I recently told a room of potential referral sources an easy way to remember me as a resource for their clients. I didn't tell them that they should remember me for being a mediator. I didn't tell them that they should remember me because I'm a family law lawyer or a divorce lawyer. That doesn't matter to referral sources or clients in today's world because it's not memorable, and it's not unique or interesting.  There are a lot of mediators and divorce lawyers, and many of them are great, and many of them have more experience than I do. Instead I said: Call me when when your friend changes their Facebook status to "It's Complicated" The message contained in this request is not that I am a lawyer or a mediator, so you should hire me.  The message is that I help people when things get complicated.  The message is about the potential client, not about me, or my skills.  It's about what they are going through.   (also the refere...

I am Attorney [INSERT NAME HERE] and I FIGHT for my clients! This is a common description on an attorney's website.  They want you to know that they would be your champion!  If you hire them you won't have to worry about your problem anymore.  They'll take that monkey off your back. But is that true?  Is it realistic?  Is it really what you want? While the job of an attorney is often described as zealous advocacy, to equate that with fighting is to misunderstand the work of an effective attorney.  Zealous advocacy means that your attorney is working hard to accomplish your goals.  Unless your goal is to create conflict and start an expensive legal battle, then "fighting" is probably the last thing you want your attorney to start with. Consider these two examples: Example 1 - The Stolen Website Copy: You find out that one of your competitors has stolen copyrighted material from your website and reprinted it on their website.  You call y...