Personal Growth

It time I update this blog and let you know how I am doing.
I still love my job as a paralegal. I love the challenges the job has to offer.
And I love working with my boss. Though at times, I find that I get unnerved by own failings. I am learning that the harder I try to be perfect, the more imperfect I am.

Learning that I am imperfect is unsettling. I feel the pressure to get things done, get them done right, and carry on with poise and character. I don't have poise underpressure. However, I will learn. I must learn.

Challenges working with lawyers

The challenge a paralegal has working with lawyers is magnified when a paralegal is working for a small law firm.

In small law firms, paralegals may be underutilized doing mostly clerical or secretarial work while the first year associate does paralegal work. Another problem paralegals face is that lawyers may not clearly articulate what it is they want their legal support staff to do. The latter is the problem I face every day.

A discovery I made recently is that paralegals are trained to draft many documents, take intake, organize files, discovery, evidence, etc. We are even able to help lawyers with conducting legal and factual research to help ensure there is enough evidence to support the claim.

In essense, a good paralegal program, ABA Accredited, will give the paralegal much more knowledge than a law student fresh out of law school.

And I am also discovering the joy of law without being a lawyer.

The Big Insight

Being a paralegal is more challenging than I initially thought. I thought that with my past experience as an office assistant (office manager)that it would be a cinch to do the paralegal job. While my past experience helps, it does not transfer over to being a paralegal.

I now realize how invaliable a paralegal with five (5) years experience is to a lawyer; and the value experience provides a lawyer. It took me but a month on the job to realize why the field is so competitive for new paralegals starting out and WHY a lawyer wants to hire someone with 5 years experience.

It does take about 5 years to really learn how to do the things that add value to a lawyer.

Adding value is the pressure I face every day I go to work. I am always asking myself, "Does this task add value to my lawyer?" or "Am I giving the lawyer the most out of my time?" I know I can do this job, I have the initiative and the knowledge and skills to do the job, however, as my husband noted, what I don't have is the time to figure it all out. The job keeps me on my toes. It frustrates me, depresses me, excites me, and makes me nervous as hell!

My wish is that I can come away giving back to the lawyer, and adding value in every way I can and hopefully I can be that "SUPERSTAR" paralegal recognized in the legal community as such. For now, I just hope and pray that I can add some value worthy of my keep.

I love my job and I am very happy I did not pursue law school.

A fresh start

It's time I update my blog on what I have been doing. I recently got hired at a small law firm in my state. It has been a challenging one month as I organize around the law firm.

At first glance, I was a bit timid, for the new job brought challenges, but I quickly got excited at the fact that I would be organizing things my way. I won't lie, I have made a few trial and error mistakes but nothing major or life threatening. And when in doubt, I ask. I am not afraid to ask but I am afraid of asking too many questions.

Litigation excites me. I love analyzing issues and facts and putting legal theories together. Sometimes I wonder if I should go to law school, but I come back to reality rather quickly. The reality that law school offers very little to someone that is knowledgeable and knows how to spot issues and analyze like a lawyer. The cost of law school is much to high for the benefit law school provides.

In my opinion, the benefits just doesn't outweigh the cost of acquiring a law degree. And I would be wasting money I can invest elsewhere like buying a house, a new car, modernizing my kitchen, etc. The only reason to go to law school is to buy a ticket to take the bar.

Nevertheless, I enjoy being a paralegal even if I don't get to strategize and plan arguments. I also enjoy the fact that I am able to offer more than just paralegal help. I am the Spanish guru, the computer wiz kid, the excellent organizer, and the reliable staff member. I work hard and try my best to finish tasks and add value to my employer.

All in all, I am the perfect paralegal for this position. And with God's help, I will prevail and be the superstar.

The question of whether to outsource or produce in-house?

When considering whether to outsource follow these simple steps in making your decision:

1. determine the production costs (or service costs)your company can avoid if it outsources the service or goods production

2. compare the avoidable (relevant) production costs with the costs of buying the product or service costs and select the lower cost option.

Remember, cost reductions achieved through outsourcing are little benefit if they are acquired at the expense of low morale and reduced productivity.

Colorado Caucus Tonight

In case your wondering, tonight is the Caucus night in Colorado.
The caucus is the closest thing to *the people* having any say in politics.

All registered Republicans are invited to the

REPUBLICAN CAUCUS

Tuesday, March 16th
7:00 pm (sign in begins at 6:30 pm)

Precincts WEST of Colorado Blvd:
Central Christian Church
3690 Cherry Creek Blvd South

Precincts EAST of Colorado Blvd:
Windsor Gardens -- main center meeting room
595 S Clinton St.

Democracy in Action

What happens at the Precinct Caucus?

* Straw poll for Governor and Senate Candidates
* Election of Precinct Leaders
* Election of delegates to the Denver County Assembly and
House, Senate & Judicial Assemblies for purpose of selecting candidates

Participate --- Make Your Voice Heard
Contested Races
Candidates for US Senate
Steve Barton
Ken Buck
Gary Kennedy
Vincent Martinez
Jane Norton ***
Cleve Tidwell
Tom Wiens

Candidates for Governor
Dan Maes
Scott McInnis ***

Candidates for Treasurer
J.J. Ament
Ali Hassan ***
Walker Stapleton

Practical tips to Planning your Business

Planning is the most important part to operating a profitable business. The budgeting process consists of putting together a financial plan. The plan addresses short-, middle-, and long-term time frames.

For example, long-term deals with questions such as

1. Do I want to be a solo practioner or larger law firm practioner?
2. How do I expect to benefit from this experience?
3. Do I want to specialize or be a generalist?
4. In what area of law do I want to concentrate my practice on?

May lawyers decide to go at it alone before answering any of these questions. They discover all too often the disadvantage of poor planning the hard way. While your colleagues are learning to be lawyers as associates in a law firm, big or small, you are having to learn how to own your own business, and practice law all on your own.

First, you need to decide the scope of your business, determine which services to provide, and identify the most profitable market niche.

Second, you need to decide where to locate your office, whether to lease or work from home.

Third, you need to develop a master budget. This describes short-term objectives in specific amounts of service target, service goals, and financial plans. This covers one year.

Before you can create your master budget, you will need to prepare the sales forecast.