The $680 investment that saves me $8,000 monthly
Most solo lawyers think they can't afford help. Here's why they're wrong—and the math that changed everything.
Most solo lawyers think they can’t afford help.
I thought the same thing—until I did the math.
My overseas VA costs $680/month. The time she saves me? Worth $8,000.
That’s an 11x return on investment.
Here’s what she handles.
While I focus on the essential work, my VA takes care of:
Client onboarding (following my script)
Document editing and formatting
Calendar management and scheduling
Essential research tasks
Setting up important automations
Time saved: 80 hours/month
Value created: $8,000 (at $100/hour billing rate)
My investment:$680.
The math is simple. The mindset shift isn’t.
The security blanket problem
Most lawyers cling to administrative tasks like a security blanket. They think delegation means losing control.
Actually, it means gaining freedom.
My Philippine VA has an engineering degree. She’s brilliant, reliable, and costs about the same as a monthly car payment.
While many lawyers drown in paperwork at 9 PM, I’m on an Alaskan cruise with my wife Donna.
Most lawyers work harder. I work smarter.
The uncomfortable truth
Formatting documents isn’t practicing law.
You’re playing an expensive secretary.
Your clients didn’t hire you to schedule meetings or fix formatting. They hired you to solve their legal problems.
Every hour spent on admin work is an hour lost on strategy, business development, or high-value legal work.
Why do lawyers resist?
The biggest objection I hear: “What about confidentiality?”
Fair concern. Here’s how I handle it:
Explicit confidentiality policies
Secure file-sharing systems
Explicit boundaries on heraccess.
Regular check-ins to ensure compliance
It’s manageable—and essential.
The bottom line
$680/month. $8,000 worth of freed-up time. 11x ROI.
Today’s successful lawyers understand this equation. They’ve stopped doing $15/hour work at $200/hour rates.
If you need help finding quality VAs, check out Get Staffed Up and Stafi —two services that connect lawyers with hardworking, reliable assistants.
What are you waiting for?
;-)
Ernie
P.S. Stafi is presenting to my Inner Circle lawyers in a few weeks. If you want to learn more, click here.