Today, as fuel prices continue to escalate, more car buyers are contemplating on getting small passenger cars instead of bigger vehicles such as those top-selling trucks and SUVs from Ford, giving up what they really need and want for the sake of saving more on fuel expenses. What would be part of the celebration? Well there would be music for dancing from the Big Band which is sponsored by ITT Conglomerates. Of course, there would be food, party favors, and a chance to meet and greet other car lovers (and even lonely souls who had nowhere to go on New Year's eve).

For firms who rely on billable hours, marketing often takes a backseat. Make that change. Retreats are a perfect time to create and set clear expectations for attorneys and partners for non-billable time devoted to marketing and business development. And don't forget to reward the performers! you could try here This didn't happen over night. My wife and I separated seven months before she filed for divorce. We stayed together though. We still had a sex life, we still did things with each other and we still took care of one another. Just like we did when we lived together. We both liked the option of having our own space though. Sure, we missed each other but it was nice for both of us to have the option of saying to the other, "I just want to chill at home alone tonight" and send the other home. Do any of these scenarios sound familiar? Have you ever been involved in a situation where you felt you were treated unfairly, yet you didn't know how to resolve it? We all face situations like these most every day. Of course, the easiest "remedy" is to just keep quiet and not deal with the problem. But, in reality, the best remedy is to negotiate a resolution so the matter can end. If your firm were a car what would it be? Strong and tough like a buy truck get car free? Sleek and fast like a Ferrari? Sophisticated and state-of-the-art like a Mercedes S-Class? How about an ice cream flavor? A beverage? A movie genre? All of these exercises not only make for a lively discussion, but work to help define your firm personality. Once that emerges, look for ways to incorporate it in your firm's daily business- from answering the phones to your letterhead. I'd never been in a fraternity in college and only had one brother, so I never had to prove much in my lifetime. No initiation rights, crazy acts of bravado. Not even tested in war or proven to be a man. Sure, I've had some success in business, but sitting in that truck with a man like Harvey just brought all those male hormones to the front burner. Hot or mild. Just what kind of chile man was I to become? The end of the story is we were able to get the lawyer for Ford Motor Credit to accept a much lesser amount because he was trying to get a default judgment on his fees. That was illegal here in Florida, so with his hands in the cookie jar, he just wanted to get it over rather than have his name placed in front of the Florida Bar Assn. Remember: be prepared, have an agenda and keep focused on the discussion at hand. Involve everyone from partners to associates to staff and keep an open mind to marketing ideas, plans and needs. But most of all... make it a true priority to institute those strategies when the retreat ends.