If you need help, don’t have an attitude
I am always amazed how people who feel that they have some sense of entitlement or feel that they have a strong case or feel that you have DUTY and RESPONSIBILITY to help them tend to communicate these feelings in an aggressive manner.
In other words, I’m always amazed by people who are asking for help will get an ‘attitude’ when you don’t jump up and pay attention.
I know these words may seem over simplified and PLEASE don’t think that I am trying to insult ANYONE’s intelligence. However, you have to keep things in their proper perspective. When you are trying to ask someone to help you with a matter or situation that needs to be resolved, the last thing you want to do is walk into their office or their space and ACT like they need to ‘buck up and step right’!
Some of you may still be confused about what I am talking when I’m saying these things. Let me take it a step further. Anytime you are dealing with people who are providing professional services, you have to remember that they are professionals and they are offering to provide a service.
Remember, this is just an OFFER! They don’t HAVE to serve you. It really doesn’t help your situation or your case to walk around with your lip poked out or your chest poked out think that you are entitled to receive a certain amount of treatment or service just because YOU demand it.
Now, don’t get all bent of shape. I’m not saying that if you have a great case that you should be humble or that you should be shy. What I am saying is that you gotta be careful going into a meeting or discussion with a professional (like a doctor, mechanic, or attorney) and have this chip on your shoulder.
And for those of you who still may not understand why some professionals may not like to deal with an attitude, here are a few other things to consider:
1) If you got attitude now and you are ASKING for help, what makes you think you want have MORE attitude later. Think about it. Here you are asking for help and you got ALLLLLL kind of mouth! When you step to someone like that, there is no reason to believe it won’t get worse.
2) Life is filled with stress already so why should YOU add to it? I work with people all the time who are devastated by their financial situation. So I understand how stressful life can be. In all instances, I reiterate to people that I am THERE for them so they understand that I am a part of the solution and not the problem. However, some professionals have a lot of stress to deal with it and if YOU are going to add to that stress, then why should they bother?
3) You MIGHT be a NIGHTMARE! Sometimes, when you complain a lot or have an attitude about everything, this sends a HUGE message to the professional that you may have some unrealistic expectations about what you expect to have happen. As a result, this may be a problem because if you have it in your mind of what YOU expect to have happen (despite what is being told to you), you may make things more difficult for those who are trying to help you.
4) Just because I have a suit on doesn’t mean I am SOFT! Sometimes, we get into these positions where we believe that individuals who provide us services are weak. As a result, we feel the need to exert our influence on them to let them know that we will not be denied. However, don’t EVER think in your mind that just because someone is polite and articulate and has a suit that they can’t get JIGGY!! I knew an attorney who cussed someone out who was repeatedly rude to her despite her best efforts. After several visits, she clicked and he learned very fast that she was much more aggressive than he thought she was.
Now, I am not going to sit around here and act like I have never had an attitude about something. I have walked around with the hoochie and gotten live with people on more occasions than I probably should have. However, after almost 8 years of practicing law, I realize that you really get more out of people when you are kind as opposed to kinding being rude. Remember, if you don’t want anyone coming at you with attitude, what makes you think that they want attitude?
How does this RETAINER thing work?
I can’t tell you the amount of times people look at me with a weird look in their eye when I inform them about a retainer for my services. I have a feeling that most people are educated about how an attorney gets paid through TV ads that usually see “We don’t get paid a dime unless we win the case for you!”
Those cases (Where they don’t get paid a dime unless they win the case) are called contingency fee cases. However, a great deal of cases are paid on a retainer fee arrangement.
Here’s how RETAINERS work. When you have a legal problem (like a criminal law, tax law, family law, corporate law, or intellectual property to name a few) that needs to be addressed, some attorneys will not take the case unless you pay them a retainer upfront. The retainer is usually the attorney’s hourly rate times the number of hours the attorney anticipates that they will need to satisfy their desired goal. It’s important to understand that the more complicated the case, the more hours it will probably take, and the more expensive it will be.
If the case is in court, it can become more expensive because the attorney will have to file motions, appear in court, make arguments (both oral and written), conduct discovery, attend / prepare for mediation, and go to court.
Here’s a few things that you, also, need to be aware:
1) When the attorney is working on YOUR case, they are not working on anyone else’s. Keep in mind. If they are preparing a brief or arguments, they are WORKING on your case, so it’s important that they have funds to draw from regarding your account.
2) Some attorneys won’t go for the payment plan. Sometimes, people don’t understand how much time and effort that goes into working on someone’s case. An attorney can rack up alot of hours very fast on a case. And let’s be real. If you know you owe your attorney a $1000 but you need to keep the lights on, guess where your $1000 is going to go???
3) It’s never personal. It’s always business. I’ve known many firms who have either stopped or withdrawn from cases where the client either hasn’t paid in a while or just stopped paying. Some people think that an attorney is bound to stay in a case even if they are not paying. Most State Bars will not let an attorney get out of a case if it is to the detriment of the client. However, if there is enough time, they will allow them to withdraw if necessary. In addition, some retainer agreements have liens that can placed on your property. The attorney wants to make sure they get paid.
Just remember this, if you have a situation that requires the use of an attorney, just be prepared to pay a few thousand dollars if it’s not a case that can be paid through contingency. This way you won’t have the “OOOOOO” or “AAAAAAAAA” look on your face when they slap that RETAINER hammer on you!
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