So here's your opportunity to be a private detective of sorts, and keep tabs on the debtor's assets, lifestyle and projected financial situation. Periodically, write or telephone the person who owes you money. Keep in touch with business contacts that also know the debtor. If the debtor doesn't pay voluntarily, collecting from wages, establishing liens against real property, seizing bank accounts or intercepting money paid to a debtor's business are all in the easy and relatively cheap to do category. Unless you anticipate that extreme collection measures will push the debtor to pay up, you'll probably save yourself a lot of trouble if you avoid the difficult process of trying to force a sale of the debtor's vehicles, house, business assets or personal property.
Timing is important in other ways, too.
For example, suppose the debtor gets paid at the beginning of each month and deposits the money in a checking account. If you try to collect at the end of the month, not only is it likely you will come up empty-handed, you'll at least temporarily lose the collection fees you fronted. And the debtor is almost certain to move the account. If collection proves impossible, treat the judgment as a long-term investment. Compared to limited partnerships, start-up companies and even many stocks, some court judgments have relatively low risk.