Why do you have the job you have? Is it the job you’ve always wanted and dreamed about? Or did you have a change of heart and decide to try something new? Nichole Hanscom, Law Firm Management and Marketing Advisor at How to Manage a Small Law Firm, joins Christina to share her journey of becoming a trainer-turned-lawyer-turned-business-owner, and what opportunities and challenges she has faced along her career path. Nichole has seen it all, from public defender’s offices to jails with scarce resources. Listen in for great advice about the people you decide to hire and how to manage your office with care!
In this episode, we talk about…
- Nichole’s college experience and Condé Nast dreams
- Drinking the Kool-Aid of public defender’s culture
- Transitioning from data entry clerk to computer trainer
- The opportunity of a lifetime—working in a social services unit
- Work is play and if the excitement stops, it’s time to look for something else
- The best public defender’s office is the one nobody needs
- Why Nichole became a lawyer and how she feels about her decision now
- Recognizing the need to hire someone to avoid hiring the wrong person out of desperation
- Realizing attorneys walk into court with people’s lives in their hands and need better training
- The best standards of justice should be available to everyone
- Making things happen “automagically”
- If you’re not able to care about the people you hire, you’ve either got the wrong people or shouldn’t be a boss
- Focusing on personality vs. skills and how to hire with more intention
- Nichole’s interview process and the questions she never asks
- Coming from a place of love and being responsible to people instead of for people
- What led Nichole to stop practicing law and start her own business
- Why Radical Administration does not focus on coaching
- You’re either hiring helpers or replacements—know the difference!
- The common fear most business owners across all industries have
- The common mistake lawyers make with office support staff
- Top areas of focus if you want to grow your firm
- When it comes to charging people, it’s not about you—it’s about them
- “If you chase two rabbits, you’re gonna lose them both.”
