You: She didn’t retain me.

Me: Why?

You: I don’t know.

Me: What do you mean, you don’t know?

You: She left the consult, and I thought things had gone well. I just never heard from her again.

Me: So did she reconcile? Did she hire someone else? Did she do it herself?

You: I don’t know.

Me: Why don’t you know? What did she say when you called?

You: I didn’t call.

Me: Why didn’t you call?

You: I don’t call prospects after we meet. I don’t want to bother them. I assume they’ll call me when they’re ready.

Me: Ah.

I’ve had this conversation before. It drives me slightly crazy.

You didn’t call because you didn’t want to be pushy. That’s your perspective. That’s a fine perspective if it serves you in some way.

Of course, the prospect sees it differently. She hired someone else. Why? Because she had decided—before she came to visit you—to interview two attorneys. After all, this is a huge decision for her.

The other lawyer, a nice person who has been practicing law for about 20 minutes, called her that evening. The 20-minute lawyer wanted to check and make sure the prospect had understood everything and that the lawyer had answered all of her questions.

Did the client perceive the call as being pushy? No, she saw it as caring. She figured out that the 20-minute lawyer cared about her and her case. She figured out that the 20-minute lawyer was interested in her life.

Sold.

You keep worrying about bothering her so the 20-minute lawyer can keep growing her practice.