Living in the Chicago suburbs means I see plenty of squirrels. I have never hit one with my car, but not for their lack of trying.
You know the routine. A squirrel darts into the street, freezes, turns back, changes its mind again, and then makes one final panic-filled sprint. There is plenty of movement, but no apparent plan or commitment to a direction.
Unfortunately, that looks a lot like the way many lawyers’approach business development.
They attend a networking event, have a few lunches, post on LinkedIn for two weeks, and then disappear into their billable work. A month later, they panic about their pipeline and start running again. There is activity, but no direction or consistency.
That is not business development. That is squirrel behavior.
The real issue is not whether lawyers understand the value of having clients. Most do. A book of business creates leverage, security, independence, and more control over your career. The problem is that many lawyers never commit to a plan and process long enough to produce results.
When you rely entirely on other partners to feed you work, you are dependent on their clients, their decisions, and their continued generosity. You may be an outstanding lawyer, but you still have limited control over what you work on, who you work with, and where your career is headed.
Building your own relationships changes that equation.
It also does not require becoming a stereotypical salesperson. Legal business development should not involve pitching, chasing, or convincing people to hire you. That is, if it’s being done properly. It is about identifying the right people, understanding their needs, building trust, and staying visible and helpful until an opportunity develops.
The lawyers who struggle most with legal business development are not lazy. They are simply unplanned and unfocused, like that squirrel. They accept random coffee meetings, attend random events, and pursue random online activity without knowing who they want to meet, what problems they solve, or how any of it connects to revenue.
Random activity produces random results.
A better approach starts with direction. Identify the clients and referral partners who matter most. Choose a small number of business development activities that fit your strengths. Create a follow-up process. Then execute every week, including the weeks when client work is busy.
That last part is where most lawyers fall apart.
They treat business development like an emergency project instead of a professional habit. When work is slow, they network. When work picks up, they stop. By the time the pipeline thins out again, they are starting from zero.
Rainmakers do not operate that way. They have plans and systems in place that are unshakable. They know who they are targeting, how they will stay in touch, what value they can provide, and when to follow up. They do not need to be the most outgoing person in the room. They need to be organized, helpful, and consistent.
Business development is a learned skill, just like taking a deposition, trying a case, or negotiating a deal. You do not need to invent the process yourself. You need to study what works, find an approach that feels authentic, and practice it until it becomes part of how you operate.
Whether your goal is to make equity partner, build a million-dollar book, open your own firm, or simply feel more secure, hesitation will not get you there.
Pick a direction. Follow a plan. Keep moving.
And stop running back to the curb every time business development feels uncomfortable.
For more information about coaching, training, Rainmaker Roundtables, and the BE THAT LAWYER Community, visit BeThatLawyer.com. To talk with me directly, email steve@fretzin.com.
Build your book. Own your future. BE THAT LAWYER!
Steve Fretzin is a five-time bestselling author, host of the BE THAT LAWYER and Future Rainmakers podcasts, and a business development coach who works exclusively with attorneys. For more than 18 years, he has helped lawyers build strong books of business without selling, pitching, or chasing, using his proven Sales-Free Selling™ approach. His clients consistently become top rainmakers and credit his coaching and systems for driving meaningful, measurable growth. Steve can be reached directly at steve@fretzin.com, or through his website at www.bethatlawyer.com. Connect with him on LinkedIn at https://www.linkedin.com/in/stevefretzin. His ALL NEW BE THAT LAWYER Community is changing how lawyers develop the skills never taught in law school. Learn more at www.bethatlawyer.com/community.
The post Stop Acting Like A Squirrel With Your Legal Business Development appeared first on Above the Law.
I live in the suburbs of Chicago, which means I get a little more nature than I would downtown. There are trees, trails, birds, deer, and apparently, a record number of squirrels.
And let me tell you something about squirrels. I have never actually hit one with my car, but I almost hit one all the time.
They dart into the street, freeze, second guess themselves, run halfway across, change their mind, turn back, then shoot forward again like they are auditioning for a tiny woodland action movie. They never seem fully committed to the decision. They are not looking both ways. They are not following a plan. They are just reacting.
I would feel terrible if I ever hit one, so I am grateful I have avoided it. But every time I see this little chaotic dance in the road, I cannot help but think about legal business development.
Because a lot of lawyers act the same way.
They know they need to develop business. They know having their own clients would create more independence, freedom, control, and career security. They know the best rainmakers at their firms have more options, more confidence, and often more enjoyment in the practice of law.
Yet they hesitate. They dabble. They run toward business development for a few weeks, then retreat back into billable work. They try LinkedIn, then stop. They attend a networking event, then disappear. They think about calling a referral source, then talk themselves out of it. They read an article, listen to a podcast, get fired up for a moment, then go right back to the same inconsistent habits.
That is squirrel behavior.
And it is not a strategy.
Why Lawyers Need to Cross the Street
For many attorneys, especially service partners and senior associates, the biggest issue is not talent. It is dependency.
When you do not have your own clients, your career depends on other people feeding you work. You may have four, five, or six partners above you who bring you into matters. Then you may have 5, 10, or 15 clients who all need your attention. In some ways, it can feel like having 20 bosses and very little control.
That is not the path most lawyers dreamed about when they entered the profession.
The lawyers I speak with often tell me the same thing. They want more independence. They want more freedom. They want more control over their time, income, clients, and future. Those things rarely come from doing excellent legal work alone. They come from relationships, reputation, and a book of business.
This is where the mindset shift must happen.
Too many lawyers hear the word “sales” and immediately picture pitching, convincing, chasing, or pushing someone into something they do not want. No wonder they resist it. Most lawyers did not go to law school to become salespeople.
But legal business development is not about becoming a pushy salesperson. It is about matching problems with solutions.
Clients have problems. Lawyers have expertise. Business development is the process of building trust with the right people so that, when those problems arise, you are the logical choice to help solve them.
That is not sleazy. That’s service.
Know Where You Are Going Before You Run
The squirrel’s biggest problem is not speed. It is direction.
Many lawyers have the same issue with business development. They are busy but not focused. They are active, but not strategic. They go to random lunches, random events, random conferences, and random online conversations without a clear idea of who they are trying to meet, what problems they solve, or how those activities connect to revenue.
That is how lawyers waste years.
If you want to build a book of business, you need to become a student of the game. You need to learn how rainmakers think, how they build relationships, how they stay visible, how they generate referrals, how they follow up, and how they convert trust into actual opportunities.
This is one of the reasons I produce books, articles, videos, podcasts, and run the new BE THAT LAWYER™ Community. Lawyers do not need more random marketing noise. They need a place to learn the craft of business development in a way that is practical, organized, and aligned with who they are.
When you study the game, you stop darting around. You start to see the road clearly.
You know which relationships matter. You know where to spend your time. You know what to say. You know how to follow up. You know how to create value without sounding needy or salesy. You stop treating business development as a once in a while activity and start treating it as a core part of your legal career.
That is when momentum begins.
Systems Beat Panic Every Time
Lawyers do not wing it when they prepare for trial. They do not walk into a deposition with no plan. They do not draft complex agreements by guessing their way through every clause.
So why do so many lawyers approach business development like they are making it up as they go?
Business development is a learned skill. There are systems, processes, language, habits, and metrics that make it easier and more efficient. The best rainmakers are not necessarily the most charming people in the room. Many of them simply have a repeatable way to build relationships, stay top of mind, identify needs, and move conversations forward.
That matters because lawyers are busy. You do not have unlimited time to waste on low value activity. You need the greatest return on the smallest reasonable investment of time.
That is why a proven system can change everything.
In my Sales-Free Selling™ system, the goal is not to turn lawyers into salespeople. It is to help them develop business without pitching, convincing, chasing, or feeling awkward. When you have the right framework, business development starts to feel less like self-promotion and more like professional problem solving.
That is the difference between chaos and confidence.
The lawyer who tries to figure everything out alone often ends up stuck in the same cycle of hesitation. The lawyer who follows a proven system has a much better shot at creating consistency, building better relationships, and turning those relationships into real business.
Stop Darting and Start Deciding
If you want to stop acting like a squirrel with your legal business development, start with three decisions.
First, decide that building your own book of business matters. Not because your firm says it matters. Not because someone told you to attend more networking events. Decide it matters because it gives you more freedom, independence, control, and enjoyment in your career.
Second, become a student of the game. Read, listen, watch, ask questions, join groups, find mentors, and surround yourself with lawyers who take business development seriously. You do not need to reinvent the wheel. You need to learn how the wheel works.
Third, find a system you believe in and commit to it. Random action creates random results. A repeatable system creates momentum.
Whether your goal is to make equity partner, build a million-dollar book, go out on your own, or simply feel more secure in your current role, the path will not appear by accident. You have to cross the street on purpose.
The good news is that the road is not as scary as it looks once you know where you are going.
So, stop darting. Stop second guessing. Stop circling back every time business development feels uncomfortable.
Look both ways. Pick your path. Move with intention.
That is how you stop surviving in the road and start building the career you actually want.
For more information about coaching, training, Rainmaker Roundtables, and the BE THAT LAWYER™ Community, visit BeThatLawyer.com. To talk with me directly, email [email protected].
Steve Fretzin is a five-time bestselling author, host of the BE THAT LAWYER and Future Rainmakers podcasts, and a business development coach who works exclusively with attorneys. For more than 18 years, he has helped lawyers build strong books of business without selling, pitching, or chasing, using his proven Sales-Free Selling™ approach. His clients consistently become top rainmakers and credit his coaching and systems for driving meaningful, measurable growth. Steve can be reached directly at [email protected], or through his website at www.bethatlawyer.com. Connect with him on LinkedIn at https://www.linkedin.com/in/stevefretzin. His ALL NEW BE THAT LAWYER Community is changing how lawyers develop the skills never taught in law school. Learn more at www.bethatlawyer.com/community.
