Here are some things I've been thinking about lately.

1. As the impact of the economic tsunami continues to play out in the industries we cover, it becomes clearer that the future will not look like the past. That is, the structural changes in law and real estate will not go away when the economy improves--the impact will be long-lasting.

One of those potential long-term changes will be to law firms, and how they are organized and financed. There are dozens of different ways in which that will play itself out. But one of the most intriguing is the idea that law firms will be financed and owned much like other kinds of businesses--with outside investors and, possibly, publicly traded shares. That's already happening in Australia, and there is evidence of similar moves in the UK. Bloomberg had a story on it this morning:

http://www.bloomberg.com/apps/news?pid=20601085&sid=asso5puZd5fA

So how should we prepare for that eventuality? What products and services would interest law firm investors and how would we provide them? And how big a rush should we be in to begin working on those products?

2, It has become clearer to me that the new world of social media is substantially about proving one's expertise. In the old days, it was the editors and reporters who proved their expertise, generally in the pages of the newspapers and magazines on which they worked. But with social media, it seems to me that expertise has been democratized--that is, we can all be experts, or at least try to be. We can use the tools of social media--blogs, discussion groups, tweets and other devices--to demonstrate that we are an expert in our field and attempt to spread the word to those who might care.

Nothing new in that. But what's new (at least to me) is the idea that it is now part of the job description for many business leaders in a company like ours to demonstrate expertise and build a community of followers. Standing in the background while our editors and journalists engaged with the public used to be good enough. But now, many more of us have the opportunity--and, I think, the responsibility--to stand on our own and engage with customers, potential business partners, peers, vendors and others. And we need to do this both for the good of the company and in order to support our own "brand" as we develop our careers.

I want our company known as a place that attracts and rewards extremely bright people who are recognized for their expertise in whatever their field. Not just journalists who fit that bill, but in the business areas as well. And it increasingly looks to me like developing and promoting one's expertise is a critical part of that requirement.

As I said above, nothing new in that. But in the world of internet enabled professional networking, it feels like it has become more important.

3. The NY Times reported last week that the recession is over. Maybe the big picture economic reports show that. But I don't see anything in the world we're in to suggest that the colossal downturn of last fall and winter has become anything better than "bumping along the bottom". Until we see some honest-to-goodness green shoots in the commercial real estate or legal industries, I don't see how we can assume that the end of the recession is nigh.

So the question is, how do we budget for 2010? Do we assume that The Times (and a number of economists) are correct, that we're in the midst of a turnaround that will begin to lift our revenues next year? Or do we play it safe, continue to be hunkered down until the turnaround signs are clearer? I wish I knew for certain the right answer to that question...