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October 2019

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Paige Atkins

Latest from Lawyerist

Stephanie Everett Headshot

Most law firm owners think client problems start after intake. 
They don’t. 
After leading Lawyerist Lab—our strategic consulting program where we work with hundreds of small law firm owners—I’ve seen this pattern repeatedly: Client problems start the moment someone finds you online. Or hears about you from a referral. Or fills out your contact form. 
By the time you’re dealing with a “difficult client,” you’re not managing

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Stephanie Everett Headshot

Most law firm owners think their biggest problem is capacity, or systems, or finding good people. 
It’s not. 
It’s them. 
After leading Lawyerist Lab and working with hundreds of small law firm owners, I can diagnose a firm’s constraint in about fifteen minutes. And most of the time? It’s the owner. 
Not because they’re incompetent. Not because they don’t care. 
Because they haven’t made the transition from lawyer

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Stephanie Everett Headshot

Law firm goals often conflict because they require incompatible resources—time, money, or focus—without clear prioritization or sequencing. Common conflicts include “grow revenue AND work less” or “hire an associate AND can’t afford one yet.” To set goals that work together, you need to map the inputs each goal requires, identify trade-offs explicitly, and sequence goals instead of pursuing them

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It’s January. You’re looking at your business account trying to figure out how to make payroll. 
You did great work in October. Billed it in November. And you’re still waiting to get paid. 
Meanwhile, rent is due. Year-end expenses are hitting your credit card. Tax payments are coming. 
You’re profitable on paper. The numbers say you had a good year. 
But your bank account says otherwise. 

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Law firm strategic plans fail to get executed because firm owners hit four critical execution problems: they don’t know enough about the topic to focus on what matters, they can’t break big ideas into concrete steps, they underestimate the resources required, and they don’t block protected time to do the work.  
I’m Stephanie Everett, founder of Lawyerist Lab,

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Most law firm owners spend months stuck on the same strategic decisions—whether to fire a client, raise prices, or restructure their team. The reason isn’t indecision. It’s inadequate support infrastructure. Without access to law firm-specific expertise, benchmarking data, and strategic frameworks, firm owners make expensive mistakes that cost years and six figures. Here’s how to evaluate whether you have the strategic support

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It’s December 31st, 2025. 

And if you’re being honest with yourself, you know exactly what went wrong this year. 

Not the big, dramatic failures. The quiet ones. The patterns that repeated. The decisions you kept postponing. The version of your firm you promised yourself you’d build—that’s still just a someday plan. 

You worked hard. You hit some goals, maybe even grew revenue. But the firm…


You’re working harder than ever. Revenue isn’t keeping pace. Your team is stretched thin. And somehow, you’re still saying yes to clients who drain more than they deliver. 

The problem isn’t what you’re missing. It’s what you haven’t cut yet. 

At Lawyerist, we work with hundreds of law firm owners every year to build healthier, more profitable practices. And here’s what we see consistently:  

the firms that break through aren’t the ones adding more—they’re the ones that finally

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Nisha Sanders
If you’re running a law firm that feels more chaotic than strategic, and you’re ready to build something you’re proud of, meet Nisha Sanders—our new Strategic Growth Advisor. 

She’s here to help small-firm owners get unstuck, cut through the noise, and make smart, confident decisions about what comes next. 

Why We’re So Excited About Nisha 

Nisha brings more than fifteen years of consulting and team development experience, helping small businesses, including law firms,…

Most lawyers start their annual planning by listing goals like:

  • Hit $1M
  • Hire an associate
  • Add a new practice area
  • Improve marketing
  • Raise rates
These goals matter. They belong in a plan.
But goals alone don’t give your firm direction.
They tell you what you want—without defining how you’ll get there or what you’re willing to stop doing to make space for growth.
That’s the gap where most firms stall

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