The pager sounds. It is Sunday, 3:30 a.m., in Corona, California. While the rest of the city sleeps, hospital administrator Byron Streifling immediately reaches for his briefcase and heads toward the hospital.
Unfortunately, time at the park with his son this afternoon is on hold. Days that start like this usually end after dark.
Although he enjoyed his career, being called to work at any hour of the day or night, canceled plans with his family and friends, along with the thought of not seeing his son grow up, compelled Streifling to make a change.
That was then.
Today, Cowles Legal Systems provide attorney J. Byron Streifling, M.P.H., J.D., with the flexibility in his schedule to be at his family's side whenever he chooses. He doesn’t miss his pager going off at 3:30 a.m. or the disappointment on his son's face when plans are cancelled at the last minute.
When Byron opened his practice, he decided to do thorough research and try several trusts and estate planning systems. He said, "I bought them all and worked with them all. But what I found is when I needed to do a set of documents or a trust package for an individual, I invariably turned to Cowles first because it was streamlined. It worked for me." Byron hasn't looked back since.
The Cowles systems streamline the entire trust, will, and postmortem process using a checklist-based concept which allows attorneys like Byron to really focus on the client and their needs.
Using a checklist allows Byron to focus on listening to clients, understanding their needs and motivations, and incorporating those into the estate plan.
Cowles systems actually make drafting the trust, will, or supporting documents efficient and virtually worry-free with the checklist-based process it provides. The attorney can systematically go through every detail without worrying that an issue may have been overlooked or inadvertently left out. In the same sense that Byron once woke at 3:30 a.m. to the sound of his pager, it may be safe to assume that many professionals like Byron wake to the thought of perhaps forgetting something that should have been considered and included in an estate plan or thinking that something was just not quite right. Cowles systems do not allow for this type of inaccuracy and let the attorney rest assured that the estate plan is complete and accurate.
Most importantly, the Cowles' system enables professionals like Attorney Streifling to have a life away from work.
"If I didn't use the Cowles system, I would be spending a whole lot more hours producing the documents, doing research, and doing all kinds of extra work that's already taken care of. I'd hate to do my work without it," said Byron.
Technological advantages enhance service for customers. "I may meet with several clients in a given day. With some of the systems I used - before I realized Cowles was the one that worked for me - I would have postponed completing the draft for those clients by days or waited until the weekend." By that time, details may be forgotten, and the to-do list gets longer and more stressful.
"Because Cowles streamlines the process so thoroughly, by the end of the day, at a minimum, I have a draft of all documents completed for each client I met with that day. The support Cowles provides is phenomenal."