Spring is here at last! Hurrah! Springtime breezes and sunny days always rejuvenate me. Ah, it’s great to be alive! I hope you share my enthusiasm. What’s not to like about springtime? This is the time of year when anything’s possible.

I’d like to talk to you about selling.

Oh, no, the dread S word! “I’m outta here, Lynda!” No, please don’t leave. Can we talk?

I know that court reporters are first and foremost court reporters, keepers of the record, the silent woman behind the machine. Yes, all true. But it’s equally true you are in a service business, with a menu of services to sell. (See? Snuck that S word in, didn’t I?) Your client needs to know what your services are so you can sell them to him. First, of course, you are selling yourself — as a competent, reliable, experienced professional. If you think about it as selling yourself — how you present yourself, how you perform, how professional-appearing you are — it isn’t so daunting to think about selling a draft transcript or expedited delivery. At the end of a depo or hearing you’ve reported, these are the value-added services you have to sell. Your client can’t get them from anyone else in the world but you. It’s your big chance! Salesmanship in court reporting means simply asking.

“Counsel, would you like a draft transcript?”

I can tell you, having watched the paychecks go out to reporters here at 9 Hammond, the reporters who provide draft transcripts are the people who are making money. And draft-transcript jobs don’t just fall in their laps. They sell ‘em. “Counsel, would you like a draft? I can have it ready in a couple of hours and it’ll be good.” Attorneys love drafts! They are a useful litigation tool, and
they will be pleased to know you’re trying to help by providing an extra service he can use.

McDonald’s founder, Ray Kroc, said, “If you work only for money, you’ll never make it. But if you love what you’re doing and always put the customer first, success will be yours.” I know court reporters love what they do; they’ve told me so. Put your clients’ needs first and offer them services they can use, and you will put yourself in the top tier of professional reporters. Whether you call it upselling or supersizing ‘em, you are meeting a client’s needs, providing a valuable service, enhancing your professional prestige in the eyes of your client — and getting paid for it! Wow! Sounds like a win-win.

You won’t supersize every job, but ask at multiday jobs, or when there’s another depo in the case scheduled in a couple of days. Don’t be discouraged by self-doubt. Resolve to upgrade your skills. Remember my last column about resolving to be a better reporter? You read it. Now DO it. Attend a seminar and learn some tricks of the trade. It’s what makes the effort worthwhile. And here’s
the good news: You get paid for it! Expedited transcript? You get paid for it! Realtime hookup? You get paid for it! Okay, okay, forget the realtime hookup.

Just a thought. I was on a roll. But Ed Varallo says that once you master doing draft transcripts, providing RT hookups is not such a leap.

If you’ve read this far, then I know you’re the kind of reporter who wants to do a good job, and offering RT services above and beyond the basic transcript is what it takes to do a good job in today’s market. It is what “value-added” means.

So, have I encouraged you? Filled you with enthusiasm? Fierce determination? I hope so! If you’re still feeling queasy and uncertain or even unwilling to try, now is the time to overcome your self-doubt. There’s no time like the present! It’s springtime again, the birds are chirping, the flowers are blooming, and everything’s possible!

It’s understood that you’re accountable – to yourself, your loved ones, etc. But what about everyone else? If you’re building a team, from administrative help to associates, you’re probably keen on how accountable each person is to themselves, to you, and to the fine organization you’re building. Ask yourself, What’s one more thing, just one more thing, each of these people could be doing? Is there one more key activity that each person could do to contribute? Maybe the person answering the phones could call a few clients to check in. Perhaps your office manager could ask for referrals. Maybe your associates could book one more job per month.

Hey, it’s the start of spring, so while everyone else is half-asleep at the switch and dreaming of warmer weather, make sure you and your team are maxing opportunities by optimizing activities.

And you know the classic definition of commitment, right? “Commitment is the willingness to do whatever it takes, no matter what, within the scope of integrity.” Well, it’s been updated: wedge the phrase “and be held accountable” in the middle of it and you’ve got yourself a more powerful definition. It means you’ll do what it takes no matter what and be held accountable no matter what.

As you hit mid-year and spring turns to summer, you may not be as accountable as you should be and you may not realize how easy it is to fix this problem. Sure, we make it seem like a big deal, but is it really? An old colleague used to say, “If you’re finally ready to get serious about the career you’ve chosen to feed your family…” you’ll commit to most anything to accomplish your goals. And, of course, he’s right. Challenge: If you’re really trying to accomplish great things in enhancing the value of your company, firm or practice, won’t you commit to doing some of the little things a little more often? Doesn’t it make sense to have the same standards for everyone else in your operation? Don’t wait… act now!

Chris Bond is with Murphy Business, a business brokerage firm that does market valuations and
confidential sales of small companies no one’s ever heard of. Contact Info@TheVaralloGroup.com to
arrange a consultation with Chris.

Ed Varallo’s The Realtime Writer’s Manual covers the basics of realtime writing — conflict resolution, proper use of prefixes and suffixes, simple formatting techniques to produce clean translations of numbers, dates, times of day, parentheticals, use of flags, and numerous tips on tightening up your system so that you can reliably produce clean notes and high-quality RT output. Click here for an order form.

Whether you are hooking up to an attorney’s computer, providing quick turnaround draft transcripts, or simply want to greatly reduce the amount of time you must spend editing through a file to produce a finished transcript. Call it learning to write smart!

There are nearly 50 prefixes and over 70 suffixes illustrated, along with root words and root stems. With these entries in your dictionary, you can now translate thousands of words that aren’t in it! It’s amazing! Hundreds of sensible shortcuts are illustrated, to help streamline your writing in the most commonsense, easy-to-learn way. This is the guidebook that will kick your realtime writing program into high gear!

Since it was first published in 1992, The Realtime Writer’s Manual has been a reliable guide for reporters who wish to develop a powerful personal dictionary, capable of meeting the demands of realtime translation. To be realtime capable requires us to make use of techniques that maximize the power of computerized translation to do the work for us and produce flawless translations. This book
shows you how to do that. (Revised edition newly republished March 2013)

A funeral home a block from my office holds the remains of Tamerlan Tsarnaev, the deceased terrorist. As I write this, protesters line the sidewalk shouting, “How dare you! We don’t want him here!” No cemetery in Massachusetts has stepped forward to take his remains.

There are police officers on the street; news crews are here. Here’s what I learned about my neighbor, the funeral director, as described by Tracy Connor of NBC News:

“He’s the undertaker for the unwanted. Peter Stefan has been tending to the forgotten, the forsaken and the flat broke for years. ‘He’s bent over backwards to serve the least in the community for decades,’ said Josh Slocum, executive director of the Funeral Consumers Alliance.

Stefan said he was sensitive to the strong emotions, but also seemed bewildered that no one would take the body of the ethnic Chechen – which must be buried in accordance with Muslim tradition. Those who know Stefan were not surprised by his stand. ‘He was the only one who would bury gay men dead of AIDS back in the ’80s. He did funerals for slain prostitutes that everyone else treated like some sort of subhuman trash,’ Slocum said, calling him ‘a good man of rare character.’

A good man of rare character. A member of our community doing the right thing. We should all be so strong.

• StenOps (Stenographer Operations) at Guantanamo Bay
• Ours is not a Sit-in-Silence Job (Asserting yourself effectively and professionally)

June 15, Arkansas Court Reporters Association Annual Conference
Little Rock, AK

• Seminar: Growing Your Business

June 21, Iowa Court Reporters Association Annual Conference, Stoney Creek Inn, Johnston, IA

by Lynda Munsey

Happy New Year! It’s very early in 2013. Have you broken any New Year’s resolutions yet? Better question: Have you made any New Year’s resolutions? Mine usually involve my weight (no duh), personal habits, relationships. How about yours? I have a suggestion for you – just a suggestion. Resolve to be a better court reporter.

“Just whaddayah mean by that, Lynda?” Glad you asked. I’ve been in the belly of the beast (i.e., “in the business”) long enough to have amassed lots of opinions, and now I have this column where I can express ‘em! Gulp. Here goes. Remember, I’m speaking from the heart.

Ed Varallo might say you must write better to be a better reporter. Well, I’ve got him beat! NFL quarterback great Steve Young says, “The principle is competing against yourself. It’s all about self-improvement, about being better today than you were the day before.”

You too can apply that insight: Make an effort to be a better reporter today than you were yesterday.

From my perspective, some reporters do not take their jobs seriously. It gives me pause. Why did that reporter choose this wonderful profession in the first place? Is it the job flexibility? The money? Being part of our justice system? The prestige of being a professional? All fine reasons. Keep them in mind every day. They are your incentives to be the best reporter you can be.

Even a good reporter can be better. Always remember that you are a professional. Always. And if your skills are not advancing and keeping up with the times, then your professionalism is slipping.

Here’s my own self-improvement checklist for your consideration.

1. Turn your work in on time, every time. (Or early. Early works!) On-time delivery is a matter of expectations. Know what the agency’s regular delivery time is. Maybe the attorneys need it faster; it’s your job to know. We are all in the same service business. You and I work for agencies and the lawyers they service. Late transcripts are bad business. Everyone knows that. Turn your work in on time.

2. Keep advancing your skills. Many continuing education opportunities are available. State associations offer seminars; NCRA does too. There are webinars and videos and online courses of all kinds. Ed Varallo is hosting a TRAIN group that meets regularly right now. Your state association is actively promoting the TRAIN initiative to promote realtime writing. It’s a great way to sharpen your skills — and interact with other colleagues and friends who are doing the same thing. Take pride in your career and your reputation. Keep up your skills. Maybe one New Year’s resolve of yours will be to earn a new credential. Great! Plan to attend NCRA’s annual convention in August in Nashville. Lots of seminars, lots of social time – all providing inspiration to you! (And I have it on good authority there’ll be a rip-roaring President’s Party this year. Don’t miss it!)

3. Stay current with technology. Technology moves fast and you need to keep current. Join Nancy at NCRA’s TechCon (technology conference) in Scottsdale, AZ. It’s a great opportunity to learn about the latest in court reporting technologies.

4. Dress like a professional. When you walk in the room, you will make an impression. Enough said.

5. Be there on time. The client needs to see you there 20 minutes before start time so that he/she is assured everything’s okay. Call the office if you will be arriving later than that. It’s important!

6. Use a proofreeder. (Any questions?)

7. Carry business cards. You should have personalized business cards, with the agency’s name on them, for each agency you work for. We have business card templates that you can personalize and print out on your own. It’s easy, it’s not expensive, and it’s the professional thing to do.

8. Be a professional. Always. (Oh, did I say that already?)

By Jeannine Johnson

The dread of selling….it’s not uncommon. Many independent small-business owners get weak in the knees when it comes to sales, but lots of business owners are able to overcome the dread and be successful in selling with a little help. Others choose to outsource that dreaded function to someone who somehow manages to enjoy it! The Varallo Group has expertise in every facet of running a court reporting business and we can help you be confident and successful in selling – or we can make those calls for you. Either way, you can be successful in reaching your goals in 2013.

When choosing which strategy is right for you, here are a couple of tried-and-true techniques to help you defeat your sales obstacles this year.

Time Management

• Can you set apart one or two hours a day to focus on business development activities, putting the normal business interruptions aside for that time?
• Can you set apart two days a month for business development (in-person) meetings?

If you said yes to both of these questions, you are in a great position to overcome your dread of sales. With a little coaching, you’ll discover a new you with your increased confidence level. You’ll be amazed at the huge strides you make in tackling new business and digging deeper into your existing client base.

I have worked with small business owners and entrepreneurs all over the country in setting a strategy and reaching goals through positive and engaging sales coaching and consulting. If you have the time and you take advantage of the right sales tools and  training, the sky is the limit for you and your business.

Dread Management

Let’s face it. The projects that we enjoy get a lot more attention than the ones we don’t. The stacks and stacks of paperwork sitting on my desk give testimony to my eternal procrastination when it comes to filing (or God forbid throwing things away). For me, filing is not a matter of time management. The idea of sitting down and going through all of those piles forms a pit in my stomach – and I am forced to go shoe shopping to get rid of it! The idea of selling may form the same pit in your stomach. If  that’s the case, no amount of time management will help.

I understand that sales isn’t for everyone, but it’s necessary to build a business. That’s why I’ve partnered with The Varallo Group to offer outsourced sales functions that will work for your sales strategy.

It’s a new year, so resolve to stop procrastinating and outsource those functions that you dislike. In the end, your business will grow and you can focus on more of the projects you truly enjoy.

As Sales Consultant to The Varallo Group, Jeannine Johnson brings over 15 years of “in-the- trenches” experience in consultative sales roles. She is a partner in a growing, thriving sales coaching company based in Westborough, MA known for its award-winning approach to sales strategy and training.

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The Varallo Group offers Sales Training, Sales Coaching, Sales Consulting, and Outsourced Sales Solutions to dramatically impact your sales effectiveness and grow your business. Contact us today to get started!

Sales Training
Remember your first day in court reporting class? Perhaps you felt that you would never be able to sharpen your skills enough to become a fast, accurate, competent court reporter. We find many of our clients often feel the same way about sales. As a  sales representative of your business, you feel nervous, inadequate, certain that sales is not something you could ever be good at. We provide sales training and coaching to sharpen your skills in key messaging, networking, and in-person sales techniques that  result in confidence, capability, and increased revenue for your business.

Sales Consulting
Do you have a vision for your business? Do you have specific goals for business growth? More importantly, do you know how to reach those goals? Our sales consultant can work with you to build a clear, specific sales plan that acts as a road map to success. We take the time to understand every aspect of your business and specific market to ensure accurate and timely sales strategies that will help to maximize your results.

Outsourced Sales Functions
At The Varallo Group, we understand the challenge of running your business, performing as a court reporter, and concurrently focusing on growing your business through sales efforts. We provide an outsourced solution for sales functions including:  making sales calls on behalf of your company (appointment setting), trade show staffing, event planning, and sales promotions.

Direct Placement
Have you considered hiring a full-time sales professional to focus on business development? We can help you determine when and how to hire a sales professional that produces results for your business. We’ll also advise you on a compensation plan  that will work within your budget. In addition, we offer a fully outsourced placement solution to recruit, interview, and assess potential candidates for your business.

Watch for details about our upcoming Webinar on Sales Strategies for Court Reporting Agencies.

Dear Not So Frilly in Philly: Clothes may not make the man (or woman), but they do make an impression. We are professionals and we need to project a professional image. The right attitude conveys the right impression. So do clothes. On the other hand…

Our board was in Philadelphia several days before our convention started. Also in the hotel were 2,500 Honda salesmen and women. We saw them everywhere — on the elevators, in the hallways and restaurants, outside meeting rooms. I always reacted positively to them, because they looked great. No T-shirts, no jeans, no golf shirts or (heaven forbid!) sweatshirts. They were dressed like pros: classy business suits for both men and women. Every one of them. They projected the right image. They got my attention, and my respect.

Your dad was right. If it’s important, dress like you know it’s important. Our job is important. Every day we interact with other professionals, lawyers, judges, doctors, businessmen and women. They size us up, taking cues from how we comport ourselves and our attitude. And how we dress is part of the picture. We should always dress in business attire on the job, not “mall casual,” and that’s how we ought to present ourselves at a meeting or convention. It’s not a vacation on the beach, it’s a meeting of professional colleagues and friends.

This year NCRA will work to fortify our StenAdvocate program. Are you a good advocate for our profession? Does your conduct enhance the image of the professional court reporter, or not? Trust me, people notice. I noticed the Honda folks. And I’m sure they noticed us.

You make an impression everywhere you go, so make sure it’s the right impression. Dress for success! Smile! And show up on time. People will notice.

I recently moderated a discussion among court reporters about the future of court reporting. I had anticipated a positive discussion about our future. Instead, I heard nothing but complaints: fast-talking attorneys, mumble-mouth witnesses, incessant demands, short lunch breaks, long hours, too many exhibits to lug home. And I agree: sometimes the demands seem overwhelming. But my view of our profession isn’t so negative. I failed when I tried to keep the discussion positive. What would you suggest I do next time? Signed, Upbeat in a Downbeat World

Dear Upbeat in a Downbeat World:

First, don’t give up! We need committed volunteers. So steady yourself and get back out there. Court reporters work alone and have little face time with fellow reporters. So when we do get together with folks who actually understand us, it’s a great chance to vent. Some reporters say we go into court reporting because we don’t like to be noticed. Hah! No way. All the world’s a stage and reporters, like most folks, love to perform.

I get their frustration. “You want it when?” And we’re supposed to smile! RPR certification speed of 225? “Oh, yeah, I talk fast, 260 wpm or better, the reporters tell me.” It’s not fair. Then again, life’s not fair, so we have to keep perspective. Everybody’s under pressure. People talk fast these days because people talk fast these days, not because they are trying to make our job difficult. And lawyers, judges, and businesspeople try to cram too much work into each workday. Once, at an NCRA convention, I reported the fast-talking keynote speaker, a futurist. Seeing me struggle, someone asked him how the court reporter was possibly supposed to keep up with him. His answer: The world won’t wait for you. Alas, he’s right.

Next time you’re fielding a stream of negative comments, inject some perspective. You had a long day and a short lunch? How inconsiderate of them! Makes the job tougher, no doubt. But it is better than a long day and no lunch. Of course, knowing how to respectfully but firmly communicate our needs to the attorneys is part of the required skill set. What’s this? You’re complaining that the lawyers want the draft tonight, or expedited delivery? That’s great! How many ways are there for us to enhance revenue on a day’s work? If you see such a demand as an undue burden on you, perhaps you should step back and assess your realtime skills. We live in a fast-moving, realtime everything world. And that’s what lawyers expect of us. NCRA and state associations offer multiple resources to help you bring your realtime skills up to snuff. Take advantage of them. Then demands for quick drafts or expedites won’t look onerous; they will look like money in the bank!

When you are moderating again, let people complain. Let them give voice to their frustrations. Helps to get rid of the negativity. But we are all professionals, and we need a grown-up perspective. Meeting our clients’ demands is what we are in business to do. If we stop doing that or complain about it, our clients will go elsewhere. With careful stress management, a moderator can turn the tide. And if the sea of negativity can’t be calmed? Well, you have my permission to wail — or bail!

The question: Should we wear colognes or perfumes on the job?

My answer: Think of a whisper when you wear perfume and cologne like a whisper, an intimacy saved for those folks who come within a foot of you. There’s no need to “shout” out to everyone in the room. But these folks say it better.

• I LOVE wearing cologne…but in the work environment it is definitely frowned upon.
• I had an experience one time where an elderly lady complained about my perfume. (I did not have a lot on.) And she sat at the opposite end of a very long conference table while I took her dep. Since then I am very careful never to apply too much.
• I’m very sensitive to colognes and perfumes. This is a new development within the past ten years. Before that, I could wear anything. Better to just be clean and smell like nothing than potentially give someone a migraine. I wish perfumes and colognes would be outlawed completely!
• I have a very hard time with colognes and perfumes. I get an instant headache from them. It’s tough at conferences, plays, concerts, when I end up sitting next to someone with fragrances.
• My office is a fragrance-free office, and we all seem to like it better. I say no to fragrances on the job!
• I also have a tough time with colognes and perfumes. I can actually get an asthma attack from some of them. I really suffer when someone who wears strong perfume is near me. Years ago, we had a reporter who was actually sent home because so many people at the courthouse had been complaining about his cologne. He was told to come back scent-free. I say no to fragrances as well!
• Big allergy/asthma trigger for many. And in general, you don’t want to create a distraction for anyone.
• I have met a few folks with chemical allergies, so sometimes even shaking hands with a person who has lotion on can trigger a big allergy attack. I always refrain from fragrance as much as possible.

Rich had the final comment on the post: Wow…who knew? This is VERY interesting to hear how others feel about cologne/perfume in general. I’ll definitely keep it to just “one” spray from now on in a social setting. As I mentioned before…I don’t know where I learned it…but I never wear it in the work environment.