Dear Network,
I am embarking on the most fundamental pivot of my career to lead a bold new law practice founded and managed by underrepresented minorities and women. We focus on helping in-house legal teams build and execute on strategic capabilities.
As a founder, I wanted to share my journey from these early days onward. I will post here periodically on LinkedIn and regularly in my mC Law Founder Blog (here). My very first entry starts now!
Telling my story
This entire early process is simultaneously invigorating and filled with moments of deep reflection. From the moment I decided I was ready to take the leap, it became clear that sharing the news with friends, family, and colleagues would be among the most memorable steps in this journey. Each group is consequential in their own way.
Friends who had a sense something was coming or maybe had been considering their own career journey, were incredibly supportive. My favorite conversations:
- I always knew you had it in you. Why did it take you so long?
- You mean that thing you were talking about 10 years ago?
- Can you now help [me, my son/daughter, my friend] with [highly unrelated] legal advice?
My parents, who had always worked for someone dutifully to support us as a first-generation immigrant family, were much more cautious with their support. Over the course of many conversations, they asked:
- I thought you were happy. Don’t you like being an executive?
- Who is paying you to do this?
- Who will take care of your family?
Professional relationships and my team, who were much more directly impacted, understandably deserved more transparency and patience from me. These conversations taught me how connected we really are. I had to approach each person individually and with care. Although it was my choice to strike out on my own, I also had made a choice that significantly impacted others. These were some of the questions I worked through:
- How will this affect our professional relationship, {their) career path / projects?
- Is this all that is changing or is there more? When will things settle back into a normal groove?
- How can we continue to work together?
Even if the update is yours, people will feel inclined to give you their advice and some of this was very good advice. These nuggets of wisdom stood out:
- Always remember why you struck out on your own and specifically with these co-founders. Let your “why” be your guide throughout.
- Spend as much time as possible with your clients and outside the walls of your firm.
- Congratulations! You are now responsible for the health and well-being of each employee and their families.
- Simplify your life as much as possible. Breathe. Maintain personal mental and physical well-being, without which you are no help to yourself, your family or the company.
The next few months will be filled with countless milestones but one thing I am not good at is slowing down to be in the moment. In this spirit, please ping me to connect 1/1 in the coming months to share your musings and advice as we slow down together.
My next entry will be about the founder’s role in setting the philosophy and mechanics of setting the initial financial structure of the organization.
