Have you seen the explosion of homemade sourdough loaves on Instagram since lockdown started?
Judging by their numbers, I’m fully expecting there to be a boulangerie on every street corner when things get back to normal.
Easter weekend I got caught up too.
My family’s Easter dessert tradition is a midwestern speciality, cream puffs.
They’re a fickle creation.
I should have taken out the ingredients, measured them and then started whisking.
What I did instead was take things out as I needed them, tried to measure in flow and generally wreaked havoc with the burner.
It lacked some of the elegance of watching Nigella cook.
They came out of the oven burned, having never risen.
I started out on the wrong foot and thereafter all I could do was react, hoping to avert disaster.
That’s never a good feeling.
Reacting to our situation rather than creating it, is a driver of anxiety and stress.
So why do we accept this mode when we work with external counsel?
Instead of reacting to bills, disappointing service and outcomes that don’t meet your expectations, why not get on the front foot and drive better outcomes?
Get an upfront budget, clearly laid out assumptions and agreed deliverables. Establish what success looks like so that everyone can work towards it with confidence.
Your higher quality external legal providers will thank you. When they understand what good looks like, they can give you great.
Those providers who complain that they can’t possibly give you any certainty upfront and who refuse to be held to account to clear deliverables? They’re going to use that uncertainty to their advantage.
Whether it’s a cream puff or legal services, if you start off in the right way, every time, you’ll never have to worry about being burned again.
Bon Appetit,
Christopher Thurn
Founder – Alacrity Law
