Curious Minds

I haven't posted in a while. I am back on my old document review project in downtown Washington, DC. It's going really well. The hours are reasonable and we get a lot of freedom. I am a member of the ABA's General Practice, Solo and Small Firm division and I recently started getting their publication again. I am surprising myself by how interested I am in the material. I am devouring each issue. The issue before last was devoted entirely to law firm technology. I read the magazine cover to cover. I thought it was especially helpful for busy solo or small practices and for attorneys who travel often, but the issue had something in it for everyone. There are articles on PDA's, security and backup (of which every attorney must be aware), laptops, software (including free online software). My favorite article covered the topic of information management, a topic for which I had been hoping to write an article. I think this is a huge issue for most people because many of us are bombarded with so much cyber-information. This includes emails, news aggregators through which we subscribe to our favorite websites and blogs, PDF files that we want to save, listservs, and so on. I for one am on information overload. You can read this issue of the magazine online.

The next issue is all about elder law, including articles that give an overview of Medicare and Medicaid, trusts and estates, and other issues that impact older adults. I am reading this voraciously as well.

I have not forgotten about my plans to establish a solo practice. This temporary project will last for another few months. In the meantime, I am working on all the back end research to start my practice and I plan to keep you updated as I make my way through the challenges and adventures on my way to self-employment in my chosen profession. I started a business plan and I have several solo practice books. Starting a new law practice does entail information overload because there are so many t's to cross and i's to dot. This includes everything from negotiating virtual law office space to devising a marketing plan to ensuring I have a support network in place when I need to bounce ideas off other attorneys.

I'll keep you posted.