It's rough being a consumer these days. Companies we deal withseem indifferent to our needs. Salespeople have abandoned traditionalvalues such as honesty and trust, and most could use arefresher course in basic manners. Fewer and fewer transactionsrely on personal relationships as businesses (and government agencies)become bigger and more bureaucratic. When we have questions or complaintsabout products or services, it's often impossible to get a response, muchlessa reasonable, courteous one. Gone are the days of the mom and pop shop.Gone is the motto "The Customer Is Always Right." We are not in GroversCorners anymore. Many ordinary retailers who would once havebeen neighbors or friendly acquaintances are nowpart of multibillion-dollar national or internationalorganizations. We buy cars, clothes, food,furniture, and nearly everything else from nameless,faceless salespeople at companies that sell tomillions of other nameless, faceless customers.These businesses have absolutely no interest inour individual satisfaction (although some ofthem fake it pretty well). Even the smallest businessesthat we regularly deal with--perhaps alandlord who owns an apartment building or aservice business with a few hundred customers--don't seem inclinedto deal with customers whomight take up time and money. I have practiced law for thirty years. Myclients have the same problems with retailers,service people, hospitals, airlines, schools, andemployers as everyone else. But they deal withthem differently: They hire me. And I getresponses for them--usually the responses theywere hoping for--every time. Is there something special about me? Or about my clients?Honestly, no. The reason lawyers get responsesis that we know the right buttons to push. Thisbook won't give you a law degree, but it willteach you how to push those buttons yourself. Lawyers have three ways of getting theirpoints across to people they are trying to influence:talking, writing letters, and filing lawsuits.Of these, letters are by far the most effective.Talk is cheap, as the saying goes, and in thesorts of situations most people face today, it cantake forever to find out the right person to talkto about a particular matter. Talk may be usefulonce a letter gets someone's attention, but it'srarely of any use before that occurs. Lawsuits aretime-consuming and expensive. They are a hasslethat everyone wants to avoid, and reputablelawyers reserve them for large disputes in whichan amicable settlement cannot be reached. Letters are ideal for most matters. They areinexpensive (unlike lawsuits), they create a papertrail, and they have a good chance of landing onthe right desk (unlike a phone call). Even lettersthat are not sent by lawyers can have a legal sting.Most people are surprised when I tell them thatmore than half the letters I write for my clients arenot sent by me, but by the clients themselves. Isuggest the words for such letters and sometimeseven write the whole thing, but the clients sendthem on their own stationery. The recipients ofthese letters can usually tell that my clients haveeither spoken with a lawyer or are aware of thelegal consequences of the matter. This will be thecase with your letters. And because most peoplewant to keep away from lawyers, most recipientsof your letters will want to resolve the matterwithout further ado. IT IS THE MONEY It makes the world go round. It talks. It changeseverything. Keep it in mind because "it" isthe most important thing in getting others torespond to your demands--money. The old saying "when someone saysit's not about money, it'sabout money" is absolutely right. In nearly all situationsinvolving business, money is the only considerationyou face. What about reputation andgoodwill? In my experience, these are importantonly when they affect money or power (whichusually leads to money). When a lawyer is on thereceiving end of a dispute (where I have beenabout half the time), clients don't pretend thatthings other than money--or things that generatemoney, such as jobs or election results--matter atall. You might like to think that people care aboutintegrity and principles, but unfortunately, this israrely the case. Clients of mine who've received demandsdon't ask me, "Do you think she has a goodpoint?" or "What do you think would be the fairthing to do here?" They ask, "What do you thinkis the cheapest way to get rid of this guy?" or "Ifwe ignore them, will they have any sort of a case?" The bottom line is,I'm afraid, the bottom line. Excerpted from You Don't Need a Lawyer! by James M. Kramon, James Kramon All rights reserved by the original copyright owners. Excerpts are provided for display purposes only and may not be reproduced, reprinted or distributed without the written permission of the publisher.
