#176 - How to Build a Successful Business in a Hyper-Competitive Industry with Michael McCready

1
00:00:00,014 --> 00:00:05,306
You have to have that fire and you have to really have a passion for what you're doing.

2
00:00:05,306 --> 00:00:08,952
And if you do, there is no mountaintop, you never stop.

3
00:00:11,183 --> 00:00:13,323
Today's guest is Michael McCready.

4
00:00:13,323 --> 00:00:16,823
He's the founder and managing partner of McCready Law.

5
00:00:16,823 --> 00:00:24,523
It's a personal injury firm he started in 1999 and has grown into a multi-state practice
with offices in Chicago, Indianapolis, St.

6
00:00:24,523 --> 00:00:27,323
Louis, and Minneapolis, and now beyond.

7
00:00:27,603 --> 00:00:37,479
Michael spent more than 25 years building his firm from the ground up, making decisions
about client care, talent, risk, technology, and firm growth along the way.

8
00:00:37,635 --> 00:00:47,024
He also speaks and consults on law firm management and how technologies like automation
and AI are reshaping legal practice, no doubt, because it's reshaping the world.

9
00:00:47,024 --> 00:00:55,572
I'm looking forward today to digging in to the real trade office he's faced as a founder
operator, not just the legal work, but what lessons those experiences hold for

10
00:00:55,572 --> 00:00:56,412
entrepreneurs.

11
00:00:56,412 --> 00:00:59,765
So, Michael, welcome to Necessary Entrepreneur.

12
00:00:59,865 --> 00:01:01,229
Yeah, thanks for having me, Mark.

13
00:01:01,229 --> 00:01:03,253
Looking forward to having a chat with you.

14
00:01:03,951 --> 00:01:14,718
So this journey, and we spoke a little bit off camera, this journey in 1999, a lot of
people talk about there's this idea that it's important to have one and five and 10 year

15
00:01:14,718 --> 00:01:15,279
plans.

16
00:01:15,279 --> 00:01:22,593
And then also there's some really successful people that say, no, I just have my plans and
my goals written down for the next three to 12 months.

17
00:01:22,593 --> 00:01:28,567
In 1999, when you started this business, was it built with this big plan in mind where
you're at now?

18
00:01:29,249 --> 00:01:30,179
No, no way.

19
00:01:30,179 --> 00:01:34,019
ah When I left, uh I was a partner at a firm.

20
00:01:34,019 --> 00:01:36,122
I was always gonna start my own firm.

21
00:01:36,122 --> 00:01:40,014
uh And at that time, I wasn't married, I didn't have any kids.

22
00:01:40,014 --> 00:01:45,656
And I said, if I'm ever gonna try this on my own, I better do it now when I don't have
responsibilities.

23
00:01:45,656 --> 00:01:48,067
And so ah it was just me.

24
00:01:48,067 --> 00:01:50,928
ah And this is before cell phones.

25
00:01:50,928 --> 00:01:56,190
So, you know, I was there picking up the phone from eight in the morning until eight at
night.

26
00:01:56,190 --> 00:01:58,191
And it didn't ring very much.

27
00:01:58,365 --> 00:02:03,007
But that gave me a lot of time to start thinking and planning and growing the firm.

28
00:02:03,663 --> 00:02:07,903
What are all the things you had to do to get the phone to ring in 1999?

29
00:02:07,903 --> 00:02:13,327
So the question will be to ask that, do you think it's any different from 2026 now too?

30
00:02:13,327 --> 00:02:23,367
completely different, but you know back then I had more time than money and I made sure
that I built relationships.

31
00:02:23,787 --> 00:02:32,287
I answered all the phones, I talked to all the people who called and you have to
understand is that not everybody who calls a lawyer has got a case.

32
00:02:32,427 --> 00:02:38,471
In fact even today we only accept about 30 % of the calls that come in.

33
00:02:38,592 --> 00:02:40,943
But back then, you know, I talked to everyone.

34
00:02:40,943 --> 00:02:43,881
I would make sure that I got their contact information.

35
00:02:43,881 --> 00:02:45,485
They went on a mailing list.

36
00:02:45,485 --> 00:02:48,139
This is, know, really before email was popular.

37
00:02:48,139 --> 00:02:50,093
I'm not dating myself here, am I?

38
00:02:50,093 --> 00:02:51,183
ah

39
00:02:51,183 --> 00:02:53,268
1999 we said it yeah

40
00:02:53,503 --> 00:02:58,126
I should say most people didn't have email and it's before smartphones.

41
00:02:58,126 --> 00:03:10,134
So, you know, it literally started with a mailing list and I would send out mailers and
those five or 10 minutes that I talked to someone declining their case, you know, I

42
00:03:10,134 --> 00:03:18,671
tracked it and they would come back a year, two years, five years later because they would
have remembered and I kept in touch with them.

43
00:03:18,671 --> 00:03:30,231
And I think that's one of the important lessons in any kind of business is that even
though it may not be a customer today, it may be a customer in the future, or they may

44
00:03:30,231 --> 00:03:38,191
refer somebody and treat every single person that comes in contact with your business as a
potential customer.

45
00:03:40,047 --> 00:03:48,221
So you're making the argument that even the 70 % of the people that you didn't take their
case right then, that it's just as important to treat them almost exactly the same, if not

46
00:03:48,221 --> 00:03:51,307
exactly the same, as the 30 % that you do take.

47
00:03:51,439 --> 00:03:52,219
Absolutely.

48
00:03:52,219 --> 00:03:59,519
And in fact, you know, where my firm is now, we have a whole intake department and that
intake department are not lawyers.

49
00:03:59,519 --> 00:04:07,119
And I'll tell you why is because lawyers are not necessarily the best, you know,
empathetic people on the phone.

50
00:04:07,119 --> 00:04:10,639
You know, a lawyer, oh, you know, I was in a car accident yesterday.

51
00:04:10,639 --> 00:04:11,259
Okay.

52
00:04:11,259 --> 00:04:12,919
When can you come in?

53
00:04:13,039 --> 00:04:15,639
but, but, but, but my cell phone was broken.

54
00:04:15,639 --> 00:04:18,627
Well, you know, we, we don't want to listen to that.

55
00:04:18,627 --> 00:04:27,751
We just want to cut to the chase, whereas my intake team, you know, they're trained to
talk to people and to empathize with people and understand that they're going through a

56
00:04:27,751 --> 00:04:29,962
difficult time in life and whatever it is.

57
00:04:29,962 --> 00:04:43,737
And even if it isn't a case that we would accept or it's outside of the practice area that
we have, they take the time and they explain to them why they're declining the case.

58
00:04:43,737 --> 00:04:46,078
And, you know, and people appreciate that.

59
00:04:46,078 --> 00:04:47,699
um And then,

60
00:04:48,237 --> 00:04:53,479
you know, now we remarket to everyone because electronic is very easy to remarket.

61
00:04:53,479 --> 00:05:00,397
So we get everybody's email, we get cell phones, we have people download our contact card
onto their cell phones.

62
00:05:00,497 --> 00:05:10,006
And so those things that I did 26 years ago, we're still doing, but just doing them in an
updated manner.

63
00:05:10,006 --> 00:05:17,011
And uh once again, you know, we decline a case, but they come back, you know, a year later
or they refer someone.

64
00:05:17,571 --> 00:05:26,555
Do you have a, I'm assuming there's a, it's multiple sheets, but in my mind, if Warren
Buffett said he likes to buy businesses on one sheet of paper, I'm assuming there could be

65
00:05:26,555 --> 00:05:30,857
a one sheet of paper evaluation when somebody calls about a case.

66
00:05:31,037 --> 00:05:36,299
Is that how you decide like, is this thing viable or not, or something that we want to
take?

67
00:05:36,321 --> 00:05:42,096
Yeah, I mean, for each, you know, each different type of case, we have our screening
criteria.

68
00:05:42,096 --> 00:05:53,445
And, you know, for example, you don't need a lawyer's advice to know that if somebody gets
rear-ended on the freeway and goes to the emergency room, that it's a case that we want.

69
00:05:53,445 --> 00:05:54,006
Okay.

70
00:05:54,006 --> 00:05:57,068
You don't need a, you know, a lawyer to evaluate that.

71
00:05:57,068 --> 00:06:03,994
So, and then likewise, you don't need a lawyer to evaluate, you know, I tripped over my
own feet in my house.

72
00:06:03,994 --> 00:06:05,219
Can I sue someone?

73
00:06:05,219 --> 00:06:06,760
Well, no, you can't.

74
00:06:06,760 --> 00:06:15,964
I mean, we get those calls and we appreciate that people call and we don't, it's easy to
giggle at them, but we make them feel, you know, we're so sorry that happened, but

75
00:06:15,964 --> 00:06:19,025
unfortunately we need to blame someone else.

76
00:06:19,046 --> 00:06:21,086
And in this situation, we can't.

77
00:06:21,086 --> 00:06:24,178
ah But so those are the easy ones.

78
00:06:24,178 --> 00:06:31,352
if uh there's a question that doesn't quite fit our criteria, our lawyers are always
available.

79
00:06:31,352 --> 00:06:38,703
to consult and uh so yes absolutely we've got screening criteria and a one page intake
form that we use.

80
00:06:39,063 --> 00:06:44,827
you mentioned that attorneys may not be, and what goes through my head is bedside manner
as a physician, right?

81
00:06:44,827 --> 00:06:45,928
Absolutely.

82
00:06:45,928 --> 00:06:48,630
They may not be the most empathetic to the situation.

83
00:06:48,630 --> 00:06:56,016
What makes a good, since we're not here interviewing people and you know, but what makes a
really good attorney?

84
00:06:56,016 --> 00:06:57,147
Is it a cross-off?

85
00:06:57,147 --> 00:06:58,558
Cause I have some that are friends.

86
00:06:58,558 --> 00:07:05,793
it, should I ask specifically what makes a good attorney and personal injury or does that
carry over to other aspects of being attorney as well?

87
00:07:05,793 --> 00:07:08,084
No, I think it carries over to other aspects.

88
00:07:08,084 --> 00:07:12,537
So um first, you need to know what you're talking about, right?

89
00:07:12,537 --> 00:07:16,409
Just because you went to law school doesn't mean that you're gonna be a good attorney.

90
00:07:16,409 --> 00:07:23,033
That takes a lot of time and experience and mentorship to learn your craft, to learn your
profession.

91
00:07:23,033 --> 00:07:24,253
So that's one skill.

92
00:07:24,253 --> 00:07:30,156
The other skill that's just as important is how you deal with clients.

93
00:07:30,277 --> 00:07:34,391
I've known some brilliant lawyers that were terrible with clients.

94
00:07:34,391 --> 00:07:40,535
And I've known some people who were terrible lawyers, but they were really good with
clients.

95
00:07:40,535 --> 00:07:45,629
They're two entirely different skills and, you know, different people want different
things.

96
00:07:45,629 --> 00:07:49,221
Different people want their handheld and want to be babied.

97
00:07:49,221 --> 00:07:51,282
Other people say, just take care of business.

98
00:07:51,282 --> 00:07:53,204
I want the best lawyer I can get.

99
00:07:53,204 --> 00:08:04,541
And I think that, you know, the middle ground is being a good lawyer, but also being good
with clients is probably the best way to be successful in uh the profession of law.

100
00:08:04,621 --> 00:08:06,552
Are you good at identifying those folks?

101
00:08:06,552 --> 00:08:11,736
Cause what even the most elite people in the world say the most challenging thing to do is
hiring folks.

102
00:08:12,197 --> 00:08:17,281
And so how good are you at seeing someone that has both of those?

103
00:08:17,281 --> 00:08:18,462
Is it evident?

104
00:08:18,767 --> 00:08:28,975
um You know, I used to go by my gut and my gut was pretty good, but you know, over the
last 10 years or so, and as we've expanded, we've gotten into, we do a lot more

105
00:08:28,975 --> 00:08:37,502
personality assessments and uh just things to make sure anybody can ace an interview,
right?

106
00:08:37,522 --> 00:08:43,587
But we really want to get beneath the skin to make sure that this is someone that's going
to fit in with our culture.

107
00:08:43,587 --> 00:08:48,010
um Culture at our firm is the most important thing.

108
00:08:48,463 --> 00:08:56,463
And it can be a great, great lawyer or a wonderful person, but they just might fit in our
culture.

109
00:08:56,463 --> 00:08:59,463
And that's not fair to them and it's not fair to us.

110
00:08:59,463 --> 00:09:02,383
So we spend a lot of time in the hiring process.

111
00:09:02,383 --> 00:09:16,087
But to your point, we wanna make sure that we get the best people for our firm because a
bad hire, you've read the books, a bad hire costs you so much more.

112
00:09:16,087 --> 00:09:20,703
than spending money and the time to make sure that you get the right hire the first time.

113
00:09:20,973 --> 00:09:21,283
Yeah.

114
00:09:21,283 --> 00:09:24,086
I mean, if we've been in business long enough, we've all seen it.

115
00:09:24,086 --> 00:09:33,937
And we know, I know when we hire folks, um, we just must not have been good at the metrics
or didn't really truly know how to identify, you know, their attitude and their aptitude

116
00:09:33,937 --> 00:09:36,780
combined with the culture, because it's devastating.

117
00:09:36,780 --> 00:09:41,284
really is to an organization, especially somebody that's in an influential position.

118
00:09:41,425 --> 00:09:43,807
It can be devastating to the culture.

119
00:09:43,983 --> 00:09:51,368
Yeah, and then, you know, we hire the right people, know, retaining them is just as
important.

120
00:09:51,368 --> 00:09:56,571
You know, the best people, you know, whether they're lawyers or paralegals are in high
demand.

121
00:09:56,572 --> 00:10:04,357
And it's not, you know, not uh below other law firms to, you know, snatch one of your best
lawyers.

122
00:10:04,357 --> 00:10:12,679
So once we hire people, we invest so much money in them, you know, we do a lot to try to
maintain and keep them there.

123
00:10:12,679 --> 00:10:17,493
and differentiate ourselves and make sure that they don't want to leave, right?

124
00:10:17,493 --> 00:10:21,086
Don't give them a reason to want to go somewhere else.

125
00:10:21,086 --> 00:10:25,110
So yes, you know, paying people competitively certainly helps.

126
00:10:25,110 --> 00:10:29,523
You can't pay your best people below market rate, but it's beyond that.

127
00:10:29,523 --> 00:10:36,559
And that's where the culture comes in and all these little things that you do to recognize
everyone on your team.

128
00:10:36,579 --> 00:10:41,201
You know, they may sound silly, but firm events, you know, these things really do matter.

129
00:10:41,201 --> 00:10:53,087
Recognition and, hey, today is so-and-so's four-year anniversary with the firm or, you
know, all these little things make it a place that people want to work and want to work

130
00:10:53,087 --> 00:10:54,047
together.

131
00:10:55,021 --> 00:11:00,139
Did you learn all that from operating and growing your firm or is that stuff written in
books that you remembered?

132
00:11:00,655 --> 00:11:01,696
A little bit of both.

133
00:11:01,696 --> 00:11:03,437
uh I'm a voracious reader.

134
00:11:03,437 --> 00:11:14,346
uh I love coming on podcasts like this where I'm talking to non-lawyers uh because so much
of what I do is from business books that I've read.

135
00:11:14,346 --> 00:11:16,915
Doesn't matter what your business is.

136
00:11:16,915 --> 00:11:19,480
I am in the service business.

137
00:11:19,480 --> 00:11:26,219
Now my services happen to be legal services, but we treat my law firm like a customer
service business.

138
00:11:26,219 --> 00:11:28,220
And our clients are our customers.

139
00:11:28,220 --> 00:11:31,321
And so what do you do to treat your customers well?

140
00:11:31,501 --> 00:11:38,763
So yeah, a lot of reading, a lot of mistakes, a lot of learning over the years.

141
00:11:38,763 --> 00:11:49,987
mean, you take your lumps over 26 years, but I like to think that I've synthesized enough
that the results are really coming to bear.

142
00:11:51,375 --> 00:11:52,155
What do you think?

143
00:11:52,155 --> 00:11:57,498
think back here in the story, you say 26 years to you, I'm assuming it went by just like
that.

144
00:11:57,498 --> 00:11:58,338
Yeah.

145
00:11:58,338 --> 00:11:58,718
Right.

146
00:11:58,718 --> 00:12:03,740
But if we, if we say 26 years, it feels like that's a long time.

147
00:12:04,020 --> 00:12:13,234
And what I hate to see in businesses so often, like hate, don't use the word a lot, but I
do is, you know, somebody like you will spend all this year, all these years and all these

148
00:12:13,234 --> 00:12:20,987
decades building organization, building your business, gaining the insight, the knowledge,
the understanding, the entrepreneurial feel.

149
00:12:21,133 --> 00:12:24,254
And then we retire or then we die.

150
00:12:24,254 --> 00:12:25,684
Where's it go?

151
00:12:25,844 --> 00:12:36,888
So not necessarily what's the plan for retirement and selling firms and all that, but I'm
more interested in personally, like how do we leave this level of intelligence behind so

152
00:12:36,888 --> 00:12:44,050
that people don't have to spend the time going up the ladder of intelligence and building
their business knowledge so we could start them on some rungs higher?

153
00:12:44,050 --> 00:12:46,201
Have you found a way to do that in business?

154
00:12:46,201 --> 00:12:47,741
Is your mind even on that?

155
00:12:47,917 --> 00:12:49,168
Yeah, no, absolutely.

156
00:12:49,168 --> 00:13:01,565
um So my mind has evolved over the last year, but let me tell you where I was before that
is, um you know, my job now is to train leaders in my firm.

157
00:13:01,565 --> 00:13:14,472
You we've got 160 team members um and my job is to train the managers and the supervisors
because I personally can't supervise, you know, and we've got 20 attorneys, can't do it.

158
00:13:14,472 --> 00:13:15,363
And so...

159
00:13:15,363 --> 00:13:25,586
you know, a CEO, and that's what I consider myself, their main function is to be able to
delegate to the people that are below them to run the company with their oversight and

160
00:13:25,586 --> 00:13:26,266
vision.

161
00:13:26,266 --> 00:13:28,617
Now, that's the way that I've done it historically.

162
00:13:28,617 --> 00:13:31,908
What's changing is AI, okay?

163
00:13:31,908 --> 00:13:36,169
And my firm is really at the forefront of using AI.

164
00:13:36,169 --> 00:13:44,737
And get ready for this, is that all of our institutional knowledge in the law firm is in
our own private LLM.

165
00:13:44,737 --> 00:13:47,769
Okay, so think like a private chat GPT.

166
00:13:47,769 --> 00:13:59,087
And we can access that and ask questions, and you can ask questions of the LLM, what would
Michael do when faced with such and such a situation?

167
00:13:59,087 --> 00:14:08,004
Okay, and I just finished a book, it's at the publisher now, but that's in there with the
LLM.

168
00:14:08,004 --> 00:14:12,815
So, you my HR team, if they're faced with an issue, can type in,

169
00:14:12,815 --> 00:14:17,735
You know, we're having trouble with an employee that does X, Y, and Z.

170
00:14:17,735 --> 00:14:20,535
You know, how would Michael want us to handle that?

171
00:14:20,535 --> 00:14:38,775
And I mean, it's a fascinating idea is that, you know, my business philosophy and, you
know, my 26, 27 years of experience can be distilled and put into an AI environment and

172
00:14:38,775 --> 00:14:40,215
live beyond me.

173
00:14:40,215 --> 00:14:41,365
So, you know,

174
00:14:41,365 --> 00:14:47,347
It's kind of creepy to think, but that's going to be a big part of where my firm goes.

175
00:14:47,347 --> 00:14:53,759
And I'll always have some kind of influence over it, even if I'm not personally involved.

176
00:14:54,273 --> 00:14:54,906
wild.

177
00:14:54,906 --> 00:15:01,039
That's funny that that that's the answer to the question now that three years ago that
wouldn't have been the answer.

178
00:15:01,039 --> 00:15:03,200
Right, right, exactly, exactly.

179
00:15:03,200 --> 00:15:16,644
So, you know, and we've built out, you know, training modules and, you know, anything that
we can do to sustain what we've built um because, you know, as you grow, you need to make

180
00:15:16,644 --> 00:15:24,086
sure you've got a good foundation, but uh you need to continue to work on that foundation
if you want to build a taller building.

181
00:15:24,106 --> 00:15:27,943
And uh each step that you take in your business,

182
00:15:27,943 --> 00:15:37,411
And this is why the tech field is so fascinating to me is because their timeframe is
months where it used to be years.

183
00:15:37,491 --> 00:15:49,061
And, and, to think about scaling a business that rapidly that, mean, it took me 26 years
to get where I'm at and they're growing billion dollar companies in 18 months.

184
00:15:49,151 --> 00:15:51,723
so it's, you know, it's fascinating to me.

185
00:15:51,961 --> 00:15:52,682
Where did you start?

186
00:15:52,682 --> 00:16:02,161
So your advice to an entrepreneur, if they say, wow, that's a brilliant idea of creating
our own LLM, because there's people using different formats and different functions of AI

187
00:16:02,161 --> 00:16:03,132
now, all these systems.

188
00:16:03,132 --> 00:16:07,987
But where did you start to create your own LLM, which is a large language model?

189
00:16:08,033 --> 00:16:08,673
Right, right.

190
00:16:08,673 --> 00:16:22,647
mean, listen, most people start with the available models right now, ChatGPT or Claude
Anthropic or Gemini, uh and really learn how to use those programs.

191
00:16:22,647 --> 00:16:30,329
So uh this is a little bit, I usually speak to lawyers, but when I was in law school, uh
you were taught the Boolean search.

192
00:16:30,329 --> 00:16:38,081
And a Boolean search would be, uh you know, snow within four words of ice, within four
words of slip.

193
00:16:38,081 --> 00:16:38,691
Okay.

194
00:16:38,691 --> 00:16:41,792
And computer would find everywhere in the cases.

195
00:16:41,792 --> 00:16:45,853
And if you were good at the Boolean search, you you could find your legal cases.

196
00:16:45,853 --> 00:16:48,124
That was, that was legal research.

197
00:16:48,124 --> 00:16:53,195
And then, and then Google came around and, that's natural language.

198
00:16:53,335 --> 00:16:56,816
I need such and such, or what is the best such and such.

199
00:16:56,816 --> 00:17:04,998
Now the difference is with Google, you know, Google gives you a website that is responsive
to your question.

200
00:17:04,998 --> 00:17:05,579
Okay.

201
00:17:05,579 --> 00:17:07,328
So when you do a Google search.

202
00:17:07,328 --> 00:17:09,869
It gives you a URL and it's pretty good.

203
00:17:09,869 --> 00:17:12,500
It usually gives you the answer that you need.

204
00:17:13,141 --> 00:17:20,224
With ChatGPT, it's different because it gives you the answer and it sources it from many
different sources.

205
00:17:20,364 --> 00:17:29,158
So learning how to craft a proper query in ChatGPT um is a very important skill today.

206
00:17:29,158 --> 00:17:35,571
And the better you are at crafting a query, the better your results are gonna be.

207
00:17:35,745 --> 00:17:44,123
And you go down this rabbit hole and you can really use, you know, chat GPT in every
aspect of your life.

208
00:17:44,123 --> 00:17:56,315
Once you're familiar with the way that that works, you know, expanding the technology and
understanding the capabilities becomes a lot easier to comprehend.

209
00:17:56,395 --> 00:18:00,387
You are not going to just all of a sudden build yourself an AI agent.

210
00:18:00,387 --> 00:18:03,140
You know, if you've got no experience, it's just not gonna happen.

211
00:18:03,140 --> 00:18:09,475
You're not gonna build your own internal LLM until you're comfortable with the
foundations.

212
00:18:09,475 --> 00:18:13,139
And it started with me as just, you know, I'm a tech nerd.

213
00:18:13,139 --> 00:18:14,620
I love everything tech.

214
00:18:14,620 --> 00:18:26,921
And a couple years ago, came across ChatGPT and I've been playing with it ever since and
really fine tuning it as a tool uh in every aspect of my life, personal and professional.

215
00:18:28,568 --> 00:18:37,485
Um, it is like having the best personal assistants that has access to all the information
in the entire world that you're comfortable letting them know everything about you.

216
00:18:37,485 --> 00:18:40,971
It's just this weird conglomeration of all this stuff.

217
00:18:41,615 --> 00:18:53,475
Yeah, no, I'm fascinated and I speak a lot on AI, both the application in the law, but
also in general and how you cannot ignore this.

218
00:18:53,475 --> 00:18:55,155
It is here.

219
00:18:55,395 --> 00:19:03,555
I tell lawyers is if you're not using AI today, you are already behind and you won't catch
up.

220
00:19:03,555 --> 00:19:09,195
The speed of adoption and the speed of use.

221
00:19:09,255 --> 00:19:11,138
is just astronomical.

222
00:19:11,138 --> 00:19:16,393
you've got in any business, you've got to understand the application that AI can bring.

223
00:19:16,399 --> 00:19:19,039
How's AI benefiting the average attorney?

224
00:19:19,039 --> 00:19:24,439
So attorney, the 20 attorneys at your firm, whether you're a firm or not, how's it
benefiting the practice of law?

225
00:19:24,835 --> 00:19:27,656
Well, I mean, we use it constantly.

226
00:19:27,656 --> 00:19:31,647
So for example, my practice is a personal injury practice.

227
00:19:31,647 --> 00:19:43,730
So we get a lot of records, a lot of depositions, and AI is really good with uh
comprehending large amounts of information.

228
00:19:43,730 --> 00:19:53,303
And then when we ask questions based on that information, for example, what is the
insurance adjuster

229
00:19:53,337 --> 00:19:57,848
three arguments that they're going to use to justify not paying my client.

230
00:19:57,848 --> 00:19:59,729
oh Okay, well, here it is.

231
00:19:59,729 --> 00:20:00,529
One, two, three.

232
00:20:00,529 --> 00:20:03,810
Okay, how should I respond to this adjuster?

233
00:20:03,910 --> 00:20:15,464
Or, you know, give me a deposition summary of a truck driver um that rear-ended my client
or, you know, even much more complex cases.

234
00:20:15,464 --> 00:20:20,623
So for example, I have to cross-examine a biomechanical engineer.

235
00:20:20,623 --> 00:20:23,345
Here's the biomechanical engineer's report.

236
00:20:23,345 --> 00:20:26,126
You are an expert biomechanical engineer.

237
00:20:26,126 --> 00:20:38,223
Please review this report and tell me what assumptions, if proven to be not true, would
contradict what their conclusions are.

238
00:20:38,223 --> 00:20:44,317
So once again, it's just a tool and we're trying to train our lawyers to use it, know,
drafting.

239
00:20:44,317 --> 00:20:48,087
mean, all these things, it speeds things up, but...

240
00:20:48,087 --> 00:20:49,108
very important.

241
00:20:49,108 --> 00:20:51,980
You have to keep a human in the loop, right?

242
00:20:51,980 --> 00:21:06,832
So nothing leaves our door unless a human approves it because we all know that AI makes
mistakes and ultimately it's our responsibility for the product that we put out there that

243
00:21:06,832 --> 00:21:08,873
we need to make sure that it's accurate.

244
00:21:10,083 --> 00:21:19,001
So with so many people in your space, um I'm sure that even though, yes, you're an
attorney, you practice law, but then you have the business of the law firm, right?

245
00:21:19,001 --> 00:21:20,312
Which are two separate things.

246
00:21:20,312 --> 00:21:26,537
uh Where, where is your mind now with the growth of this firm and what you're doing?

247
00:21:26,537 --> 00:21:31,203
I don't know if you look at it as being competitive because some people say if you
compete, you're losing.

248
00:21:31,203 --> 00:21:36,766
You're there making this idea that you have to go out in the world and I guess drive your
flag in the ground and say, this is what we stand for.

249
00:21:36,766 --> 00:21:38,093
And we're trying to dominate.

250
00:21:38,093 --> 00:21:39,837
Where do you see this firm that you're trying to build?

251
00:21:39,837 --> 00:21:43,487
Cause you're not slowing down 26 years and you're building.

252
00:21:43,629 --> 00:21:44,549
Yes, yes.

253
00:21:44,549 --> 00:21:57,865
And so, you know, I was a very good attorney, but I am a better managing partner and I'm
doing a better job and my skills and what I bring to the firm today, you know, is not

254
00:21:57,865 --> 00:21:58,926
handling cases.

255
00:21:58,926 --> 00:22:11,411
I've got really smart lawyers that work with me and I need to focus my time on the vision
and on the culture and the relationships and the business.

256
00:22:11,583 --> 00:22:13,164
all of those things.

257
00:22:13,345 --> 00:22:19,009
And what I like to tell my team is, you know, our competition is not other law firms.

258
00:22:19,009 --> 00:22:22,602
We're already better than 95 % of the law firms out there.

259
00:22:22,602 --> 00:22:23,393
Okay?

260
00:22:23,393 --> 00:22:28,968
Our competition is ourselves, and we always want to improve and we always want to do
better.

261
00:22:28,968 --> 00:22:34,452
You know, one of our firm values is improvement, both personally and professionally.

262
00:22:34,452 --> 00:22:40,655
So we take that very seriously, and uh we don't look at other people as being competitors.

263
00:22:40,655 --> 00:22:48,795
um In fact, in the personal injury space, you know, I have a reputation of being very,
very giving with my advice.

264
00:22:48,795 --> 00:22:50,559
I don't hold anything back.

265
00:22:50,559 --> 00:22:55,442
I don't look at other personal injury law firms uh as competition.

266
00:22:55,442 --> 00:23:00,804
To me, the competition are the big corporations and insurance companies.

267
00:23:00,804 --> 00:23:07,981
And if I can help another lawyer represent their client against an insurance company, of
course I'm going to help.

268
00:23:07,981 --> 00:23:11,495
It doesn't mean that it's taking away from my business.

269
00:23:11,516 --> 00:23:23,211
as you know, reputation is really important and is something that I've cultivated and
would hate to lose because I was overly competitive.

270
00:23:25,225 --> 00:23:28,007
The is the lifeblood of your organization.

271
00:23:28,007 --> 00:23:30,769
ah All of us say we need talented people.

272
00:23:30,769 --> 00:23:34,952
We have to care about the customer, but is the lifeblood deal flow?

273
00:23:34,952 --> 00:23:36,413
Is that really it?

274
00:23:36,494 --> 00:23:38,735
Is it, is it the prospecting for business?

275
00:23:38,735 --> 00:23:39,586
Is it the branding?

276
00:23:39,586 --> 00:23:43,789
Is that the lifeblood of the company or would you redirect it and say it's something else?

277
00:23:44,557 --> 00:23:47,289
You know, it's a combination of things.

278
00:23:47,289 --> 00:23:57,877
You could be the smartest lawyer and have the best bedside manner with clients, but if you
don't have any clients, then they both go to waste, right?

279
00:23:57,877 --> 00:24:08,424
So, you know, it's unfortunate, but getting clients is one of the requirements of running
a successful law practice.

280
00:24:09,565 --> 00:24:12,099
And how you get clients...

281
00:24:12,099 --> 00:24:15,071
has changed over life span of my career.

282
00:24:15,071 --> 00:24:23,147
And in the old days, it used to be do a great job for a client and word would spread and
then other clients would come.

283
00:24:23,168 --> 00:24:28,171
Those days are gone with the internet and with all the advertising.

284
00:24:28,171 --> 00:24:38,499
uh Anybody in any major metropolitan area, you can't drive a quarter mile without seeing a
billboard for one personal injury lawyer or another.

285
00:24:38,499 --> 00:24:43,260
You know, we're bombarded with all these messages and all this marketing.

286
00:24:43,280 --> 00:24:53,043
And, you know, you do need, I feel you do need to find a way to stand out, to
differentiate yourself in any business.

287
00:24:53,043 --> 00:24:55,554
Otherwise you're just going to get caught up in the noise.

288
00:24:55,554 --> 00:25:01,646
And there's always going to be some, there's always going to be someone that will outspend
you.

289
00:25:01,646 --> 00:25:02,146
Okay.

290
00:25:02,146 --> 00:25:04,656
No matter what business you are, right.

291
00:25:04,656 --> 00:25:07,001
There will always be someone who outspend

292
00:25:07,001 --> 00:25:09,953
who will outspend you for clients and customers.

293
00:25:09,953 --> 00:25:18,079
So find out what your differentiation point is and double down on that and really focus to
try to get the clients that way.

294
00:25:18,425 --> 00:25:23,496
Do you help, do you run the backend operations of your firm as a managing partner?

295
00:25:23,496 --> 00:25:27,039
Is that really your job or is your job to help them gain more clients?

296
00:25:27,039 --> 00:25:35,693
How much of that marketing branding piece have you taken off of their plate so they can go
be great attorneys and work on the cases or is that their responsibility too?

297
00:25:36,063 --> 00:25:41,467
Um, you know, listen, I, I try to teach all my attorneys that generating business is
important.

298
00:25:41,467 --> 00:25:46,711
Um, I require them to be involved in one outside activity.

299
00:25:46,711 --> 00:25:56,378
don't care if it's coaching your kids soccer game or, you know, being in a volleyball
league, you have to have a life out there and you have to meet people and they should know

300
00:25:56,378 --> 00:25:57,743
that you're a lawyer.

301
00:25:57,743 --> 00:26:05,245
uh And that's important, but the firm and the reputation of the firm is really what drives
most of the clients.

302
00:26:05,245 --> 00:26:08,006
It's not the individual uh attorneys.

303
00:26:08,006 --> 00:26:15,188
And uh my marketing tends to be much more B2B, business to business, than business to
consumer.

304
00:26:15,188 --> 00:26:20,859
And what I mean by that is, business to consumer are all those billboards, right?

305
00:26:20,859 --> 00:26:23,210
And they want these individual people to call.

306
00:26:23,210 --> 00:26:27,631
uh Most of my clients come from other attorneys.

307
00:26:27,847 --> 00:26:40,313
Either attorneys that don't handle personal injury cases or lawyers who advertise that
don't really handle cases You know the big the big myth that most people don't know is

308
00:26:40,313 --> 00:26:53,449
those people on television and on the billboards a lot of them don't even handle cases
Okay, and and they hire law firms like mine to do the actual legal work

309
00:26:53,621 --> 00:27:00,698
So that's where my emphasis is in terms of marketing.

310
00:27:00,698 --> 00:27:04,581
And listen, I've got a marketing team that helps me.

311
00:27:04,722 --> 00:27:18,975
I am the brand, I am the name, I am the relationship builder, but they're always in the
back, doing the website, making sure that the image and the message is consistent.

312
00:27:19,853 --> 00:27:25,026
What, when you get up in the morning, I'm sure that you've been a seven day a week guy.

313
00:27:25,026 --> 00:27:28,848
bet that you've worked seven days a week, maybe a little bit less now, maybe.

314
00:27:29,288 --> 00:27:39,784
But when you get, when you get up on a day that you're really focused on proactively doing
the work, what, what's your, what's your process when you get up in the morning, where's

315
00:27:39,784 --> 00:27:40,425
your mind at?

316
00:27:40,425 --> 00:27:44,927
You know, there's people that have, they do yoga and motivation and they have all these
process.

317
00:27:44,927 --> 00:27:48,309
Where's your mind at when it comes to the business day?

318
00:27:48,729 --> 00:27:53,343
You know, it's interesting because um I never keep track of how much I work.

319
00:27:53,343 --> 00:28:00,208
And I'll be honest, I probably am working every minute that I'm awake because I'm always
thinking about something.

320
00:28:00,208 --> 00:28:05,992
um I equate work as sitting behind a desk or going to court.

321
00:28:05,993 --> 00:28:08,004
And I don't do too much of that, right?

322
00:28:08,004 --> 00:28:09,675
I mean, I'm on the computer a lot.

323
00:28:09,675 --> 00:28:11,607
I'm doing Zooms, things like that.

324
00:28:11,607 --> 00:28:14,623
But, um you know, even if I'm going out to dinner.

325
00:28:14,623 --> 00:28:26,628
I'm going out to dinner with a potential referring attorney or ah next week I'm going to
Miami for the National Trial Lawyers Convention and I'll be seeing a dozen friends down

326
00:28:26,628 --> 00:28:26,798
there.

327
00:28:26,798 --> 00:28:27,508
That's work.

328
00:28:27,508 --> 00:28:29,589
uh It doesn't feel like work.

329
00:28:29,589 --> 00:28:38,593
So every morning when I wake up, uh it's just a new day and what do I want to accomplish?

330
00:28:38,593 --> 00:28:43,275
uh so I wouldn't say that I have any kind of routine or anything like that.

331
00:28:44,164 --> 00:28:48,172
Um, what about the people that you surround yourself with in life?

332
00:28:48,172 --> 00:28:50,305
How important is that metric?

333
00:28:50,841 --> 00:28:55,254
Yeah, I can't underestimate that, uh the importance of that.

334
00:28:55,254 --> 00:29:05,599
And uh what I've been doing is uh making sure that these connections that I've made turn
into friendships.

335
00:29:05,800 --> 00:29:10,231
And um one friend will lead to another, to another.

336
00:29:10,231 --> 00:29:18,307
I I hate the word networking, because it sounds so calculating, but the world is based on
relationships.

337
00:29:18,355 --> 00:29:22,378
Um, you know, I've got, I've got three, well, one of my, son just graduated college.

338
00:29:22,378 --> 00:29:28,332
I've got two still in college and, and I try to stress to them that college degree is
important, right?

339
00:29:28,332 --> 00:29:29,833
It's, it's a foundation.

340
00:29:29,833 --> 00:29:35,187
You probably need some kind of degree, but that's not going to dictate what you do with
your life.

341
00:29:35,187 --> 00:29:44,534
What's going to dictate is, you know, who you meet, the connections that you make and
knock on some doors and don't be afraid of rejection.

342
00:29:44,534 --> 00:29:46,363
Um, you know, I, I, I.

343
00:29:46,363 --> 00:29:54,486
I'll say it on this podcast, I say it on everywhere I speak is, my email is michael at
mccreadylaw.com, right?

344
00:29:54,486 --> 00:29:57,087
And my phone number is there.

345
00:29:58,028 --> 00:30:00,109
Send me an email, you got a question?

346
00:30:00,109 --> 00:30:09,292
Yeah, I tell that to all young attorneys and I could count on two hands a number of people
who have just blindly reached out to me.

347
00:30:09,293 --> 00:30:13,254
And I think that I encourage people to do more.

348
00:30:13,254 --> 00:30:15,195
The worst thing that happens is,

349
00:30:15,211 --> 00:30:17,312
They don't respond to your email, right?

350
00:30:17,312 --> 00:30:19,213
That's not even rejection.

351
00:30:19,434 --> 00:30:26,278
Think about taking the next step and affirmatively trying to line up a lunch with someone.

352
00:30:26,278 --> 00:30:32,122
ah Yeah, you might get rejected, but you've got to take those kinds of chances.

353
00:30:32,122 --> 00:30:39,887
And maybe that person isn't the person that opens the door, but maybe they're the person
that introduces you to the person that opens up the door.

354
00:30:40,243 --> 00:30:46,185
Um, you know, that's a lot of what I do is surrounding myself with, with the right people.

355
00:30:46,205 --> 00:30:54,267
And, of course, you know, having a good reputation and having people talk about you and
being proud of, you know, the firm that I've built.

356
00:30:54,267 --> 00:31:02,099
Um, but, know, surrounding yourself with people that, that push you and get the best out
of you, uh, is really important.

357
00:31:02,099 --> 00:31:05,980
And, and most of those people uh work for me now, right?

358
00:31:05,980 --> 00:31:09,209
I've got, I've got people that, you know, that have.

359
00:31:09,209 --> 00:31:17,496
kicked me up five gears because I don't want to be shown up by someone who's only a couple
years out of law school.

360
00:31:17,496 --> 00:31:20,902
So I got to show everybody that I still got the chops.

361
00:31:21,571 --> 00:31:23,392
Sounds like you're competitive.

362
00:31:23,778 --> 00:31:25,566
Just a little just a little

363
00:31:26,191 --> 00:31:31,479
Did that, do you think that was innate in you from a young boy or was that developed?

364
00:31:32,015 --> 00:31:42,375
No, I think that most successful lawyers that I know in my position are all cut from the
same cloth.

365
00:31:42,775 --> 00:31:45,515
They're just type A personalities.

366
00:31:47,135 --> 00:31:49,675
They're on a scale, right?

367
00:31:49,675 --> 00:31:53,587
You've got on one side the dominant alpha male.

368
00:31:53,587 --> 00:31:57,969
But there's any of the other people on the same scale that are quietly competitive.

369
00:31:57,969 --> 00:32:00,411
So I'm much more the quietly competitive.

370
00:32:00,411 --> 00:32:02,267
I'm not a showy kind of guy.

371
00:32:02,267 --> 00:32:04,270
I don't drive a fancy car.

372
00:32:04,270 --> 00:32:15,839
I don't have a yacht, you know, but those type of, it's a certain personality that seems
to really become successful in my small circle.

373
00:32:16,227 --> 00:32:19,253
How's the quiet, competitive Michael show up?

374
00:32:19,253 --> 00:32:20,705
What's that look like?

375
00:32:21,251 --> 00:32:25,252
Well, one of our firm values uh is approachability.

376
00:32:25,273 --> 00:32:28,714
And we wanna break the stereotype of lawyers.

377
00:32:28,714 --> 00:32:30,195
We're very good lawyers.

378
00:32:30,195 --> 00:32:36,057
We're very serious about what we do for clients, but we don't take ourselves as seriously.

379
00:32:36,057 --> 00:32:42,650
One of the nicest compliments that somebody can give me after they meet me is like, wow,
you're such a nice guy.

380
00:32:42,650 --> 00:32:45,361
I didn't even know you were a lawyer, right?

381
00:32:45,361 --> 00:32:49,335
I take that as one of the highest compliments I can get.

382
00:32:49,335 --> 00:32:53,179
I like to be introduced as this is my friend Michael, right?

383
00:32:53,179 --> 00:32:58,283
Not Michael the lawyer or oh, it's just Michael, just be yourself.

384
00:32:58,283 --> 00:33:09,824
And unfortunately, my profession has got a certain amount of narcissism and egos um and
I've just really tried to keep my ego in check.

385
00:33:09,824 --> 00:33:13,157
And so, ah I'm personally competitive.

386
00:33:13,157 --> 00:33:15,578
I try to do the best.

387
00:33:15,935 --> 00:33:21,237
for me, ah but not necessarily to show the world how great I am.

388
00:33:25,059 --> 00:33:26,422
Will you retire?

389
00:33:29,775 --> 00:33:31,036
That's a very good question.

390
00:33:31,036 --> 00:33:41,703
um I will transition out of the daily activities in my law firm and I will pursue other
interests.

391
00:33:41,703 --> 00:33:45,765
uh It really depends on what your definition of retirement is.

392
00:33:45,765 --> 00:33:51,830
My definition, I'm not going to just sit around on a beach and do nothing.

393
00:33:51,830 --> 00:33:54,512
um So there'll be other challenges.

394
00:33:54,512 --> 00:33:59,700
uh know, listen, one of the reasons I'm on this podcast is I'm an entrepreneur.

395
00:33:59,700 --> 00:34:08,376
And I've got lots of business ideas and I've got some side businesses that I have created
as a result of my law practice.

396
00:34:08,397 --> 00:34:14,302
And, you know, to dedicate more time to those or to come up with new ideas.

397
00:34:14,302 --> 00:34:23,729
And my son just graduated from college and his dream is to start a business, you know, and
I'd love to be able to help him with whatever path he chooses.

398
00:34:23,729 --> 00:34:26,471
ah No, I don't expect to.

399
00:34:27,193 --> 00:34:29,667
I will not, I'm not going to die at my desk.

400
00:34:29,667 --> 00:34:30,588
Okay.

401
00:34:30,588 --> 00:34:37,337
Um, but, but I don't see, I don't see what retirement would really be for me as long as I
have my health, right?

402
00:34:37,337 --> 00:34:39,049
That's all different.

403
00:34:39,631 --> 00:34:40,271
Yeah.

404
00:34:40,271 --> 00:34:45,371
So you touched on, you know, the reason to go on podcasts and to expose ourselves, to
build these brands.

405
00:34:45,371 --> 00:34:46,771
You have these businesses.

406
00:34:46,811 --> 00:34:50,851
if you're sitting around with whoever people say, who's your best friend?

407
00:34:50,851 --> 00:34:51,291
It's like, I don't know.

408
00:34:51,291 --> 00:34:53,491
have a group of people that are in that category.

409
00:34:53,491 --> 00:34:54,151
Right.

410
00:34:54,151 --> 00:35:02,091
But if you were sitting next to any of them and no context is needed and it's not being
recorded and you're completely comfortable and you're not worried about everything you

411
00:35:02,091 --> 00:35:05,771
say, what do you, what do you want us to know?

412
00:35:05,771 --> 00:35:06,551
What do you want?

413
00:35:06,551 --> 00:35:09,223
If they were to ask you like, Michael, what are you trying to tell the world?

414
00:35:10,935 --> 00:35:16,727
Yeah, I mean, it really goes kind of back to the golden rule is just, you know, be nice to
people.

415
00:35:16,727 --> 00:35:23,439
And even if you get stepped on or taken advantage of, you know, don't become cynical.

416
00:35:23,439 --> 00:35:30,100
m And, you know, at the end of the day, you know, I love the fact that I'm helping people,
I'm helping clients.

417
00:35:30,201 --> 00:35:31,261
I'm getting paid for it.

418
00:35:31,261 --> 00:35:33,061
You know, I'm getting paid handsomely.

419
00:35:33,061 --> 00:35:34,782
I've worked hard for it.

420
00:35:34,782 --> 00:35:39,215
But, you know, the be all and end all of what I do is for the clients.

421
00:35:39,215 --> 00:35:40,917
um And I never forget that.

422
00:35:40,917 --> 00:35:47,263
um And without clients, you know, I'd have nothing and I'd be nothing.

423
00:35:48,953 --> 00:35:57,112
So, so many people probably now come to you for really, they think it's these big
questions of advice, but you see them coming from a mile away.

424
00:35:57,112 --> 00:36:00,315
Mostly it's how'd you get there or what should I do?

425
00:36:00,436 --> 00:36:04,780
You probably need to ask questions to understand how to answer it from them.

426
00:36:05,101 --> 00:36:06,002
Cause yeah.

427
00:36:06,002 --> 00:36:06,543
Right.

428
00:36:06,543 --> 00:36:11,323
I've been, you know, I've found a lot of use over the years.

429
00:36:11,323 --> 00:36:13,363
I've been in a lot of masterminds.

430
00:36:13,363 --> 00:36:25,643
And if you're not familiar with the concept of a mastermind, it's a group of people that
they get together and they talk through their business problems in different formats.

431
00:36:25,843 --> 00:36:33,933
you know, and I've worked through a lot of problems in my firm over the years and talking
through them with people that have a big...

432
00:36:33,933 --> 00:36:39,976
had that experience or have something uh insightful to say and help me come up with a
plan.

433
00:36:39,976 --> 00:36:42,248
And then I'm able to give back.

434
00:36:42,248 --> 00:36:45,810
So, you know, at this point, there's not much I haven't seen.

435
00:36:45,810 --> 00:36:57,106
So when somebody comes to a mastermind with a problem, you know, I'm pretty sure that I've
been down that road before and maybe not be able to give them the definitive answer.

436
00:36:57,106 --> 00:37:03,469
And it might not be the answer they want to hear, but that's the idea of a mastermind is
brutal truth.

437
00:37:03,687 --> 00:37:16,811
And when somebody asks me, I'm having this problem with X, Y, and Z in my law firm, um I
owe it to them to give them my candid assessment, even if they don't want to hear it.

438
00:37:16,912 --> 00:37:26,255
But I've found masterminds and talking through with like-minded people, even if they're in
different professions, has been really, really helpful for me.

439
00:37:27,833 --> 00:37:33,747
So in this ever changing world, touched on tech a lot earlier and how fast things are
changing.

440
00:37:33,747 --> 00:37:38,089
um Is there an approach that you take to staying on top?

441
00:37:38,089 --> 00:37:47,015
Because on top, there's only one top of Mount Everest, but there's a lot of mountains and
hills in the entire world that when we conquer them, we feel like we're on top.

442
00:37:47,015 --> 00:37:53,158
But is there a way in this new world of tech that we're all weaving through and trying to
stay in front of?

443
00:37:53,158 --> 00:37:54,729
How do we stay on top?

444
00:37:55,129 --> 00:37:59,742
Yeah, I mean, listen, once again, know, entrepreneurs, don't stop.

445
00:37:59,742 --> 00:38:01,664
There is no top, right?

446
00:38:01,664 --> 00:38:09,229
I mean, I could have looked back 20 years ago and said to myself, wow, you know, I made
it, look, right?

447
00:38:09,229 --> 00:38:20,577
And, you know, and every stage and every step of my career, every stepping stone, you
know, the time that I first made $100,000 or made a million dollars or, you know, where my

448
00:38:20,577 --> 00:38:24,579
law firm is now, each of those steps, I could have looked back and said,

449
00:38:24,579 --> 00:38:29,204
Well, you know, I finally made it, but you know, I don't look at it that way.

450
00:38:29,204 --> 00:38:33,428
And I don't look at, well, I won't be happy until I reach this point.

451
00:38:33,428 --> 00:38:35,469
It's just, I just keep moving forward.

452
00:38:35,469 --> 00:38:41,636
um if I'm not moving forward, you know, I'm going backward.

453
00:38:41,636 --> 00:38:49,923
And I think that that is gonna resonate with a lot of people that listen to your podcast
is, you you don't do this for anybody other than yourself.

454
00:38:50,039 --> 00:38:55,462
You have to have that fire and you have to really have a passion for what you're doing.

455
00:38:55,462 --> 00:38:58,484
And if you do, there is no mountaintop.

456
00:38:58,484 --> 00:39:01,165
You never stop uh unless you want to.

457
00:39:01,165 --> 00:39:11,551
that's the benefit of being an entrepreneur is you can control when you want to get out
and say, that's it.

458
00:39:13,539 --> 00:39:21,575
When you were starting the firm at 30 or 31 years old, 26 years ago.

459
00:39:24,151 --> 00:39:28,418
What did you really think that you knew then?

460
00:39:29,301 --> 00:39:32,767
That in retrospect, you're like, wow, I really missed that one.

461
00:39:32,767 --> 00:39:33,548
It didn't have that right.

462
00:39:33,548 --> 00:39:35,311
Is there one big idea?

463
00:39:36,423 --> 00:39:38,744
I thought I knew everything, right?

464
00:39:38,744 --> 00:39:43,207
uh No, no, I'm much more humble than that.

465
00:39:43,207 --> 00:39:46,829
uh I didn't know what I didn't know, okay?

466
00:39:46,829 --> 00:39:50,551
um And I had to learn it along the way.

467
00:39:51,331 --> 00:39:59,816
And there is no definitive blueprint for what I've done or for what any business has done.

468
00:40:00,176 --> 00:40:04,339
There are certain tried and true things that you should do.

469
00:40:04,339 --> 00:40:05,577
uh

470
00:40:05,577 --> 00:40:08,489
But you know, no actual blueprint.

471
00:40:08,669 --> 00:40:12,347
always, always, consultants and things like that.

472
00:40:12,347 --> 00:40:19,336
You know, if you have, if you know all of this, why are you telling everybody and not
doing it yourself?

473
00:40:19,397 --> 00:40:24,013
So back then, you know, I jumped, right?

474
00:40:24,013 --> 00:40:25,981
I didn't just dunk my toe in the water.

475
00:40:25,981 --> 00:40:32,005
I just literally gave my resignation and said, Hey, I'm starting my business with nothing.

476
00:40:32,005 --> 00:40:34,767
You know, took, took three, four, five cases.

477
00:40:35,481 --> 00:40:39,173
But uh yeah, I didn't know what I didn't know.

478
00:40:39,173 --> 00:40:46,476
What I know now is, you know, I would have spent a lot more time learning about how to set
up a business.

479
00:40:46,476 --> 00:40:56,180
My advice to anyone before you start a business is spend some money and hire a bookkeeper
to put your books in order before you start.

480
00:40:56,240 --> 00:41:03,303
Because my books were a disaster for 10 years and it cost me thousands of dollars.

481
00:41:03,855 --> 00:41:11,260
tens of thousands of dollars to get my book straightened out in a way that needed to be
there.

482
00:41:11,341 --> 00:41:20,528
But I wish I had given a little bit more thought about a business plan and a marketing
plan and having my books in order.

483
00:41:20,528 --> 00:41:25,601
I just jumped in, said, hey, I'm a lawyer, and just figured it out from there.

484
00:41:26,009 --> 00:41:33,581
But through all your other friends who no doubt are partners in firms, know, entrepreneurs
of businesses, don't they have a similar story to yours?

485
00:41:34,189 --> 00:41:35,140
Yeah, I think so.

486
00:41:35,140 --> 00:41:35,880
I think so.

487
00:41:35,880 --> 00:41:46,046
um It's just this innate thing that drives some people that they want to be the masters of
their own destiny.

488
00:41:46,266 --> 00:41:49,088
And that's absolutely me.

489
00:41:49,088 --> 00:41:51,889
And that was the driving force.

490
00:41:52,029 --> 00:41:59,174
Before we started recording, I told you I was always going to open my own law firm and
everybody knew it.

491
00:41:59,174 --> 00:42:00,895
I didn't have to broadcast that.

492
00:42:00,895 --> 00:42:01,849
It was just...

493
00:42:01,849 --> 00:42:04,601
hey, McCready's always gonna open his own firm.

494
00:42:04,601 --> 00:42:06,392
It was just an assumption.

495
00:42:06,392 --> 00:42:08,464
It wasn't a surprise to anyone.

496
00:42:08,464 --> 00:42:13,698
Didn't make it easier for me when I did because it's still me taking the risk.

497
00:42:13,698 --> 00:42:17,751
True story is my first office had a shower in it.

498
00:42:17,771 --> 00:42:25,357
And I said to myself, if things don't work out, I can give up my apartment and I just live
here in the office and I can always shower here.

499
00:42:25,357 --> 00:42:28,463
Now it didn't come to that, but uh that was...

500
00:42:28,463 --> 00:42:30,503
That was the way that I was thinking.

501
00:42:30,503 --> 00:42:38,403
was all on my shoulders and it was up to me to make sure that I didn't fail.

502
00:42:38,659 --> 00:42:42,579
Was it ever an option for you to go back and become an attorney at another firm again?

503
00:42:42,579 --> 00:42:44,021
Like in your mind.

504
00:42:44,545 --> 00:42:51,661
Nope, from the minute I left, you know, there was never uh that idea.

505
00:42:51,842 --> 00:42:54,343
know, now it's interesting.

506
00:42:55,685 --> 00:43:07,116
Yeah, no, now I'm in a completely different position is that I'm hiring lawyers that have
been out on their own and realize how difficult it is in running a business.

507
00:43:07,116 --> 00:43:09,218
All they want to do is be a lawyer.

508
00:43:09,218 --> 00:43:10,861
And unfortunately,

509
00:43:10,861 --> 00:43:16,195
You know, there are things that you have to do that don't have to practice, that have
nothing to do with practicing law.

510
00:43:16,195 --> 00:43:29,384
And so now, you know, my firm has become attractive to people uh that want the structure
that I bring and the business that, you know, the business structure that we have so they

511
00:43:29,384 --> 00:43:31,785
can focus only on practicing law.

512
00:43:31,785 --> 00:43:34,687
But I never felt like I was gonna do that.

513
00:43:34,893 --> 00:43:36,774
I think that's the important part of entrepreneurship.

514
00:43:36,774 --> 00:43:39,896
It's not that necessarily people have to keep going.

515
00:43:39,896 --> 00:43:46,630
It's not that they don't quit, but just know what I've seen from these people that I just
success is you're still going.

516
00:43:46,630 --> 00:43:47,980
That's my definition of success.

517
00:43:47,980 --> 00:43:49,631
You just didn't get, you're still going.

518
00:43:49,631 --> 00:43:53,673
I don't know how much money you need to make, how many people need to be at your firm or
company.

519
00:43:53,673 --> 00:43:59,096
It's just, I'm still on the path of creating this dream that that's I'm in the midst of
success.

520
00:43:59,296 --> 00:44:04,449
However, what people that start business should know is that's the mindset that it takes.

521
00:44:05,583 --> 00:44:06,903
That's the piece.

522
00:44:07,043 --> 00:44:09,507
Just haven't seen, yeah, go ahead.

523
00:44:09,507 --> 00:44:16,963
No, I give a presentation on how to run, how to manage a successful law firm.

524
00:44:16,963 --> 00:44:22,837
Okay, now forget about the word law firm, just how to manage a successful business.

525
00:44:22,837 --> 00:44:30,393
And I break it down, I said, in that sentence, the very first thing you have to focus on
is what is your definition of success?

526
00:44:30,393 --> 00:44:33,765
Okay, what is success to you?

527
00:44:33,765 --> 00:44:36,417
And um it's different to different people.

528
00:44:36,417 --> 00:44:38,858
It may be making as much money as possible.

529
00:44:38,858 --> 00:44:40,788
It may be a work-life balance.

530
00:44:40,788 --> 00:44:44,309
It may be contributing to the community in some way.

531
00:44:44,309 --> 00:44:46,370
So define what success is.

532
00:44:46,370 --> 00:44:52,812
uh Next is the law practice, right?

533
00:44:52,812 --> 00:44:54,622
You have to manage your business.

534
00:44:54,622 --> 00:45:01,254
You have to get your business set up and all those things in order to manage.

535
00:45:02,454 --> 00:45:04,889
the final piece of the puzzle on

536
00:45:04,889 --> 00:45:16,460
how to manage a successful law firm is managed, but you need to know what success is and
you need to know what your business is, then you can start worrying about managing it.

537
00:45:16,460 --> 00:45:22,071
So I'm summarizing about a 30 minute talk into two sentences, but I think you get the
point.

538
00:45:22,071 --> 00:45:22,773
Yeah, I think so.

539
00:45:22,773 --> 00:45:28,531
I'm sure that, uh, do you have anything on YouTube or is that they need to go to your
website for the most part to find out?

540
00:45:28,556 --> 00:45:34,006
I'm trying to think if that has ever been published.

541
00:45:34,007 --> 00:45:35,250
I've given it before.

542
00:45:35,250 --> 00:45:40,365
I'd have to look to see if uh that particular presentation is out there.

543
00:45:40,365 --> 00:45:44,468
Maybe that's your next venture with AI to put Michael McCready on YouTube.

544
00:45:44,889 --> 00:45:49,022
Yeah, well, you know, we already do some of that, okay?

545
00:45:49,022 --> 00:45:51,351
So, you know, we have AI.

546
00:45:51,351 --> 00:45:58,180
I had to record a five minute video and I had a script and I had to give different facial
expressions.

547
00:45:58,180 --> 00:46:02,934
Like, you know, act surprised and act angry and do all these.

548
00:46:02,934 --> 00:46:08,899
And the video uh was filmed and then AI takes it.

549
00:46:08,899 --> 00:46:13,931
And basically any script you want, you you type in the script.

550
00:46:13,931 --> 00:46:19,703
And here it is, me and my face and my lips and my hand gestures and everything.

551
00:46:19,703 --> 00:46:22,655
And it looks, you know, largely like me.

552
00:46:22,655 --> 00:46:34,219
ah Now, you know, I've been told by my SEO people that we don't want to put that uh AI
content on the internet, but we do use it for clients.

553
00:46:34,360 --> 00:46:37,191
And, you know, we've shot a lot of custom videos.

554
00:46:37,191 --> 00:46:43,233
And the great thing about that is you can change the script without having to reshoot a
video.

555
00:46:43,299 --> 00:46:46,631
You know, every time something changes, you'd have to reshoot a video.

556
00:46:46,631 --> 00:46:51,324
Now we just change the script, run it through AI, and there I am giving that presentation.

557
00:46:51,324 --> 00:46:53,966
So, I mean, that technology is here right now.

558
00:46:53,966 --> 00:46:57,538
It's just, uh it's not generally accepted.

559
00:46:57,538 --> 00:46:58,569
Okay?

560
00:46:58,569 --> 00:47:08,975
uh But all of this is coming and it will reach a critical mass that people will accept
this and it'll just be second nature and no one will think twice.

561
00:47:09,227 --> 00:47:09,988
Awesome.

562
00:47:09,988 --> 00:47:16,551
So, hey, as we, uh as we wrap this up, I could, guess we have to come to Puerto Rico to
get more, to get more good Michael McCready stuff.

563
00:47:16,551 --> 00:47:25,676
Um, but as we wrap it up, what do you think, um, when you leave people, so when we're
finished with this podcast, they're going to leave with a certain feeling or opinion about

564
00:47:25,676 --> 00:47:27,427
you, everyone that listens and checks in.

565
00:47:27,427 --> 00:47:31,580
But when you're getting off of an elevator, you get up from a table and you had dinner
with them.

566
00:47:31,580 --> 00:47:35,162
We just sat down and let's just say we just had coffee together.

567
00:47:35,162 --> 00:47:38,043
Um, what do you want them?

568
00:47:38,531 --> 00:47:41,377
to know about you, to think about you.

569
00:47:41,680 --> 00:47:46,261
And all these people watching today when they walk away, what impression do you want to
leave?

570
00:47:46,907 --> 00:48:01,292
I like, I hope that I inspire people, not everyone that I meet, ah but I really love
meeting someone new and talking to them and them walking away with a new idea or a new way

571
00:48:01,292 --> 00:48:09,895
of thinking about something or a new way of approaching or a different mindset or really
making a difference in someone's life.

572
00:48:09,895 --> 00:48:11,535
uh

573
00:48:11,535 --> 00:48:19,002
I've learned a lot in my time and I'm very free with my advice and the things that I've
learned.

574
00:48:19,002 --> 00:48:29,223
uh Not everybody is receptive, those people, so my wife says that, Michael, you're like
fine wine, right?

575
00:48:29,223 --> 00:48:30,812
A really expensive wine.

576
00:48:30,812 --> 00:48:36,877
Not everybody appreciates you, but the people that do really appreciate you.

577
00:48:36,877 --> 00:48:38,718
And I love that analogy.

578
00:48:38,851 --> 00:48:41,472
You know, I may not resonate with everyone.

579
00:48:41,472 --> 00:48:50,477
I'm not trying to resonate with everyone, but for those people that, you know, that I
really strike a chord with about, you know, about whatever I wanted, whatever they want me

580
00:48:50,477 --> 00:48:54,519
to share, you know, I appreciate it and I'm always willing to give.

581
00:48:55,897 --> 00:49:01,450
Well, I can say that me and I bet the folks that have listened this long, we appreciate
the time you've given us.

582
00:49:01,450 --> 00:49:01,730
Yeah.

583
00:49:01,730 --> 00:49:10,744
Someone that has a mind for a different business we're not in you being an attorney and
being relatable and talking about AI and what you're doing with your firm and the

584
00:49:10,744 --> 00:49:12,104
principles and how to move forward.

585
00:49:12,104 --> 00:49:18,198
think from an entrepreneurial perspective, anybody in any business has probably helps and
they got your email.

586
00:49:18,198 --> 00:49:21,133
just Michael at mcreadylaw.com, right?

587
00:49:21,133 --> 00:49:21,444
Yeah.

588
00:49:21,444 --> 00:49:23,647
And listen, if you Google me, you'll find me.

589
00:49:23,647 --> 00:49:27,192
At least you better find me or I'm going to fire my SEO company.

590
00:49:27,192 --> 00:49:30,155
And I'm also pretty active on LinkedIn as well.

591
00:49:30,265 --> 00:49:31,175
All right, awesome.

592
00:49:31,175 --> 00:49:34,038
Well, hey, thanks for the time and I look forward to going back.

593
00:49:34,038 --> 00:49:38,301
I like the tidbits that my team pulls out and uh the brilliance that you shared with us.

594
00:49:38,301 --> 00:49:39,923
It'll be important for me to listen to it.

595
00:49:39,923 --> 00:49:43,045
This is a free coffee that I get to have with everyone.

596
00:49:43,045 --> 00:49:48,779
We try to provide value for all those that are gonna listen, but selfishly for me, it's a
free coffee time as well.

597
00:49:48,779 --> 00:49:51,271
So I thank you for coming and sharing with us.

598
00:49:51,469 --> 00:49:52,956
It's a labor of love,

599
00:49:53,475 --> 00:49:55,421
Yes, from a Crete wall.com.

600
00:49:55,421 --> 00:49:56,393
Check him out.