Accident Lawyers Make Mistakes-We Do...and We Love It!

I just finished reading Hug Your Customers by Jack Mitchell and I have to say I really love mistakes. No I'm not talking about the type of mistakes that jeopardizes a client's case since that would be malpractice. We do not like those type of mistakes at all. However, because we are human beings and the people that we work with are human, from time to time mistakes happen. Its inevitable and anyone that says they don't make mistakes is lying. The question becomes what do you do when a mistake happens? Mistakes should be looked at as challeneges. When we make a mistake we try extra hard to make up for it and in the end, for the most part, our relationship with our client is even stronger. Jack Mitchell who is the CEO of a well know clothing store says in his book "Hug Your Customers" that relatonships that are strong become stronger when a mistake happens and the right thing is done to make sure the mistake never happens again. As Jack has said "we dont go around looking for people to make bloopers" but life is a bunch of wins and losses, perfections and imperfections, good and bad and along the way you are bound to make mistakes.
When a mistake occurs in our office it usually results in a new and better policy which creates a better and stronger relationship with the client. As an example a few years ago when a couple of our clients felt that their phone calls were not being returned promptly we decided to have all phone messages written in a memo book and in the computer which is then sent directly to the lawyer handeling the case. Another example of a mistake was when a client called and wanted some information on his case.The prior policy was that only the lawyers would give out that information. That would leave a client frustrated if no lawyers were in the office at the time. As a result now our legal assistants can give the clients some limited information even when the lawyer is not around.
Of course Jack Mitchell says the number one way of fixing a mistake is....apologizing. Sound simple,right? It does not happen as often as we would like to see. In our office if we make a mistake an apology is the first step in regaining our client's trust and its very often that's all the client wants to hear. If you enjoy working with people as we do mistakes should be taken seriously and looked at as an opportunity to better the client relationship.