Lawyers Who Learn

Lucie Allen's journey through legal education started with an accidental entry into IP protection during the dot-com boom and evolved into a leading growth strategy at one of the industry's most recognizable names. As Chief Growth Officer at BARBRI, she's helping transform a company known primarily for bar prep into something much bigger, a lifelong legal learning platform where bar prep no longer represents the majority of revenue. In this episode of Lawyers Who Learn, host David Schnurman explores how BARBRI is building what Lucie calls a "lifelong legal learning continuum" through strategic acquisitions like West Academic, Quimbee, Skillburst, and Stratford. The conversation reveals how the company is reimagining legal education from LSAT preparation through late-career professional development, operating in both mandatory CLE markets in the US and the UK's professional development landscape where continuing education isn't required. Lucie shares insights on navigating the AI revolution in education, including BARBRI's decision to hire its first Head of AI, a role dedicated largely to external innovation and improving how clients experience their products. She discusses the challenge of operating in "Horizon Two"—that experimental space between maintaining daily operations and pursuing an uncertain but necessary future. With refreshing honesty, she talks about the unique pressures women face in professional growth, from proving yourself in male-dominated sales environments to managing career ambition alongside motherhood, and even navigating menopause. The episode touches on everything from early sales training with video feedback to cold plunging in a garden tub, from Microsoft AI partnerships to Simon Sinek's infinite game philosophy. Lucie offers a candid look at the opportunities, challenges, and strategic thinking required to stay relevant when technology is reshaping everything.

Sarah Dray took a sick day from her Tel Aviv law firm to complete a freelance translation project, not because she was ill, but because that single job would pay more than her entire week's salary as a junior attorney. That pivotal moment crystallized a truth she'd been avoiding: the practical career path she'd followed since age 18 was leading somewhere she no longer wanted to go. In this episode of Lawyers Who Learn, host David Schnurman explores Sarah's journey from studying law in Hebrew, to building a thriving translation business that now handles high-stakes legal and financial documents for publicly traded companies. After immigrating to Israel for what was supposed to be a gap year, Sarah navigated law school while ultra-Orthodox and married at 19, juggling cultural expectations with an independent streak inherited from her Moroccan immigrant parents. Sarah's entrepreneurial evolution didn't stop with translations. During COVID, she co-founded a seven-figure e-commerce business selling VR headsets on Amazon, a venture born from scrolling TikTok while trapped at home. Her translation business has weathered AI disruption by pivoting from routine litigation work to complex financial documents that still require human expertise and formatting precision. Now, as she considers her next chapter, Sarah's contemplating a new mission: helping women entrepreneurs make the leap from zero to one, drawing from her own unconventional path of building multiple businesses while navigating motherhood during wartime in Israel.

Brendan Horgan learned a counterintuitive lesson as a young Navy judge advocate: the most effective arguments aren't delivered with fire and brimstone. Standing before decorated military officers as a third-year JAG, he discovered that matter-of-fact credibility beats theatrical passion every time, a principle that now guides his employment law practice at Hofheimer in Richmond, Virginia. In this episode of Lawyers Who Learn, host David Schnurman explores Brendan's evolution from University of Connecticut Law graduate who "just jumped in" to active duty JAG service, through five years prosecuting and defending courts martial, to building a thriving private practice while serving as a Navy Reserve judge advocate. After graduating in 2012 into a challenging legal market, Brendan took a recruiter's pitch and found himself in Newport, Rhode Island, preparing for a career he'd never considered—one that would give him courtroom experience most attorneys never achieve. Brendan's litigation philosophy rests on two principles: assume mistakes before malice, and find the hidden leverage point in every case that goes beyond the legal arguments. By giving people the benefit of the doubt and avoiding aggressive posturing from the start, he achieves faster settlements in employment disputes. His JAG experience,prosecuting service members with clean records while rotating between prosecutor, defense counsel, and advisor, taught him a crucial lesson: clients' problems are his to solve, not to carry on his shoulders. Beyond the courtroom, Brendan candidly discusses the "starfish method" of balancing work, family, and public service while coaching his kids' sports teams and maintaining his reserve commitment. His message: even with three children and a demanding practice, there's always room to serve—you just have to intentionally choose which areas get your focus at any given time.

Dan Warburton helps law firm owners increase profits by doing something counterintuitive: billing less while their teams bill more. His path here wasn't linear. After struggling to fit in throughout his youth, Dan spent years bouncing between ventures—earning a design degree, DJing across Europe, then literally knocking on 4,000 doors as "Super Dan the Handyman." When he scaled too fast with Team Super, a nine-person crew, the business collapsed under £100,000 in tax debt after his team couldn't deliver the work they'd promised In this episode of Lawyers Who Learn, host David Schnurman explores how that failure became Dan's breakthrough. He pivoted to a 24-hour drainage business he could run from ski lifts across Europe, which led curious entrepreneurs to ask how he'd achieved that freedom. The answer lay in eight years of leadership training at Landmark Education. There, Dan traced his struggles back to a childhood moment when he was reprimanded for biting his brother's ear. He'd invented a story that he wasn't good enough, and recognizing this as invention rather than truth changed everything. Dan's framework centers on something law schools never teach: listening. Through weekly one-on-ones, he guides attorneys to build teams where people feel genuinely valued rather than driven. His clients learn to replace "how will I fit this in?" with "who can do this?"—a shift that helped one firm achieve a 392% revenue increase. Now Dan's pursuing the acquisition of a 65-person London law firm to implement everything he's taught, with plans to build a portfolio of practices. His journey proves that escaping the expert trap starts with confronting the stories you've been telling yourself since childhood.

Joe Green has spent the last several years building one of the most ambitious AI and innovation programs in BigLaw — not by chasing the hottest tools, but by asking harder questions about how law firms actually create value and what has to change for that to evolve. He knows the real transformation won't come from product launches or conference buzz. It'll happen when firms feel actual business pressure: fewer billable hours because work takes less time, or clients demanding new ways to buy legal services. In this episode of Lawyers Who Learn, host David Schnurman explores both Joe's innovation work at Gunderson Dettmer and the winding path that got him there. After seven years as a transactional associate — first at Simpson Thacher and then at Gunderson Dettmer — Joe was a skilled deal lawyer who struggled to feel genuinely energized by the work. The demands of managing complex, fast-moving transactions occupied every corner of his mental bandwidth, leaving little room to envision what else he might want to do. Getting to a place where he could think clearly about what came next took years of deliberate effort. Writing changed everything. Joe discovered that co-authoring law review articles — something most practicing BigLaw lawyers never do — opened unexpected doors, eventually leading him to Practical Law at Thomson Reuters and then back to Gunderson in a completely reimagined role. Now he teaches startup/VC law at Penn Law, reads neuroscience books on his train commute, and thinks deeply about how AI will reshape legal training. His advice works for both innovation and careers: experiment with what interests you, stay ready to pivot, and trust that meaningful change rarely follows a straight line.

Lauren Hakala knew her path would be different the moment she heard a colleague gush about an incoming deal. They were having wine after work, and while the woman talked excitedly about her next deal, Lauren realized something crucial: she'd never felt that way about her own work, so it was time to find a different path. In this episode of Lawyers Who Learn, host David Schnurman explores how Lauren transformed six years of corporate law experience at Cleary Gottlieb into a career helping law firm leaders manage their talent programs. As Senior Director of Global Learning at Reed Smith, she leads a 15-person team supporting lawyers across 30+ offices worldwide, designing programs on legal skills, business development, financial acumen, and leadership skills. Her journey included a pivotal stop at Practical Law during its US launch, where she worked alongside future legal innovators before Paul, Weiss took a chance on her, hiring her to make a pivot into professional development for its global transactional groups. Lauren introduces her "near pizza" concept: the difference between waiting in line with friends for the perfect slice versus pressing a button for delivery. Both get you pizza, but only one creates a meaningful experience. As GenAI makes legal work more efficient, she challenges the profession to preserve the friction that gives learning meaning—the stories, emotions, and human connections that build trust and that no algorithm can replace. Her approach uses technology to handle the basics so people can focus on what truly matters. Beyond her current role, Lauren spent over two years managing week-long Harvard Law Executive Training programs at her previous firm, learning strategy and financial literacy alongside lawyers. She's also accidentally met every New York City mayor since Giuliani, including her Park Slope neighbor Bill de Blasio.

Jason Levin wrote an entire book challenging a simple truth: we say "keep in touch" but really mean goodbye, so what if lawyers actually executed on those three words? For 15 years, he's trained new partners and practice groups on business development rooted in social science: the strength of weak ties, six degrees of separation, and the power of dormant connections. His message is simple but transformative—your casual relationships matter more than you think, and most attorneys ignore them completely. In this episode of Lawyers Who Learn, host David Schnurman explores how Jason built his career teaching the one skill law schools never cover. His path started as a high school file clerk at a New Jersey law firm, because he was the babysitter for one of the firm’s partners.  She once told him, “If you can get my kids to bed on time, you can certainly handle our practice group’s files.” It was that early experience which solidified his interest in building relationships. Jason went on to an MBA at Georgetown University, spent five years in France following a Rotary Ambassadorial Scholarship, led sales teams at Home - Vault selling to law firms, and eventually launched his own practice of training business development to attorneys, accountants, and executive search firms. The conversation reveals an unexpected vulnerability when Jason shares his ADHD diagnosis from three years ago. The kid who couldn't understand social cues in elementary school, who would blurt out comments five minutes too late, systematically taught himself active listening and relationship skills through social science research. By senior year of high school, he was voted most talkative. His philosophy of "let them say no" rejects the double rejection we create in our minds, showing how intentionality transforms networking from obligation into authentic connection.

For years working in Big Law business development at firms like Pillsbury, Sherman & Sterling (now A&O Shearman), and McDermott Will & Emery, Megan Senese thought attorneys had it all figured out. Then she left to co-found Stage, and lawyers started opening up about their real challenges: the same struggles with impossible demands and professional uncertainty she'd experienced herself. That realization didn't just change her perspective; it became the foundation for an entirely new approach to helping legal professionals grow their practices. In this episode of Lawyers Who Learn, host David Schnurman explores how Megan built a business around what Big Law couldn't provide: dedicated, personalized support for individual attorneys. Stage offers fractional marketing and business development tailored to what actually works for each person, whether that's leaning into conferences for an energy regulatory lawyer or creating content strategies for someone who thrives behind the scenes rather than at networking events. Megan shares actionable frameworks that work. She applies Dr. Becky Kennedy's parenting concept of "the most generous interpretation" to transform how attorneys handle unanswered emails and perceived rejection. She draws on Dan Pink's insight that moving people beats selling them every time. Her cold outreach to the CMO of LinkedIn got an immediate yes. Her pitch to David landed this conversation. The approach is straightforward: pause long enough to understand what someone actually needs, then show them why connecting serves their interests. The conversation reveals Megan's own transformation from someone who would've never imagined entrepreneurship to co-founder of a thriving firm. When her partner put "IDEA - don't be nervous" on her Friday calendar more than three years ago, it launched a journey of redefining success on their own terms, proving that sustainable growth comes from doing work you genuinely love with people you genuinely want to help.

Tony Gerdes taught his students something unforgettable: "I can't steer a parked car." The metaphor captures his entire philosophy about professional development. You need to give him something to work with, show a willingness to try, and then he can help steer you toward growth. As Director of Professional Development at Groom Law Group, Tony brings this mindset to approximately 100 attorneys in Washington, DC, combining his theater background with a unique career journey through accounting and legal software training. In this episode of Lawyers Who Learn, host David Schnurman explores how Tony's diverse background shapes his approach to attorney development. After leaving classroom teaching when he realized he was "doing the same lessons over and over," Tony discovered that being a good teacher requires being a continual learner. He applies this principle at Groom by establishing clear expectations through written documents, providing timely feedback that actually drives improvement, and workshopping associate writing samples each month. Tony's journey includes an unexpected lesson from early in his career: be careful of people claiming 30 years of experience. They might just be repeating the same year 30 times. This insight fuels his commitment to constant evolution, whether developing new workshops or balancing AI adoption with client preferences and responsible implementation. The conversation reveals Tony's philosophy that life isn't about reaching point B. It's about enjoying the dance itself, a perspective shaped by rejection from a professional theater audition that ultimately led him to direct and star in independent films while building a fulfilling career helping lawyers grow.

What happens when someone who loved reading for pleasure but actively avoided leadership books finally cracks one open — and realizes she'd been doing everything wrong? For Michele Richman, that moment didn't just change how she led. It set off a chain reaction that's now reshaping how legal professionals grow, connect, and lead. In this episode of Lawyers Who Learn, host David Schnurman, CEO of Lawline, sits down with his sister Michele Richman, Chief People Officer at Lawline, certified coach, triathlete, and soon-to-be published author, for a candid conversation about the mentors, mindset shifts, and pivotal moments behind her rise as one of the legal industry's most compelling voices on leadership development. Michele traces her journey from resisting self-improvement books, because engaging with them meant confronting feelings of inadequacy she'd buried for years, to being transformed first by a leadership coach named Mark Green, then by Dale Carnegie and Brene Brown’s teachings, The final shift came during a pandemic-era group coaching session led by Frame of Mind Coach Kim Ades that cracked her open and changed her focus to the power of her thoughts and beliefs, as well as her vulnerability, for achieving her goals. She earned her coaching certification, built Lawline's Emerging Leaders program, and watched it generate over twelve internal promotions. From there, she took it external, speaking at legal conferences and launching a leadership empowerment program for the professionals who train and develop talent inside law firms. Her upcoming book, The Stories We Almost Don't Tell, captures the belief driving all of it: the stories we're most reluctant to share are often the most important ones to tell and the ones that help others the most.

Steven Harber's path to legal tech started in an unexpected place: selling Japanese robots to automotive factories in 1985. Fresh out of Bucknell with an East Asian studies degree and zero job prospects, he stumbled into a role that taught him the power of eliminating waste from processes. That lesson from Toyota's manufacturing philosophy would later become the foundation for three successful legal technology companies. In this episode of Lawyers Who Learn, host David Schnurman explores Harber's journey from New York Law School graduate to serial legal tech entrepreneur. After practicing law for barely a year, Harber raised his hand when his small firm needed someone with sales experience to commercialize their early document scanning technology. That decision launched a 30-year career, though not without self-doubt about whether he was pivoting because he wasn't good enough at law. Harber's philosophy challenges the Silicon Valley playbook. He calls himself a conservative entrepreneur who built profitable services businesses solving real problems rather than chasing unicorn status. But the journey was far from smooth.Navigating through the Lehman bankruptcy and dealing with challenging owners made for some very long days Today, as Executive Chairman of Cimplifi, Harber is pushing the industry toward fixed-fee AI review. His core belief, drawn from The Old Man and the Sea: you don't have to go out too far to succeed.

Matthew Galando never intended to build a 23-year career at one law firm. As a college student interning at K&L Gates, he quickly realized that while practicing law wasn’t his path, the legal industry itself was. What began as a legal administrative assistant role evolved into leading professional development for a global team of 13—shaping lawyers’ growth from a perspective grounded in strategy, talent, and organizational leadership. In this episode of Lawyers Who Learn, host David Schnurman explores how Matt's unexpected journey shaped his leadership philosophy at K&L Gates. His approach centers on compassionate leadership, a concept that might seem counterintuitive in the legal world, but one Matt believes is essential because "the hardest lawyer is still a human being at the end of the day." Matt's transformation evolved by overcoming his default response of "no" after learning more about growth mindset. Now he approaches requests with "what if" thinking, opening possibilities while maintaining thoughtful boundaries. His work spans leadership development programming at every level, from high-potential managers to lateral partners, always emphasizing strategic relationship-building and fundamental skills enhanced by humanity. Drawing from his lifelong music career as a trumpet player who sits first chair in musicals and ensembles, Matt applies performance lessons to professional development: teamwork, adaptability, and the pursuit of polish – knowing that precision matters most when the spotlight is on. Whether he's reading Adam Grant or Kim Scott, his message remains consistent–lead with compassion, default to possibility, and remember that caring for your team comes first.

At 40, Chris Keefer had everything lawyers are supposed to want: partner track, jury trial wins, Indiana Supreme Court experience. He also had something else—a growing certainty that litigation was slowly crushing him. When the celebration after his biggest courtroom victory felt hollow, he knew something had to change. So he made a decision that seemed crazy to everyone around him: sell the house, move his family of five to Oregon, and spend 18 months earning a master's degree in sports product management. In this episode of Lawyers Who Learn, host David Schnurman explores how Chris discovered that law school never taught him the one thing he needed most—how to be an entrepreneur. His journey from the University of Oregon back to legal practice wasn't a straight line. It included living apart from his wife Garetta and three young kids for a year, sitting face-to-face with her in a WeWork fishbowl managing a fledgling solo practice, and experiencing panic attacks while their savings dwindled. The turning point came from a couple unexpected sources: a coffee meeting with a colleague trying to understand the types of services Chris was providing, and then a book called Toothfish that taught him to stop competing in crowded markets and create his own. Those insights led Chris to "preventive law"—a framework for helping businesses peek around corners before legal problems materialize. But his real breakthrough was realizing that entrepreneurs who need legal help most can't afford traditional hourly rates. His solution became The Legal Wellness Kit, an Amazon #1 new release and bestseller that delivers hundreds of hours of practical guidance for the cost of a brief phone call with a big firm attorney. Today, as Associate General Counsel at Pacific Seafood and principal of Keefer Strategy, Chris continues building his practice while eyeing his next chapter: more writing, more teaching, and paying forward the knowledge he wished he'd had at the start. His story reveals that mid-career reinvention requires more than courage—it demands partnership, resilience, and the willingness to get comfortable being uncomfortable even when everything feels uncertain.    

Stacey had it all—managing $300-500 million brands as a marketing and advertising executive, traveling the world, leading teams. Then in her mid-thirties, she walked away from that successful career to attend law school full-time. Her colleagues thought she was crazy. For Stacey, law school felt like a vacation compared to her 80-90 hour work weeks. In this episode of Lawyers Who Learn, host David Schnurman explores Stacey's journey from brand management executive to founder of Kalamaras Law Office and later as creator of Trademarkabilities, a practical trademark training academy that has served over 200 attorneys. After working with trademark lawyers in her corporate role, Stacey realized she agreed more with the attorneys than her marketing colleagues, a revelation that sparked her midlife career pivot. Stacey's path wasn't linear. She started her first firm in 2009 after being laid off during the recession, moved in-house, then returned to Big Law again before finally restarting her firm intentionally in 2018 when her mother needed more care. The turning point came when her practical, business-focused teaching style on Lawline attracted thousands of lawyers, and clients started reaching out saying, "My attorney told me I had to watch your course." Her philosophy centers on one powerful truth: "No one is coming to save you." Whether you work for yourself or someone else, you must be your own cheerleader and self-promoter. Stacey reflects that losing two jobs in three years might have broken her at 29, but by her 40s, the business experience she gained earlier in life helped her rebuild her legal career with confidence—and with a strong sense of how to serve clients and their brands.

In this episode of Lawyers Who Learn, David Schnurman, CEO of Lawline, has a conversation with Steve Gluckman, a pioneer in legal e-learning who recently sold his company SkillBurst Interactive to Barbri. Though not a lawyer himself, Steve has spent over two decades developing innovative training solutions for law firms. Steve shares his entrepreneurial journey from his early days at PwC to founding SkillBurst in 2013, which created customizable, interactive e-learning modules for law firms. He discusses the challenges of timing in business innovation, explaining how his first attempt at legal e-learning was too early for market adoption, but years later the industry was ready, leading to SkillBurst's success. The conversation explores the post-acquisition emotional journey many entrepreneurs face, with Steve candidly discussing the unexpected emptiness he felt after selling his company. He reflects on how much of his identity was wrapped up in being a CEO and the process of figuring out "what's next" while already working on a new stealth-mode venture. Throughout the episode, Steve offers valuable insights into building a successful business in the legal tech space, including his approach to product development, the importance of securing buy-in before building, and how making products "sticky" through customization led to impressive client retention rates. The discussion wraps up with thoughts on leadership and work-life balance, with both hosts sharing their perspectives on building businesses that create personal freedom.  

Amy Woods failed her very first IOLTA audit. Fresh out of school with a master's in accounting, she thought she had everything in order for her lawyer client, until an auditor named Bruno sat her down and explained she was looking at trust accounts like an accountant when the bar wanted something entirely different. That moment of failure became the foundation for a 20-year specialization in an area where 99% of law firms aren't in full compliance. In this episode of Lawyers Who Learn, host David Schnurman explores how Amy transformed repeated failures into expertise, building IOLTA Consulting to help attorneys navigate trust account regulations that weren't taught in law school. Working across multiple states, Amy has never walked into a single law firm doing everything correctly—not one. From real estate wire fraud to simple recording errors that snowball into thousand-dollar problems, she's seen how easily well-intentioned attorneys can face suspension or worse for mistakes they didn't know they were making. Amy's vision extends beyond compliance fixes. She's building a team to provide coast-to-coast support while she travels to speak and educate, turning a niche accounting service into a scalable business model with monthly subscriptions and strategic growth plans. The conversation takes a vulnerable turn when Amy shares why she recently shifted her two youngest children from homeschooling to traditional school—her husband's epilepsy diagnosis and the need to prepare financially for an uncertain future. Her story demonstrates how personal challenges can sharpen professional focus, transforming specialized knowledge into both security and service for an underserved legal community.

Kenton Brice sits at the center of what he calls "a massive Venn diagram"—law libraries, legal technology, higher education, and the practicing bar—and from that unique vantage point, he sees something most people miss: law schools have zero incentive to change. With three powerful forces keeping the status quo locked in place (U.S. News rankings, ABA accreditation, and unlimited student loans), traditional legal education persists even as the profession transforms around it. In this episode of Lawyers Who Learn, host David Schnurman explores Kenton's vision for reimagining legal education at the University of Oklahoma College of Law, where he directs the law library and runs the Digital Initiative—a 12-year experiment in building technology competencies outside the required curriculum. Through Tuesday and Thursday lunch-and-learns, conference trips, and hands-on workshops, Kenton prepares students for a profession where managed service organizations are disrupting traditional firm structures and AI is forcing a complete rethinking of legal service delivery. The conversation moves from practical questions about preserving legal materials in a digital age to provocative ideas about trashing the bar exam entirely. His blueprint for building a law school from scratch prioritizes design-oriented curiosity over doctrinal mastery, AI-infused hybrid learning over traditional lectures, and two years of intensive study over three years of diminishing returns. But Kenton's real passion emerges in his vision for the "holistic lawyer." Beyond competencies and technology, he wants lawyers who see themselves as protectors of democracy, not just service providers. When 78% of people can't access the civil justice system and a single mother facing eviction can't find representation, Kenton asks the fundamental question: can we make money and serve people at the same time? His answer, drawn from his men's reading group discussions of Man's Search for Meaning and his weekend woodworking projects, is an emphatic yes—if we're willing to reimagine the profession entirely.

When Jennifer Rakstad's firm surveyed their associates, the feedback was clear: traditional training wasn't having the impact they wanted. As Senior Manager of Learning and Development at White & Case, Jennifer worked hand in hand with a committee of partners to lead the creation of Momentum—a three-day immersive program that's already reached 350 lawyers. What makes it different: every session is designed and taught by the firm's own partners and senior associates, for a true “lawyer-led” experience. In this episode of Lawyers Who Learn, host David Schnurman explores Jennifer's path from litigation to professional development. After applying to 200 judges for clerkships with over a dozen interviews and receiving zero offers, Jennifer regrouped with a targeted approach that landed her a federal clerkship in Puerto Rico. Seven years into litigation practice at Mayer Brown, a colleague noticed her passion for firm initiatives and recruiting work, asking if she'd consider pivoting entirely. That conversation led to her becoming one of the first ICF-certified coaches in a law firm. The Momentum program represents a major investment, taking associates offsite for three days with full partner faculty involvement. The program creates cohort experiences where associates learn from partners who've been in the trenches, with plans to have participants eventually teach each other. Jennifer also shares how a fractured ankle during a family trip to Japan transformed her perspective on accessibility challenges. Despite doctors suggesting she fly home, she completed two more weeks in Japan on crutches, followed by two months in a wheelchair. That experience reinforced the empathy that drives her work developing lawyers.

Sarah Ennor spent years as a securities lawyer at major banks, excelling at sophisticated legal work but challenged by corporate politics and what she sometimes thought was lack of motivation and discipline. In 2015, she left corporate law, traveled to Sri Lanka for a 10-day silent meditation retreat, worked and lived on a New Zealand winery, and returned to launch her own legal practice. But running a solo practice without corporate infrastructure proved unexpectedly overwhelming, until a stranger at a cocktail party asked if she had ADHD. In this episode of Lawyers Who Learn, host David Schnurman explores Sarah's journey from that eye-opening conversation to formal diagnosis, and ultimately to becoming a sought-after speaker who makes ADHD "human and profitable" for law firms and their attorneys, and corporations. Sarah reveals why lawyers are drawn to the profession's constant urgency and novel problems (the very dopamine hits that ADHD brains crave) while also explaining why law firms often punish the behaviors that come with the condition. When she finally tried medication, the fog lifted and she realized she'd been working ten times harder than necessary. She now helps firms move beyond surface-level awareness to create genuinely supportive environments through curiosity and outcome-focused thinking. This conversation goes beyond the "ADHD as superpower" narrative to honestly address the disability many face and the transformative power of self-compassion over discipline. These insights resonate deeply even for those still navigating their own undiagnosed experiences.

Yeve Chitiga immigrated to the United States at sixteen with clear goals shaped by hope and determination: college, law school, becoming an attorney. She followed that path, working in banking in London and later as a corporate lawyer at a top firm, reaching milestones that surpassed her wildest dreams. Along the way, a quieter inner question began to surface about meaning, contribution, and alignment. In this episode of Lawyers Who Learn, host David Schnurman explores Yeve’s journey from financial services attorney to career transition coach for high-achieving professionals in demanding environments. Raised in Zimbabwe, Yeve grew up in a culture rooted in connection where there are no strangers, only extended family. That deep belief in belonging now shapes the heart of her coaching work. Rather than one dramatic turning point, Yeve’s story is marked by a series of moments that invited reflection and realignment across different chapters of her life. Each asked the same essential question: What kind of impact do I want to make? Over time, the answer softened and clarified—meaningful, human-scale impact through one-on-one connection. Motherhood deepened this shift, reshaping success into presence, listening, and moments like when her little one says, “Mommy, I love that you just listened to me.” Then a career shift allowed her to fully embrace pivoting from law to coaching. The conversation weaves through boundaries, faith, cultural expectations, and Yeve’s vision for an intimate retreat at Victoria Falls, one of the world’s most awe-inspiring natural wonders. With its rising mist, roaming wildlife, and expansive sunsets, Victoria Falls becomes both a setting and an invitation: to slow down, reconnect, and rediscover parts of ourselves often lost in the pace of everyday life.