Revamp Your Legal Mindset
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BONUS FREEBIE: Want even more ways to stay organized, productive and less stressed? Click here to get access to my List-Making Starter Kit. It will boost your efficiency and get you back to doing more of the things you love.
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Starting a business is hard! So once you get to the point where you need to protect what you’ve built, figuring out the legal steps you need to take can feel overwhelming.
And learning legalese can feel like learning another language. But it doesn’t have to be scary and confusing!
I spoke with Legal Coach & Attorney, Author of Easy Legal Steps, Podcast Host & Speaker, Lisa Fraley, to learn how to revamp our legal mindset to protect your business and be most productive.
Here are Lisa’s top tips from our conversation.
1) Lawyers are your friends.
The idea of hiring a lawyer for legal help can be intimidating. Especially if you associate hiring lawyers with problems that have already occurred. But lawyers aren’t scary, they’re helpful!
Knowing you’re protected legally, can actually reduce your stress while conducting business.
“You don’t have to worry. You don’t have to stress. You have all your legal protections in place, and that frees you to go create what you want without worrying,” Lisa said.
Instead of calling up lawyers when something happens, bring lawyers into the beginning parts of the process. You’ll thank yourself later.
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2) Legal protection is preventative, so don’t wait until something happens.
You don’t just go to the doctor when you’re sick. You go for annual checkups to make sure you catch any potential problems early. Going to a lawyer should be the same way.
“Just like taking care of your body or your money, the more you do on the front end to protect yourself, the more that you’ll feel relaxed as you move forward in your business,” Lisa said.
Having all your documents in order makes you more confident to operate as a business owner.
“When you protect yourself with legal documents, you’re giving yourself limited liability and reducing your risk and keeping yourself safe. You actually show up with greater confidence because of the greater protection and boundaries,” Lisa explained.
So don’t wait until something happens to find a lawyer. Cut down on the likelihood you’ll need one because of a problem by using them earlier in the process.
3) Legal documents make your business more productive.
But what legal documents do you need? Don’t worry Lisa gave us a list!
Lisa’s list of documents:
- Client agreements (including language about refunds!)
- Website documents (so people can’t take your content)
- Trademarks to protect your brand
- Team contracts to clarify expectations, responsibilities, and payment detail
You can bring this list to your lawyer and make sure you have everything you need to start moving forward with your business with confidence.
Check out Lisa’s FREE refund policy guide to get you started!
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4) Legal documents make your business more productive.
Client agreements are one of the most important documents that help the productivity of your business.
“Put in writing what’s included in your program and what services you’re offering, the payment or how your refund policy works, how communication works, disclaimers, limitations of liability and you both sign your name to the dotted line,” Lisa said.
Having everything written out helps all parties understand what they’re paying for and how to move forward working together.
“Protecting your income and protecting your content are two of the ways to help free yourself from worry, and you go on to be more productive,” Lisa added.
5) Refund policies are your best friend.
And a large part of freeing yourself from worry is in the details of your refund policies.
So make the terms and policies of your refunds clear.
“Having a refund policy is critically important to make it clear and spelled out in your client agreement, your terms of use, anywhere where you’re selling any type of service to a client,” Lisa said.
If you don’t clarify your refund policies at the beginning of your client relationships, you might find yourself in sticky situations.
“It can be very stressful when you’ve either spent the money already or you weren’t anticipating that refund coming and you need that money to pay your rent or your bill,” Lisa explained.
How you’ll feel once your documents are created, refund policies are defined, and everything is lawyer approved:
Check out Lisa’s FREE refund policy guide and watch our entire conversation here for more legal tips to make your business more productive and protected.
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BONUS FREEBIE: Want even more ways to stay organized, productive and less stressed? Click here to get access to my List-Making Starter Kit. It will boost your efficiency and get you back to doing more of the things you love.
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