Take a look at our November member bulletin!
NOVEMBER 2025
MEMBER BULLETIN
TAKE SOME TIME OFF It’s November, which means holidays, family, pie... and the annual reminder that no matter how much we all love the work we do, no one is meant to run full speed forever. At How To Manage, we take the whole week off for Thanksgiving. And we require our team to also take an additional week off sometime during the year. By the way, we’ve had an unlimited PTO policy for a while. But we found that we had to require this additional time off because people wouldn’t take it for themselves. And then they’d burn out.
And we would say, “But you have unlimited paid time off...”
So, we figured out that we had to literally just require it.
As a happy bonus, our fearless HR director, Candice, said this policy has helped us attract even more ‘A’ players to the team since we implemented it 3 years ago.
So, I asked her to chime in this month about it:
Candice: High performers usually know that time off is important, but they generally don’t love to take it. They don’t build it into their schedule and make sure they’re resting, recovering, and doing what they enjoy outside of work. And that’s a great recipe for burnout.
So, we mandated it.
But we wanted to be really careful about how we implemented this policy, to protect our team and the company, so we required team members to request the time off six months in advance, and make a plan so the work still gets done. And department heads check in with their team members if they haven’t scheduled that time off to make sure that it happens. We also have a very intentional recruitment process at HTM to find those A-players who would thrive here and who are in alignment with the company’s mission, vision, and values. Unlimited PTO is a strong selling point because life doesn’t schedule itself around business hours. People have families, health issues, bucket lists, kids who suddenly get sick, parents who need help, and passions outside of work. We support that and take a flexible approach so we’re helping our people lead the lives they dream of.
As a reminder, we always appreciate your referrals. Please ask anyone you care about to go here to learn more.
When someone is working nonstop, it changes their demeanor. They’re tired in meetings, forgetful, and the ball can get dropped. We all need a brain break. We all need time dedicated to ourselves. And that has a direct correlation with work performance. At HTM, there’s less burnout than at other companies I’ve been at, where it was a common reason for people to leave. Our PTO policy and requirements really keep the team energized, refreshed, and showing up their best. Of course, if you want to implement new PTO policies in your firm, make sure you include clearly defined, written expectations in your handbook. Know what policy you want, and speak with your employment attorney so you’re in compliance with your state’s laws. Create a people-centered policy that prioritizes time to face the unexpected in life, explore passions, get a mental break, and enjoy family time.
RJon: The point is: your people have lives outside of work. You should also have a life outside of work.
Rest is not just “nice to have”, it’s necessary . So if you or your people are having a hard time scheduling it for yourselves, do something different. Don’t risk burnout.
Enjoy your families, enjoy some pie, and carve out time to enjoy your life too.
–RJon
90-DAY LOOK BACK
We’re Kate Speed and Amy Smith of Lambariello Smith & Speed, an estate and trust planning and administration firm in New Jersey. We protect what people value most during life and after death. Our journey at How To Manage A Small Law Firm started two years ago, after we bought our practice when one partner passed away and another left to start their own firm. As new business owners, we were at a crossroads and didn’t know what to do. Since joining, we’ve achieved a financial milestone. In 2024, we ended the year breaking $1 million in gross revenue, and as of July this year, we’ve already hit that number again. We’re now able to hire the right attorneys who bring years of experience.
We’ve always wanted to buy the building we are currently leasing, and with the revenue and team in the office now, we are one step closer to making that a reality. Amy has more time to pursue her certification as a certified elder law attorney. She hopes to spend more quality time with her family, and she can leave the office earlier. Kate wants to move into a new home in the next year or so, and the predictable revenue at the firm is making the search more concrete. As we move forward, we’re going for $2 million this year so we can do more for our clients, provide more stability to our team, and continue to create that balance that lets us enjoy the success we’ve worked so hard for.
–Kate Speed and Amy Smith, Lambariello Smith & Speed
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MEMBERS PAYING IT FORWARD Meet Josephia Rouse
One of the toughest parts of being a law firm owner has been the tug-o-war between “what I’m supposed to do” and “how to do it.” I think a lot of us live in that gap. We know we should be saving, paying ourselves, planning, tracking things… but the “how” feels like a moving target. Before I could get serious about my financials, I had to get really honest with myself that I didn’t actually know my numbers.
I think as lawyers we can really beat ourselves up about not knowing things. Because that’s literally what we do all day: We analyze, and predict, and we inform our clients about their reality. And how can we give advice to our clients about reality, when we don’t really know our own? It just hurts. I joined How To Manage about 5 years ago. And I made a commitment to myself to start looking at my financials. I read Profit First for Lawyers. I started thinking about my financials the same way I think about the dashboard in my car: When a tire light pops on, you don’t panic, you look at the gauge. You see which tire is low on air, how low, whether it’s getting worse, and whether you need air or a new tire. You don’t wait until you’re driving on the highway with the rim sparking.
I hired smart financial professionals and built a dashboard that gives me the same clarity on the financial health of my law firm.
Now I have daily “gauges” I look at. And I want to be clear that I couldn’t have done it without a 40-hour per week bookkeeper. Because I’m not doing it, I’m directing the work that needs to be done. I’m managing what I expect, and looking at the numbers that matter so I can make better decisions. Having real financial controls has changed my life. My firm is more profitable. I was able to buy a house! I’m tackling my student loans. I’m consistently paying myself a salary. And look, I’m not telling this story like I magically woke up one day loving spreadsheets. I did not come into this world somehow “wired” for numbers. I have resources. And I was able to invest those resources into building a system that gives me the right information so I can make informed decisions. If you haven’t set up your financial dashboard yet; if you haven’t hired competent financial experts; it is so worth it. Do yourself a favor and make it a priority.
–Josephia Rouse
WHAT’S NEW WITH ME AND MY OWN How Emily Learned to Chase What She Really Wanted Emily Britton on my team recently bought a house, and I could not be more excited for her. Coming from someone who freely admits that personal goals used to be the last thing on her list, this was a huge moment. For years she was “the job.” She had no problem pursuing professional goals, but when it came to her personal life, she’d catch herself saying, “someday.”
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She said it was a bit of a culture shock when she came to work at How To Manage, because we don’t do “someday” dreams, and we pushed her pretty hard to figure out what being “personally successful” would look like. Emily said she couldn’t point to one single moment at HTM that changed her, because it wasn’t one moment. It was being surrounded by the same message, every day, for years: profit (where both parties give up something they value less in order to gain something they value more) is normal here. Wanting things is not shameful. Going after them is expected. Not giving up is the default setting.
So, now we get to the house.
She wasn’t looking. She wasn’t “in the market.” She wasn’t “ready.” She was driving by on a Saturday, saw a quirky mid- century house by architect Al Beadle, walked in out of curiosity, and immediately couldn’t think about anything else.
Someone else put in an offer before she could do it. A more “reasonable” person would’ve let it go.
Emily didn’t.
She kept emailing, for about 8 months, while her daughter kept cheering her on not to stop. They pursued it long after most people would’ve moved on. It made no practical sense. But she said she couldn’t give it up because it felt right in her bones. And now, she and her daughter are living in that house. Waking up in it every morning, blue floors and all.
And one of my favorite parts? Hearing about how her daughter has been affected. Emily says she “lives audaciously, like the world is her oyster, and nothing is too big. She decides what she wants and fully expects the world to rearrange itself accordingly.” (Emily laughs about it, but you can hear the pride.)
I’m not sharing this with you so you’ll go buy a new house (unless that’s the thing you’ve been dreaming of).
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NOVEMBER 2025 MEMBER BULLETIN
I’m telling you to notice where you’re still playing small in your personal life while trying to play big in your business. They’re connected. You can’t show up half-alive in one area and expect to be audacious in another.
So, as you move through the rest of this year, ask yourself: What are you pretending you’ll get around to “someday”?
And what might happen if you stopped waiting?
SUBSTANTIVE TIP/TOOL OF THE MONTH Pick Up the Phone
After the last Live Quarterly Meeting, I asked if I could contribute something to this month’s newsletter because it was obvious to me that a lot of members aren’t regularly doing G.A.S. calls. And you should. So, let’s talk about them. For anyone new to the bubble, G.A.S. stands for Give A Shit. And it’s exactly what it sounds like: you pick up the phone, call someone who already knows your firm in some way, and show them you care about them; former clients, PNCs who ghosted you after a consult, PNCs who never showed up for their consult, etc. For example, I had a member this year who was sliding into a cash crunch. She was afraid to make the calls, even with the script we recommend (you can find it in the resource library, by the way. I’ve also got a QR code below for ease of access to that). She told me it felt awkward, like people would be annoyed, or she’d look desperate, or nothing would come of it.
I encouraged her to do it anyway.
Two weeks later, she’d found $21,000 just sitting there in plain sight. Not from running ads. Not from some shiny new marketing idea. Just from picking up the phone and asking people how they were doing. And her story isn’t unique! If you’ve never been to a G.A.S. Call Workshop, ask about it in the Facebook group. I guarantee you, you’ll hear story after story like the one I just told. People like to do business with people. If you show your former clients and PNCs that you genuinely care about them, it will lead to more business for you. I’ve never seen this not work when it’s taken seriously. And I know it can feel scary. I understand how the phone can suddenly feel like it weighs 1,000 pounds when you’re staring at a list of former clients or PNCs that didn’t convert. “What’s this person going to say? Were they upset with us? Did they have a bad experience? Are they going to yell?” And you know what? Sometimes a person is upset; sometimes they did have a bad experience. That’s actually a great G.A.S. call, when you think about it, because now you can investigate and see if you have a process problem that could be fixed. But the vast majority of the time, people are going to be happy to hear from you. Who honestly is going to be upset to hear that you give a shit about their well-being? That would be highly unusual.
The point is, G.A.S. calls work. And if you’re still hesitating because, “James, I don’t know what to say,” then seriously, login to the resource library and download the script. We’ve been using the same one for years and years, and it just plain works.
Now go carve out some time in your schedule this week to make some calls, and show people you care.
–James Tsikerdanos (aka; James T-Sales-a-saurus)
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INSIDE 1. The Gift of Time Off 2. What Happens When You Build a Team You Trust 3. Is Your Tire Pressure Low? 4. Emily’s New House 5. Let’s Talk About G.A.S. 6. Calendar of Events
CALENDAR OF EVENTS 11/24–11/28 HTM Closed for Thanksgiving 12/8–12/9
EOY Budget Review (Hint, hint. If you don’t have yours scheduled yet, get on it.)
12/11–12/12
Iron Sharpens Iron
12/17
All Hands on Deck (Internal)
12/17–12/18 AI Think Tank 01/16–01/18/26 Live Quarterly Meeting (San Diego, CA) 01/26–02/12/26 “How To Start a Law Firm” Livestream (Mon-Sat at 4p EST)
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