The Practice Playbook Podcast with Susan Guthrie

An innovative and cutting edge podcast from one of the leading names in online mediation, legal tech and practice development, Attorney Susan E. Guthrie, who shares insights, tips and expert know how for dispute resolution professionals who want to build and grow a successful practice!

The Practice Playbook Podcast with Susan Guthrie is a business podcast hosted by Susan Guthrie, with 145 episodes on record and a Required Pod Score of 80.

Susan Guthrie hosts The Practice Playbook Podcast with Susan Guthrie, a business show with 145 episodes published.

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  Episode #576

  Stop Growing a Practice You Secretly Want to Escape with Susan E. Guthrie on The Practice Playbook Podcast #475

  Sep 24, 202658 min

  Growth is not always the next right move. Sometimes more clients or more visibility are not what you are actually looking for. In fact, perhaps you'd actually want less of them. When a practice feels off, the instinct is often to reach for more marketing, more referrals, or more revenue. But growth is not automatically repair. If what a practice needs is some repair, growth only multiplies what is already there, and more clients will not fix an unclear scope, underpricing, or a practice that runs on reaction instead of design. In this episode of The Practice Playbook Podcast, Susan Guthrie asks listeners to imagine their current practice with twice as much demand, and to notice whether that feels like energy or dread. Drawing on her own years in a litigation practice and her work with colleagues, she explores why so many professionals who ask for marketing help really need a practice assessment and redesign first, why marketing can open the door but cannot change what happens after it opens, and why AI can speed up pieces of a workflow but will never fix its design. In This Episode Susan discusses: What a feeling of heaviness or dread around more demand may be telling you Why more clients will not fix an unclear scope, underpricing, a reactive or an over-customized practice Why marketing can bring more people to the door but can't fix what happens when you meet How practitioners in the early days of practice should think differently about taking on more work The subtle signs your practice needs redesign, from exhaustion and wrong-fit referrals to workflows Why redesign before growth does not mean tearing everything down to the studs How come implementation, not planning, is the hard part Practical Question from This Episode What would happen if your current practice got twice as much demand? Picture twice as many inquiries, referrals, consultations, and clients, each expecting the same level of access you give right now. Does that feel like energy or tension? Excitement or dread? If the thought of more feels heavy, not hopeful, it is not resistance to success. It is wisdom waving a red flag. Free Listener Resource Growth Readiness Check This free resource helps you apply the central question from this episode to your own practice. Use it to explore what kind of growth would feel exciting, what would feel heavy, what more demand might amplify, and what may need redesign before you pursue more clients, visibility, referrals, or revenue. Download the free resource from the episode page on the website at susaneguthrie.com/podcasts Practice Accelerator Resource Redesign Before You Grow Map Inside the Practice Accelerator, members receive the deeper companion resource for this episode: The Redesign Before You Grow Map. This implementation tool helps you move beyond noticing and make the first decision about what needs to be redesigned. When more than one thing needs attention, it helps you decide which one is the best place to start, and it is not always the biggest one. The free resource helps you see the issue. The Accelerator resource helps you work through the redesign. The Business Plan Playbook, Second Edition The Business Plan Playbook, Second Edition launches September 29. This new edition introduces the Living Practice Plan™ and helps lawyers, mediators, dispute resolution professionals, consultants, coaches, and other service-based professionals examine the practice they have inherited, reacted into, or intentionally designed. Pricing is one part of that larger design. Your fees connect to your services, client experience, delivery model, visibility, systems, technology, revenue goals, and capacity. The Second Edition helps you look at those pieces together so you can build a practice by design, not by default. Learn more at intentionalpracticedesign.com . Join the Practice Accelerator The Practice Accelerator is the place to work through the ideas from The Practice Playbook Podcast and The Practice Playbook Series in a supportive online community. For $99/month, members receive: →Three live working sessions every month →Coaching from me in the community board and in every group session →The Business Plan Playbook, Second Edition, as a printable PDF →An Accelerator-only implementation guide with every new Practice Playbook Podcast episode It is designed for lawyers, mediators, arbitrators, dispute resolution professionals, consultants, and other service-based professionals who want practical tools, accountability, and support as they build by design, not by default. Learn more at susaneguthrie.com/accelerator. Take the Practice Design Assessment Not sure where to begin? Take the Practice Design Assessment to see where your practice may be inherited, reactive, or intentionally designed, and where one intentional redesign could create the greatest relief, clarity, or momentum. Start the assessment at intentionalpracticedesign.com/assessment. Meet Our Creator and Host: Susan Guthrie Susan E. Guthrie is one of the most respected voices in law, mediation and conflict resolution today. A nationally recognized family law attorney and mediator for 35 years, she is now a top professional coach and consultant helping dispute resolution and legal professionals build thriving, modern practices. Susan recently appeared on The Oprah Podcast, expanding her reach to an even broader audience and highlighting her role as a trusted expert in divorce, communication, and modern conflict resolution. She is also the creator and host of The Divorce & Beyond Podcast, ranked in the top 1% worldwide, with millions of listeners and a global following. As Past Chair of the American Bar Association Section of Dispute Resolution, Susan continues to shape the future of the profession while training and mentoring practitioners around the world. Connect with Susan E. Guthrie Website: https://susaneguthrie.com Books: https://susaneguthrie.com/books Practice Playbook Series: https://intentionalpracticedesign.com LinkedIn: www.linkedin.com/in/susaneguthrie Instagram: @susaneguthrie and @practiceplaybookpodcast If you enjoyed this episode, please take a moment to subscribe to The Practice Playbook Podcast on your favorite platform, leave a 5-star review, and share the episode with a colleague or professional friend who would benefit from this conversation. Your support helps us continue bringing practical insights, forward-thinking strategies, and meaningful conversations to lawyers, mediators, arbitrators, and entrepreneurial professionals looking to build stronger, smarter, and more sustainable practices. And as always, please remember that this podcast is presented for informational and educational purposes only. It is not intended as legal advice, business advice, or professional advice of any kind, and listening to this podcast does not create any attorney-client or professional relationship.

  ListenShow Notes
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  Episode #575

  Your Fees May Be Building a Practice You Don't Want with Susan E. Guthrie on the Practice Playbook Podcast #474

  Sep 10, 202657 min

  Your fees are not just how you get paid. They may be quietly building the practice you are trying to escape. Every fee structure creates consequences. Hourly billing, flat fees, subscriptions, packages, phased fees, and hybrid models do more than determine revenue. They shape client expectations, boundaries, scope, workload, value perception, risk, and sustainability. That means the real pricing question is not simply, “What should I charge?” The better question is: What kind of practice does this pricing model create? In this episode of The Practice Playbook Podcast, Susan Guthrie looks at pricing as one of the most powerful design choices in a professional practice. She explores what underpricing may be building, why hourly billing can reward inefficiency and punish expertise, how AI is weakening the link between time and value, and why alternative fee models only work when the service design underneath them is clear. This episode draws from Susan’s work in The Flat Fee Playbook, The Business Plan Playbook, Second Edition, and her upcoming ABA book, FUTURE PROOF: Designing a Legal or ADR Practice for the AI Era. Together, they point to one essential truth: pricing is never just pricing. It is part of the practice you are building. In This Episode Susan discusses: Why fees are practice design choices, not just financial decisions What underpricing may reveal about scope, value, confidence, and sustainability How hourly billing can reward time instead of expertise Why AI is changing the relationship between time, work, and value What flat fees, subscriptions, packages, and hybrid models require in order to work well Why clearer pricing requires clearer service design How to ask whether your current pricing still belongs in the practice you want to build Practical Question from This Episode What kind of practice does this pricing model create? Choose one fee, one service, one offering, or one engagement type and look at it with curiosity. Is it building clarity or confusion? Good boundaries or scope creep? Sustainability or resentment? A better client experience or a more reactive practice? Free Listener Resource What Is This Fee Building? Mini-Audit This free worksheet helps you look at one fee or pricing model and identify what it may be creating inside your practice. Use it to explore what the fee promises, what it requires, what it makes easier, what it makes harder, and where one small design change may create more clarity. Download the free resource from the episode page on the website at susaneguthrie.com/podcasts Practice Accelerator Resource Pricing Model Redesign Map Inside the Practice Accelerator, members receive the deeper companion resource for this episode: the Pricing Model Redesign Map. This implementation tool helps you move beyond noticing what a fee is building and begin redesigning one pricing model around value, scope, boundaries, client expectations, delivery, AI impact, and sustainability. The free resource helps you see the issue. The Accelerator resource helps you work through the redesign. The Business Plan Playbook, Second Edition The Business Plan Playbook, Second Edition launches September 29. This new edition introduces the Living Practice Plan™ and helps lawyers, mediators, dispute resolution professionals, consultants, coaches, and other service-based professionals examine the practice they have inherited, reacted into, or intentionally designed. Pricing is one part of that larger design. Your fees connect to your services, client experience, delivery model, visibility, systems, technology, revenue goals, and capacity. The Second Edition helps you look at those pieces together so you can build a practice by design, not by default. Learn more at intentionalpracticedesign.com . Join the Practice Accelerator The Practice Accelerator is the place to work through the ideas from The Practice Playbook Podcast and The Practice Playbook Series in a supportive online community. For $99/month, members receive: →Three live working sessions every month →Coaching from me in the community board and in every group session →The Business Plan Playbook, Second Edition, as a printable PDF →An Accelerator-only implementation guide with every new Practice Playbook Podcast episode It is designed for lawyers, mediators, arbitrators, dispute resolution professionals, consultants, and other service-based professionals who want practical tools, accountability, and support as they build by design, not by default. Learn more at susaneguthrie.com/accelerator. Take the Practice Design Assessment Not sure where to begin? Take the Practice Design Assessment to see where your practice may be inherited, reactive, or intentionally designed, and where one intentional redesign could create the greatest relief, clarity, or momentum. Start the assessment at intentionalpracticedesign.com/assessment. Meet Our Creator and Host: Susan Guthrie Susan E. Guthrie is one of the most respected voices in law, mediation and conflict resolution today. A nationally recognized family law attorney and mediator for 35 years, she is now a top professional coach and consultant helping dispute resolution and legal professionals build thriving, modern practices. Susan recently appeared on The Oprah Podcast, expanding her reach to an even broader audience and highlighting her role as a trusted expert in divorce, communication, and modern conflict resolution. She is also the creator and host of The Divorce & Beyond Podcast, ranked in the top 1% worldwide, with millions of listeners and a global following. As Past Chair of the American Bar Association Section of Dispute Resolution, Susan continues to shape the future of the profession while training and mentoring practitioners around the world. Connect with Susan E. Guthrie Website: https://susaneguthrie.com Books: https://susaneguthrie.com/books Practice Playbook Series: https://intentionalpracticedesign.com LinkedIn: www.linkedin.com/in/susaneguthrie Instagram: @susaneguthrie and @practiceplaybookpodcast If you enjoyed this episode, please take a moment to subscribe to The Practice Playbook Podcast on your favorite platform, leave a 5-star review, and share the episode with a colleague or professional friend who would benefit from this conversation. Your support helps us continue bringing practical insights, forward-thinking strategies, and meaningful conversations to lawyers, mediators, arbitrators, and entrepreneurial professionals looking to build stronger, smarter, and more sustainable practices. And as always, please remember that this podcast is presented for informational and educational purposes only. It is not intended as legal advice, business advice, or professional advice of any kind, and listening to this podcast does not create any attorney-client or professional relationship.

  ListenShow Notes
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  Episode #573

  A Full Calendar Is Not a Business Plan with Susan Guthrie on the Practice Playbook Podcast #472

  Aug 13, 202617 min

  A full calendar can feel like proof that a practice is working. The phone rings, the referrals come in, the consultation requests land in the inbox, and from the outside, that looks like success. But inside the practice, a full calendar can hide a lot. In fact, a full calendar is not the same as a healthy practice. In this solo episode, Susan Guthrie continues the lead-up to the launch of The Business Plan Playbook, Second Edition, by turning to one of the clearest places a practice tells the truth: the calendar. She breaks down what a full calendar can actually be hiding, why revenue alone does not tell the whole story, and why the real question is not whether the calendar is full, but what it is full of. Susan walks through a practical 30-day calendar audit designed to help identify what the calendar is rewarding, what it is ignoring, and where one pattern might be ready for redesign. What You'll Learn What a full calendar can actually be hiding, from underpricing to wrong-fit clients to weak systems Why traditional business planning can miss the point when it only looks at revenue goals How to figure out what your calendar is really rewarding, and whether that matches the practice you want to build How to study your last 30 days and identify one calendar pattern that's ready for redesign Free Episode Companion Resource: The Calendar Truth Worksheet This week's free companion resource walks you through mapping the last 30 days of your calendar, scoring each block of time with a simple plus, equals, or minus, and identifying the one pattern taking the most and returning the least. It takes about fifteen minutes with your actual calendar in front of you, and it ends with a decision, not just a reflection. Download the worksheet at IntentionalPracticeDesign.com Join The Practice Accelerator Susan's Practice Accelerator is now open as a monthly membership subscription! Designed for professionals who want more than just ideas, the Accelerator delivers structure, strategy, accountability, and a community of forward-thinking professionals who are serious about building sustainable, successful practices. If you have ever wondered if you would benefit from professional coaching, this is your opportunity to test the waters with Susan at an accessible price point. Members receive: One monthly live webinar with Susan in her signature practical and easily implemented insights and strategies for building your practice. Two live monthly group Office Hours sessions with Susan. A place to bring your questions to receive expert advice and insights from colleagues on the same journey. Weekly Premium Resource that accompanies the latest Practice Playbook Podcast episode that supports you in implementing the golden nuggets in the episode. And much more for only $99/month. Use code "PPP" for $10 off your monthly subscription! Visit https://susaneguthrie.com/accelerator to join now. Meet Our Creator and Host: Susan Guthrie Susan E. Guthrie is one of the most respected voices in mediation and conflict resolution today. A nationally recognized family law attorney and mediator for 35 years, she is now a top professional coach and consultant helping dispute resolution and legal professionals build thriving, modern practices. Susan recently appeared on The Oprah Podcast, expanding her reach to an even broader audience and highlighting her role as a trusted expert in divorce, communication, and modern conflict resolution. She is also the creator and host of The Divorce & Beyond Podcast, ranked in the top 1% worldwide, with millions of listeners and a global following. As Immediate Past Chair of the American Bar Association Section of Dispute Resolution, Susan continues to shape the future of the profession while training and mentoring practitioners around the world. Connect with Susan E. Guthrie Website: https://susaneguthrie.com Books: https://susaneguthrie.com/books LinkedIn: www.linkedin.com/in/susaneguthrie Instagram: @susaneguthrie and @practiceplaybookpodcast If you enjoyed this episode, please take a moment to subscribe to The Practice Playbook Podcast on your favorite platform, leave a 5-star review, and share the episode with a colleague or professional friend who would benefit from this conversation. Your support helps us continue bringing practical insights, forward-thinking strategies, and meaningful conversations to lawyers, mediators, arbitrators, and entrepreneurial professionals looking to build stronger, smarter, and more sustainable practices. And as always, please remember that this podcast is presented for informational and educational purposes only. It is not intended as legal advice, business advice, or professional advice of any kind, and listening to this podcast does not create any attorney-client or professional relationship.

  ListenShow Notes
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  Episode #572

  Is Your Practice Working for Everyone but You? on the Practice Playbook Podcast #471

  Jul 30, 202638 min

  Have you ever looked at your practice and thought, this should feel better than it does? Not because you hate the work. Not because you're bad at it. In fact, the opposite is often true: you may be very good at the work, you may care deeply about your clients, and you may have every outward sign of success, and still feel like something is off. That's the question we tackle in a special series about intentional practice design, kicking off with this episode. Intentional practice design is built on the idea that a thriving practice is not inherited, improvised, or assembled one urgent decision at a time. It is intentionally designed. Drawing on 20-plus years running a family law litigation practice, Susan Guthrie breaks down the three forces shaping every practice, inherited patterns, reactive patterns, and intentional choices, and walks through the signs that a practice is asking for redesign. A practice that feels off does not mean you chose the wrong work. It may mean you've outgrown an inherited model, or that reactive decisions have quietly piled up, or that the practice still reflects a former version of you. That is not failure. It is growth, it is information, and it is leadership, because the practice you lead should be something you build by design, not something you simply end up inside. What You'll Learn: Why a practice can look successful on the outside and still feel wrong on the inside The difference between inherited patterns, reactive patterns, and intentional choices The central clarity question: would you build your practice the same way if you started today? Common signs your practice is asking for redesign A simple three question exercise to find where your practice needs to change Free Episode Companion Resource: The Practice Design Assessment This week's free companion resource is the Practice Design Assessment, a seven minute interactive tool at intentionalpracticedesign.com that looks at five dimensions of a practice, including pricing, delivery, client experience, positioning, and AI governance. Take the assessment at IntentionalPracticeDesign.com Join The Practice Accelerator Susan's Practice Accelerator is now open as a monthly membership subscription! Designed for professionals who want more than just ideas, the Accelerator delivers structure, strategy, accountability, and a community of forward-thinking professionals who are serious about building sustainable, successful practices. If you have ever wondered if you would benefit from professional coaching, this is your opportunity to test the waters with Susan at an accessible price point. Members receive: One monthly live webinar with Susan in her signature practical and easily implemented insights and strategies for building your practice. Two live monthly group Office Hours sessions with Susan. A place to bring your questions to receive expert advice and insights from colleagues on the same journey. Weekly Premium Resource that accompanies the latest Practice Playbook Podcast episode that supports you in implementing the golden nuggets in the episode. And much more for only $99/month. Use code "PPP" for $10 off your monthly subscription! Visit https://susaneguthrie.com/accelerator to join now. Meet Our Creator and Host: Susan Guthrie Susan E. Guthrie is one of the most respected voices in mediation and conflict resolution today. A nationally recognized family law attorney and mediator for 35 years, she is now a top professional coach and consultant helping dispute resolution and legal professionals build thriving, modern practices. Susan recently appeared on The Oprah Podcast, expanding her reach to an even broader audience and highlighting her role as a trusted expert in divorce, communication, and modern conflict resolution. She is also the creator and host of The Divorce & Beyond Podcast, ranked in the top 1% worldwide, with millions of listeners and a global following. As Immediate Past Chair of the American Bar Association Section of Dispute Resolution, Susan continues to shape the future of the profession while training and mentoring practitioners around the world. Connect with Susan E. Guthrie Website: https://susaneguthrie.com Books: https://susaneguthrie.com/books LinkedIn: www.linkedin.com/in/susaneguthrie Instagram: @susaneguthrie and @practiceplaybookpodcast If you enjoyed this episode, please take a moment to subscribe to The Practice Playbook Podcast on your favorite platform, leave a 5-star review, and share the episode with a colleague or professional friend who would benefit from this conversation. Your support helps us continue bringing practical insights, forward-thinking strategies, and meaningful conversations to lawyers, mediators, arbitrators, and entrepreneurial professionals looking to build stronger, smarter, and more sustainable practices. And as always, please remember that this podcast is presented for informational and educational purposes only. It is not intended as legal advice, business advice, or professional advice of any kind, and listening to this podcast does not create any attorney-client or professional relationship.

  ListenShow Notes
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  Episode #571

  From Startup to Anthropic: How Descrybe Is Changing Professional Practice on the Practice Playbook Podcast #570

  Jul 16, 202654 min

  AI in the legal world is often met with fear instead of curiosity, but Susan Guthrie has a different take: used with the right skepticism, it doesn't replace professional judgment, it frees practitioners to use more of it. That shift is exactly what's playing out with Descrybe, the legal research tool that's gone from a free startup product to one of Anthropic's official launch partners for Claude for Legal in just eighteen months. Susan sits down with the co-founders of Descrybe, Kara Peterson and Richard DiBona to unpack how that happened, and what it means for the future of practice. Kara first joined Susan on the podcast back in December of 2024. Since then, Descrybe has added many new features, including a Citator to evaluate good law versus bad law, a deep research tool called Descrybe LM, and an advanced brief checker, all while earning national recognition, including being named one of the ABA's Legal Women of Tech. Together, Susan, Kara, and Richard, explore how Descrybe evolved from startup to industry leader, why the Anthropic partnership matters, what AI-powered legal workflows look like today, and where authority-based search and option generation are already changing how practitioners and mediators work. What You'll Learn Why Descrybe becoming an official Anthropic launch partner for Claude for Legal is a milestone for access to justice, not just for one company How Descrybe grew from a free case law search tool into a full suite that includes a Citator, a deep research tool called Descrybe LM, and an advanced brief checker Why healthy skepticism, not blind trust, is the right way to work with AI, and how treating hallucinations like an "Easter egg hunt" keeps you sharp instead of anxious How searching by authority instead of by keyword surfaces the cases practitioners actually cite, not just the ones that match the words Why option generation is one of the most valuable uses of AI for mediators, and how it can help polarized parties find middle ground faster How Descrybe's data-first approach lets the same verified legal data work across Claude, ChatGPT, Perplexity, and other platforms practitioners already use Meet Our Guests Kara Peterson, Co-Founder & CEO: Kara leads marketing, partnerships, and strategy. She brings a background in technology and social impact and a deep belief that access to information is a social justice issue. She was named to the ABA Women of Legal Tech 2024 list. Richard DiBona, Co-Founder & CTO: Rich leads product and engineering. He built the structured primary-law corpus and reasoning architecture that powers DescrybeLM. He is widely recognized as a leading expert in the application of AI to legal research. Descrybe has earned multiple industry awards for the platform he built, including the American Legal Technology Awards, the Anthem Award, and recognition from the Legalweek Leaders in Tech Law Awards and the Webby Awards. Website: http://descrybe.com Free Episode Companion Resource: The Modern Legal AI Starter Guide A practical guide to help you start putting Claude and Descrybe into practice, with prompts and a simple workflow you can use right away. Visit susaneguthrie.com to download. Join The Practice Accelerator Susan's Practice Accelerator is now open as a monthly membership subscription! Designed for professionals who want more than just ideas, the Accelerator delivers structure, strategy, accountability, and a community of forward-thinking professionals who are serious about building sustainable, successful practices. If you have ever wondered if you would benefit from professional coaching, this is your opportunity to test the waters with Susan at an accessible price point. Members receive: One monthly live webinar with Susan in her signature practical and easily implemented insights and strategies for building your practice. Two live monthly group Office Hours sessions with Susan. A place to bring your questions to receive expert advice and insights from colleagues on the same journey. Weekly Premium Resource that accompanies the latest Practice Playbook Podcast episode that supports you in implementing the golden nuggets in the episode. And much more for only $99/month. Use code "PPP" for $10 off your monthly subscription! Visit https://susaneguthrie.com/accelerator to join now. Meet Our Creator and Host: Susan Guthrie Susan E. Guthrie is one of the most respected voices in mediation and conflict resolution today. A nationally recognized family law attorney and mediator for 35 years, she is now a top professional coach and consultant helping dispute resolution and legal professionals build thriving, modern practices. Susan recently appeared on The Oprah Podcast, expanding her reach to an even broader audience and highlighting her role as a trusted expert in divorce, communication, and modern conflict resolution. She is also the creator and host of The Divorce & Beyond Podcast, ranked in the top 1% worldwide, with millions of listeners and a global following. As Immediate Past Chair of the American Bar Association Section of Dispute Resolution, Susan continues to shape the future of the profession while training and mentoring practitioners around the world. Connect with Susan E. Guthrie Website: https://susaneguthrie.com Books: https://susaneguthrie.com/books LinkedIn: www.linkedin.com/in/susaneguthrie Instagram: @susaneguthrie and @practiceplaybookpodcast If you enjoyed this episode, please take a moment to subscribe to The Practice Playbook Podcast on your favorite platform, leave a 5-star review, and share the episode with a colleague or professional friend who would benefit from this conversation. Your support helps us continue bringing practical insights, forward-thinking strategies, and meaningful conversations to lawyers, mediators, arbitrators, and entrepreneurial professionals looking to build stronger, smarter, and more sustainable practices. And as always, please remember that this podcast is presented for informational and educational purposes only. It is not intended as legal advice, business advice, or professional advice of any kind, and listening to this podcast does not create any attorney-client or professional relationship.

  ListenShow Notes

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