Lawyers & Hypnotists…

Last year I was invited to give a couple of presentations at The National Guild of Hypnotists Annual Conference.  You might wonder why an attorney would be presenting to hypnotists, but it’s really very simple—hypnotists are one more service profession trying to escape the bondage of the billable hour.

Like almost everyone who is tired of trading moments of their life for other people’s money, these professionals are creating products that can help people 24/7. In the hypnotherapy industry, this shows up as self-hypnosis audio, video, and written content. Hypnotists become specialists in a niche – “Experts” who are positioned as THE go-to person in their chosen area of passion.

Maybe you’re just like that.  Maybe YOU are trying to figure out how to align your passion—who you are as a person—with what you do to make a living.

Last year I presented on the topic of copyright to a standing-room-only audience at the conference. I also presented a talk on The Power of Acceptance in the context of discovering one’s authentic niche.  Both presentations received outstanding reviews, so the organizers asked me back this year for expanded offerings.  I’m happy to be attending again.

This conference is different.

This conference is dedicated to helping people get the full use of everyone’s primary asset – our mind.

This conference is full of fascinating programming.  There are usually 7 or 8 concurrent sessions happening for 3 days.  The program has something for everyone, so even if you’re not a hypnotist, you might strongly consider attending anyway.  Relative to most 3-day conferences, the registration is VERY inexpensive, only $395.00 for the full three days.  You can take a look at the program here. It’s EXTENSIVE.

This year I’ll be giving a 1-hour version of my No Lame Names: Trademark & Branding presentation on Friday, August 12th and a 2-hour version of my Alchemy of Creative Business: Copyright/Copywrong presentation on Saturday, August 13th.

The Bigger Opportunity

The bigger opportunity this year is a 2-day Workshop on August 15th & 16th tilted “How to Create a Highly Profitable Practice in Your Authentic Niche: Identifying & Creating Information Products and Services that Sell Themselves.”

Download the Session Flyer

This workshop is for ANYONE who wants to align who they are with what they do. The tuition is only $375 for the workshop ($50 less if you’re a full conference attendee).  During the two days I’ll be leading people through the processes of identifying one’s “Authentic Niche” and then outlining the process and developing a strategy for sharing one’s passion through business in order to become what I call an “Authentic Expert.”  We’ll be discussing business formation, business relationships, intellectual property (copyright & trademark), marketing, social media, branding, blogging, public relations, and speaking.

If you want to understand more about this workshop and get a few hints that you can implement right away, listen to this teleconference recording.

Download Free Teleconference Recording

I hope to see you at the conference.  Tell your friends. This workshop is open to anyone.

Click Here to register for the 2-Day Authentic Niche Workshop on August 15th & 16th.  It’ll be well worth the investment.

Finally, don’t worry – nobody will make you cluck like a chicken (unless you volunteer of course…).

Experience+Knowledge=Wisdom

Here’s the video from my Ignite Fort Collins #7 talk. It comes down to this: Wisdom is only found when we share a combined experience with a mutually understood language. Those languages can be in any form, written, spoken, symbolic, etc. Engage the experience. Learn the language. Share the Wisdom.

Take a look a the other great Ignite Fort Collins talks while you’re on the site.

2 New Fuel The Spark CLE Opportunities

Need a Few Last-Minute Ethics Credits?

I’ll be doing two full 4-hour versions of my Fuel The Spark: 5 Guiding Values for Success in Law & Life CLE Ethics Programs in the next few weeks.

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A couple things previous attendees have said:

“A Massage for Your Career.”

– ABA Annual Meeting Program Participant.

“The Best CLE Program I’ve Attended in 27 Years.”

– Program Attendee, Reno NV

If you’re in Northern Colorado, attend:

Friday, December 17th, 2010

8:30am-1:00pm

General Credits: 4.0

Ethics Credits: 3.5

Jury Assembly Room, Larimer County Court House

$60 in Advance. $75 at the Door.  All proceeds go to the Larimer County Bar Association Young Lawyers Division.

(Compare to $199 CoBar Home Study CLE Program)

REGISTRATION:

Young Lawyers Division, Larimer County Bar Association

c/o Josh Dart, Esq.

19 Old Town Square, Ste. 238

Fort Collins, CO 80524

For more info:

email: josh@dartlegal.com

phone: (970) 407-0090

NOTE: The Jury Assembly Room only has space for 50 people, so you’ll want to reserve your seat early. Tickets will go fast.


If you can’t attend in person, you can join online via a Webinar hosted by my friend Kendra Brodin and her Women Lawyers Online group.

Dates: December 8th & 9th @ 3:00-4:30PM EASTERN

Location: Online

Fee: TBD

Credits: (3-4 General & Ethics – will have final details soon)

Registration Information: kendra@kendrabrodin.com


All Participants will receive:

  1. 1. A copy of Kevin Houchin’s most popular book: Fuel the Spark, 5 Guiding Values for Success in Law and Life.
  2. 2. 40-Page Fuel the Spark Action Guide to help you integrate the content into your practice and life.

Program Description:

Sometimes we all need to look at things from a different perspective. This applies to both our personal and professional lives and how they blend into a successful and fulfilling legal career. Join Kevin Houchin for this nationally recognized Ethics program devoted to finding a more balanced perspective on the rules of professional responsibility and how we can put the rules into an easy system for finding more success in our practice and our lives. This intensive interactive workshop could be the best 3 hours you’ll invest in yourself this year.

Topics

The most profound choice any of us make is either to accept things the way they exist, or to accept our personal responsibility to change them.

PR Rules:

1.2: Scope of Representation

1.7 & 1.8: Conflict of Interest

1.13 Organization as Client

1.18 Duties to Prospective Client

Many successful people have found the simplest rule to success in anything is to “show up.” However, deciding where to show up and how to manage yourself when you get there can be a challenge.

PR Rules:

1.4: Communication

7.1: Communication Concerning a Lawyer’s Services

7.2: Advertising

7.3: Direct Contact with Prospective Clients

7.4: Communication of Fields of Practice

One of the hardest things to do in legal practice and in life is to truly pay attention. We get pulled in so many directions, so how can be do a better job of staying in the moment and how does that help our clients and colleagues?

PR Rules:

2.1: Advisor

5.x: Series

It’s easy to get bored and it happens to us all, so how can we avoid boredom and stay sharp? The answer is to keep multiple irons in the fire at once, paying attention to each in turn.

PR Rules:

1.1: Competence

1.3: Diligence

True fulfillment in legal practice and in life comes when you take the time to give back. Stewardship is the combination of giving ones time, talent, or treasure. This portion of the program helps define how you’ll make your greatest contribution.

PR Rules:

6.1: Voluntary Pro Bono Publico Service

6.2: Accepting Appointments

Faculty

Kevin E. Houchin is a different kind of lawyer. First, he has a fine art degree in graphic design and a dozen years of brand development and small business consulting before going back to law school. He uses both his marketing and legal skills every day in his efforts to help creative people reach their potential.

Kevin counsels creative people about how to maximize their creativity, build their businesses, and protect their intellectual property. Discussions tend to turn toward relationships and creative collaboration often, so sometimes Kevin plays the role of business and life coach in addition to attorney and marketing consultant. He truly enjoys the role of trusted advisor to his clients.

Kevin is the author of the book Fuel the Spark: 5 Guiding Values for Success in Law School and Beyond (March 2009). He is also the author of the forthcoming book The Secrets of Creative Business. He contributed a chapter on the legal issues of social media in the best-selling book Twitter Power, and is featured in KaChing, both by Joel Comm, published by Wiley Brothers Publishing.

Kevin is expert at helping people reach their creative potential, whether as an entrepreneur or as an attorney. He is the Founder of The Space Between Center for Creative Spirit in Business – an organization to helping entrepreneurs including attorneys align who they are with what they do. In addition to working with clients, Kevin writes a regular column for the leading business journal in Northern Colorado, blogs regularly at his several sites, and enjoys one of the top legal followings on Twitter.com. He speaks regularly for creative entrepreneurial business, continuing legal education, and law school audiences throughout the United States.

Two Things @ Once

It’s a really busy few days. So, I have two things to update you on.

1. Space Between Center Lawyer Mastermind

We’ve had a huge response to the F-Word Manifesto talk at the ABA Annual Meeting. So, we’ve scheduled an informational call for attorneys interested in learning more about flat-fee billing models for their law firms and potentially joining our lawyer mastermind group. That call is Thursday, September 23rd at NOON EASTERN. The call details are:

(205) 747-2164
PIN: 324614
PW: 0923

2. INSIDE-OUT Development Program

We’re introducing a new Personal/Professional/Business Development program for ANYONE wanting to escape the billable hour trap and align who they are with what they do. You can find out more about that program and join us by clicking INSIDE-OUT INVITATION.

I’ll be letting people know about this as part of my F-Word Manifesto talk tonight at Ignite Fort Collins. You can watch the presentation via live streaming here tonight starting at 7pm MOUNTAIN: http://bit.ly/ifclivestream

Exiting times.

ABA Legal Rebels “F-Word Manifesto” Presentation

The ABA called me up out of the blue in July and said “We’re having an Ignite-style event as part of the Legal Rebels project at the Annual Meeting and we’re asking 10 thought-leaders to come present. We’d like you to be one of them.”

Of course I jumped at the opportunity. Then I jumped on a plane. I’d been hoping for an opportunity to get to San Francisco on business ever since Missing the Flight.  This was it.

I was picked up at the Airport by Mary Kay (my biological mother) with whom I would be spending the first time together ever in my almost 42 years of life. We got to spend some great time.

The next morning I was able to hook up with one of the Members of The Space Between Center for Creative Spirit in Business lawyer mastermind group, Kristen Kuse and have our first in-person chat. Then off to the venue.

The presentations were given in a segmented area of the Exhibit Floor of the Annual Meeting. Mine is titled: “The F-Word Manifesto” and deals with 4 F-Words: Fear, Fail, Flat & Free.  Here’s the presentation.

You can pop over to the F-Word Manifesto Web site and sign up to receive the freebies.  Also take advantage of scheduling a 20-minute “Ask Anything” conversation with me.  I’m convinced that my flat fee model will work in any service business if you do a little homework, get past your fear, and have a little faith.  I’d love to help you figure out how to implement this system in your business too.

You can find the other ABA Ignite presentations here.

I’ll be doing a similar presentation of The F-Word Manifesto talk at Ignite Fort Collins #6 on September 22st.  You can get your Free tickets here.  The presentation I’ll do that night will be tailored for service businesses in general rather than just for lawyers.  I hope to see you there or talk to you soon on a 20-minute Ask Anything call.

Replies & Comments Welcome.