Ten Useful “Habits” For Your Firm

I’ve long believed in the transformative power of habits. Small, recurring actions have an extraordinary ability to compound, producing significant value over time.

The key insight about habits is simple: performing an action once yields minimal impact; embedding it into your organizational rhythm ensures continuous improvement and lasting results.

Below are ten habits I highly recommend implementing within your firm. These are practical, actionable steps that, when executed consistently, can elevate your firm’s performance, culture, and client satisfaction.

1. After-Action Reviews

Following each major engagement or quarterly for on-going retainers/long-term projects, bring together the project team to openly discuss:

• What went well?
  
  
• What didn’t go well?
  
  
• What can we do better next time?

Capture and share these insights across the firm to foster continuous improvement. Over time, these learnings become embedded in your processes, enhancing future outcomes.

2. Weekly Business Development Meeting

Dedicate a weekly meeting to reviewing new and ongoing business opportunities. Align your team on:

• Current status of leads and proposals
  
  
• Immediate next steps for each opportunity
  
  
• Progress toward revenue goals

Analyzing wins and losses during these sessions can offer valuable insights, sharpening your firm’s overall business development capability.

3. Monthly Team Meeting

Hold a monthly meeting involving your entire team to communicate key updates, celebrate recent achievements, and highlight outstanding performance.

Prepare engaging visuals and rotate presenters to maintain fresh perspectives. Done consistently, these gatherings build momentum, foster camaraderie, and reinforce a shared sense of purpose.

4. Weekly Outreach Emails

Set aside time each week to send a predetermined number of outreach emails (2, 5, or 10). These messages could reconnect you with former clients, industry peers, or potential prospects.

Consistency here is crucial. Even small weekly outreach efforts, sustained over time, compound significantly, unlocking surprising new opportunities for your firm.

My co-founder and I sometimes call this the “multi-million dollar habit” because it’s unlocked some incredible opportunities for us over the years.

5. Monthly Newsletter Email

Maintain regular contact with clients, advocates, and referral sources by sending a concise monthly newsletter. Highlight recent wins, intriguing projects, or share your latest thought leadership.

This doesn’t need to be elaborate, a few well-chosen bullet points are enough. The habit of regularly communicating with your network builds ongoing engagement and brand recall.

6. Weekly Client Account Check-In

Conduct regular check-ins with your account management team to review active client engagements. These check-ins help identify potential client issues before they escalate and surface opportunities for additional services.

Consistent client monitoring ensures healthier relationships and can significantly improve client retention rates.

7. Quarterly Business Reviews (QBRs)

For select clients, schedule quarterly reviews to evaluate recent activities, assess impact, and align priorities for the upcoming quarter.

QBRs provide a structured platform to strengthen relationships, demonstrate value, and proactively shape the direction of your engagements.

8. Mind the Bottom

Regularly assess and address underperformance within your team. Quarterly or annually, gather your leadership team to identify employees who consistently underdeliver.

Act swiftly, either through performance improvement plans or, if necessary, transitioning these individuals out of the organization. Managing the bottom tier ensures overall team performance remains strong and focused.

9. Client Feedback Surveys

Institute an ongoing habit of gathering client feedback through regular surveys. Capture insights about your service quality, responsiveness, impact, and value delivered.

Analyzing this data with your leadership team regularly ensures your firm remains client-centric and responsive to market expectations.

Some firms may find an NPS-style survey to be effective. For us, we’ve had more success with longer surveys that allowed us to ask more questions and get more qualitative answers. There’s no right or wrong approach. What matters most is that you’re proactively gathering feedback.

10. Annual & Quarterly Goals and Priorities

Set clear, measurable goals and priorities quarterly, with an extended strategic review annually. Reflect on recent performance, identify key levers for growth, and define activities critical for future success.

Regular goal-setting creates clarity, aligns the team, and ensures focused execution. It also allows you to revisit assumptions and change course if results are trending too far off from the initial goals.

Integrating these habits into your firm’s operations doesn’t just improve daily functioning; it creates a foundation for sustainable growth and long-term success.