As I’ve progressed down the road in opening my practice, my attitude towards getting clients has fluctuated. Before I hung out my virtual shingle, I figured that I would focus on getting pro bono clients for the first couple of months and build through word of mouth. Once I put up the website, I think I subconsciously expected it to magically draw in people, so naturally I was hurt when the emails and phone calls didn’t immediately start flowing in.
Now, a couple of weeks in, my internet presence has led to a tiny trickle of calls and I’m finding my problem regarding clients is doing the sales side of being an attorney. I’m too used to being a legal aid lawyer and giving it away. For example, I’ve been talking to a very nice woman with a credit card judgment against her. I can’t imagine charging her to look at her papers and tell her, yes, this is a legitimate garnishment order, not a debt collection ploy.
And once I get around to asking prospective clients for money, setting my rates will be tough. I know, as I’ve been told multiple times by seasoned practitioners, “charge what you’re worth.” And I also know there’s the reverse psychology concept whereby, if you’re charging too little, people will assume you’re not any good because if you were, you’d charge more. But I have a hard time charging for something, such as a voice in the legal system, that I think people have a right to have. Still, since necessity is the mother of something or the other, I suspect that as my monthly expenses accumulate, it will become easier to appreciate the monetary value of my services.
