Re: Startup costs of my own practice are not the problem, bu

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Okay, consider me somewhat scared away from the prospect of a solo or
small practice with a friend. I consider myself to be in a niche area
of law where there aren't a lot of attorneys doing it (although there
are a lot of attorneys in general where I live). But the thought of
burning through my savings and credit scares me. I wonder if it is
all possible to do it the way you are doing it - teach or have some
other full-time or part-time job so you have regular income, then take
on clients gradually?

>
> I quit solo practice to teach at a College. I have a handful of
> special clients I still do work for. However, just so people
> understand, I did the solo grind for 5 years. I should have quit
> after the first 2, would have saved me a lot of heartache. My sister
> made more money accidently by buying a house at the right time then
I
> made in Solo Practice. Thats enough to drive me crazy, if I wasn't
> already. :)
>
> If I had gone the Insurance Defense Route, and just bought one
house,
> and two rentals, I could retire right now. But instead I went solo,
> and I'm still digging myself out of the hole. Such is life.
>
> Overhead will kill you, you can gross $100K and net $30K. Never
trust
> a Vendor offering "marketing solutions". Its all snake oil.
>
>>
>>
>> On 11/30/06, rrr wrote:
>>> I think you might have gotten the leper treatment because you've
>>> asked the same question thats been asked 1000's of times and has
>>> been answered and discussed that many times. You could have
>>> searched the past threads of this page and found enough
>>> information to write a book (in fact at least one person has).
>>> When I first read your post, I didn't even make a connection
>>> between the website you mentioned and spamming. I just thought
>>> you were lazy.
>>>
>>> What would I change... I wouldn't have gone solo. I had a job
>>> offer from a Construction Defect Insurance Defense Firm. Years
>>> and years of mindless billable hours. I rejected it for what I
>>> thought were good reasons at the time. And I went Solo.
>>>
>>> Everything else I could tell you has already been written many
>>> many times before.
>>>
>>> I guess I would ask you the threshold question...
>>>
>>> How big is your rolodex? How are you going to generate business
>>> when the time comes? Are you really connected? Are you
>>> specialized in a Niche field? Are you in (or planning to be in)
>> a
>>> location where there is a shortage of Attorneys or at least a
>>> shortage in your Niche?
>>>
>>> You will be bombarded by thousands of vendors all trying to sell
>>> you a solution to your marketing problem. They are all liars.
>> All
>>> of them. Yellow Page reps, directory reps, direct mail,
>>> newspaper, T.V./Radio/Internet sales people. Liars, all of them.
>>> Worse then liars. You are almost better off buying lottery
>>> tickets, because the mass market prospects they can deliver are
>>> the worst of the worst possible clients.
>>>
>>> So if your answer to business generation is any of the above,
>>> then you're going to burn through your savings, credit, and
>>> earnings brutally quick and have nothing to show for it but a
>>> bunch of Vendor salespeople laughing at you, as they spend the
>>> money that used to be yours.
>>>
>>>
>>> On 11/29/06, Carl Jackson wrote:
>>>>
>>>> I'm just looking for some insight, and you, rrr, are so far
>>>> the only one who has said anything useful. Other people so
>>>> far are hostile which surprises me a little given other
>>>> threads on this board. All I did was mention another website
>>>> and I'm being treated like a leper.
>>>
>>>> Well, I'm not looking for anything in particular or anybody to
>>>> tell me anything, but since you did say your practice was a
>>>> disaster and you put a gun to your head, could you be a little
>>>> more specific about what went on? Furthermore, what might you
>>>> have done differently if you could do it over again?
>>>>
>>>> Just trying to scope this out as best I can!
>>>>
>>>> Thanks!
>>>>