters. We lawyers get it a lot. However, when a client or prospective client says it to me, it carries much more responsibility on my part. Once I venture an opinion, I am bound by it, and, unless I make clear that it is just a judgment call, I can be held liable if the client follows my advice. Call it a lawyer imprimatur, or stamp of approval; especially if the client is just seeking confirmation of something she already has decided. So, please excuse your lawyer for seemingly non-committal answers if you ask such a question. There are so many factual variables that can change the tenor of advice that it is often impossible to have a concrete answer. Like the client in Michael's piece, a one word change can change everything. I have toyed with the idea of putting a crystal ball on my desk, and asking such clients to wave their hand over it. Such an action is just as likely to predict the future as anything I might say. Oh well. I guess this is the business I have chosen.

Not How To End A Year.

It will be a cold day in Hell when I get close to a bottle of The Macallan 30. At around $7,000 a bottle, it is reserved for rich people. But, whoever mixed this bottle with diet Coke should be tarred and feathered and escorted, by Rip, to the train station.

You Picked A Fine Time To Leave Me, Lucille.

No, really, Lucille. The Bowl games are coming soon. Then, it's the NFL playoffs. Then, the Super Bowl. Then, the Stanley Cup run. I'll be okay.

#WhyIAmASolo - I Set My Own Goals For The New Year.

I prefer to live my own life, thank you very much. Billable hours goals (or "requirements") are something that I get to choose for myself. I don't have to meet minimums in order to keep my job, or to make partner. Sure, some of us need to be pushed; but, pushed into what? No life? I, long ago, realized that money isn't a goal worth pursuing in this short life. I know. Everyone says the words; but, then goes on chasing dollars. There is something to be said for chasing enough dollars to be able to provide for family, and have enough time to enjoy life. But, chasing money for its own sake, or to keep score, is a fool's errand. Ultimately, time is a fixed commodity; and, we don't know when it will end. So, savor every moment. Seek enough money to live; then, go live.