Starting my own law firm was a huge step for me. It required a lot of hard work and dedication, but it has also been an incredibly rewarding experience. There were several reasons why I started my own firm. The primary reason was to have more control over my time and workload. I was tired of having work dumped on my desk on Friday afternoons or having to meet short deadlines imposed by others. I wanted to be in control of my life and not subject to the whims of partners, clients who were not my own, or billable hour requirements.
One of the things I enjoy doing when I am not working is traveling to remote locations. I’m not talking about my living room as opposed to the office, but rather faraway places in different time zones with no internet or cell service. This allows me to completely disconnect from my daily life and rejuvenate my soul. It also makes me much more productive and grateful for the work that I have. Thanks to having my own law firm, I’ve been fortunate to travel to many amazing places. Recently, I took a trip to Alaska to participate in a 6-day mountaineering course located in Denali National Park. We camped on a glacier that was only accessible by ski plane. You can see our camp in the bottom left-hand corner of the above photo!
During the course, a storm rolled in on the fifth day, and we were “stuck” on the glacier for another three days. Because it wasn’t safe to fly the plane or land it on the glacier during the storm, the 6-day course turned into a 9-day course in setting expectations or abandoning them all together – in a word “flexibility.”
I was thrilled. It was exactly the kind of experience I wanted. I could enjoy the experience without the fear of the repercussions of being unreachable for three more days. There was no boss to answer to and my clients had been informed prior to my departure that I would be unavailable, so a few more days would not be a surprise. All I had to do was bask in the warm feeling of having such flexibility, while at the same time freezing in single digit temperatures and over 3 feet of new snow. Although some bosses might have understood the reason for being delayed by three days, i.e. force major, I doubt any boss would have liked it.
Having the freedom to pursue my interests outside of work while still running a successful law firm is a powerful motivator for me. Starting my own law firm has forever changed my life for the better, and I look forward to sharing more of my highs (and lows) over the coming months in an effort to illustrate what you can do and what you should avoid. In the meantime, I suggest you find a mountain, your mountain, and start climbing.
Thank you to Alaska Mountaineering School (AMS), and our expert guides Chris Welch and Chelsey Cook. They helped make one of my dreams come true!