I expected Solo by Choice, Carolyn Elefant’s new book on “How to Be the Lawyer You Always Wanted to Be,” to be a good read because Carolyn’s always an interesting writer.  The subject matter, on the other hand, gave me pause, since I am often disturbed about the one-sided approach of writers espousing the joys of going solo.  The tendency to promote the benefits and ignore the problems is hard to resist.  Was Carolyn up to the task?

Solo by Choice blew me away.  As I read it, I became deeply concerned that I didn’t have enough glowing adjectives at my command to capture just how fantastic this book was, and how much I recommend it to anyone who has even a twinkle in their eye about the possibility of breaking out of the grind.  If I wasn’t already a solo, I would become one after reading this book, it’s that thorough, balanced and persuasive.

Before turning to the substance, I was captured by Carolyn’s style, every page filled with wit and humility, exactly the tone one would hope to achieve in a book about solo’ing.  Interspersed throughout the book are sidebars, almost vignettes, that include real life stories, including some from Carolyn’s own personal and career history, that assure you that the thoughts going through your head aren’t novel or insurmountable. 

It would be far too easy to be pedantic about telling others how to live their lives, and Carolyn instead draws us into her world, never making the reader feel that their issues or concerns are inconsequential.  In fact, one feels that Carolyn is there sharing it with us, and fully appreciating the difficulty of the decision.  She’s humorous and serious at the same time, and moves forward with just the right degree of speed to inform without becoming tedious. 

Substantively, the book begins by dealing with the common issues confronting a wide variety of lawyer facing up to the hard decision of breaking out of the box.  What amazed me was the breadth of thought that Carolyn put into this book, raising issues and concerns that had never entered my mind, but were of clear significance once Carolyn raised them. 

Perhaps the most important part of Carolyn’s approach was its balance.  While maintaining a positive tone throughout, Carolyn never ignored or sugar-coated the problems facing a solo practitioner, and faced up to the wide variety of issues head on.  Indeed, Carolyn created rubrics to consider whether the reader would be able to surmount some hard, real problems, thus saving the honest reader from finding themselves swept up in the tide of solo-joy, only to find that it wasn’t the right path for them. 



Solo by Choice then turns into a “how-to” of extraordinary depth and detail.  Carolyn includes the nuts and bolts, from worrying whether your home electrical power is adequate for an office, to the color of your business cards, to billing difficult clients, to give the new solo a huge leg up in building a practice.  There are a thousand decisions and considerations to make in starting your own practice, but with this book, you will be so far ahead of the curve that your chances of success are increased exponentially.

But it doesn’t stop there.  Carolyn’s book isn’t geared to just the urban lawyer, or the Nebraska lawyer, but covers ground that will be meaningful to the full panoply of issues confronting lawyers under almost every circumstance.  While most solo lawyers can relate their own experiences, Carolyn has studiously covered issues that are both common to all, and quite unique to the varying circumstances around the country.  Clearly, Carolyn has given her topic enormous thought, and it shows in every chapter.

After the nuts and bolts, Solo by Choice moves forward to the cutting edge of solo practice, from software to marketing, with information that us old-timers who have done things the same way forever could certainly use.  Throughout the book, Carolyn cites to website and blogs for additional back-up for the reader as well as background support.  (Note to self:  Carolyn didn’t include your blawg anywhere.  What does that tell you?)

Solo by Choice is so full of truly useful and meaningful information that I can’t conceive of anyone who is considering starting a solo practice not buying a couple of copies so that they can pull the “what to do” lists and timeliness out and tape them to the wall.  I’ve never seen anything as comprehensive, and thoughtful, available to any lawyer ready to give it a go. 

But even if you’re already solo, and could benefit from a little confidence bolstering or perhaps some exceptionally detailed pointers to shore up that shaky practice, read Solo by Choice.  It’s so well written that the worst that can happen is you’ll enjoy the book and admire Carolyn’s thorough take.  Rarely will you find a book that’s such a pleasure to read and so incredibly useful.  Solo by Choice is destined to be the bible for going solo.  Don’t even think about starting a solo practice without reading it.