Lawyers care way too much about the opinions of other lawyers.
Is it tradition that we’re afraid of challenging? Or the air of importance that the traditionalists carry around with them that puts us off? Either way, this industry ain’t gonna change itself. We need to lean into the fear, forget about the critics and focus on the future.
As part of my new video series, I sat down with some of the most innovative law firm owners in the industry. Around 80% of them said that the one thing they would change about the legal industry is the egos, the pompous behaviour and the arrogance.
These are the legal entrepreneurs who are changing the face of our industry. They’re putting themselves out there, designing solutions for clients of the future and paving the path for a new way forward for the law. And this is the greatest barrier they’re coming up against.
When I started my online legal solution, Legal Beagle, I was challenged by other lawyers and those in the legal industry at every step. When I launched Automio a few years later, the same thing happened. I was approached at trade shows, called on the phone and repeatedly told that what I was doing wasn’t possible. That I was broaching a territory that wasn’t welcome in our world. You know what I did, both times? I accelerated my business plan.
In order to drag an industry seeped in tradition into a modern, digital world, we need the innovators, like those that I’m working with at Automio, to ignore the critics, challenge the status quo and focus entirely on the clients who pay the bills. I’m proud of the supportive, innovative and success-focused community Automio has built. This is the legal industry of the future.
If you’re a legal innovator frustrated by the naysayers, come join us. Let’s kick those egos to the curb.
