Lawyered with Siria

This advice has really stuck with me: You don't need to make the old way wrong in order to justify the new. Let that sink in. The law has many great qualities and I don't want to encourage myself or you to invalidate any part of that experience as we move on to new paths. There is no need to make it wrong.  Follow me on my new Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/webuiltthissiria/ 

Carl Ficks managed to have a fulfilling legal career as a trial lawyer for 30+ years and he is here to confirm taking care of yourself is not selfish! In fact, Carl attributed his longevity in the law and creative legal inspirations to taking care of himself physically and mentally. "Lawyers are in service to others" and in order to fulfill that mission, lawyers need to be fit and healthy.  You can learn more about Carl and the work he is doing with lawyers at www.carlficks.com Be sure to check out Carl's “Friday Ficks” newspaper column and weekly LinkedIn posts provide strategies, tools and inspiration to stay resourceful and resilient, regardless of the circumstances.  

You'll learn the top 3 things Siria loves about the law and how those items are transferable skills to the next chapter of her working life. You don't need to leave the things you love behind, simply find a way to transfer these skills.

The civil law cycle is in season. Civil law has seasons and if you are looking to make moves, you need to be cognizant of these cycles.

Do you enjoy setting intentions or making New Year's resolutions? On the pod, we LOVE setting intentions and are excited to share not one, not two, but FIVE (count ‘em 5) different tools to help you set and live into your intentions (or resolutions) for 2022.

Self-criticism is something that can take shape in a variety of ways. It is not always a negative thing, as it can sometimes be used to help you grow and learn what you are doing right or wrong. However, it's important to make sure you know where the criticism is coming from: the negative or the positive side. Self-criticism is the number one roadblock to self-compassion.

Achieving success is subjective. Success can mean different things to different people, and you should define it based on what is important to you. If others define success for you, you may feel unsatisfied because your definition of success will not be met. What does success really mean to you? This podcast is moving to a bi-monthly schedule through the rest of 2021. 

Siria shares her learnings and lessons from her recent attendance at Trial Lawyers University Live 2021 in Las Vegas. I talk about the cooperative and educational compenents of the plaintiff's bar and how they are interested in educating up and coming lawyers. I get into the messaging of the importance of storytelling, getting out of your comfort zone, and being consistent in practicing your skills. I also share my observations that the legal profession gives a lot of education to certain groups over others.  

Meet Attorney and Author Mark Bello. After a long career as a personal injury attorney, Mark turned his cases into books.

In this episode Siria invites you to be honest with yourself about what you feel and where you are in life. Be honest with your friends and family who want to help you. Be honest with those whom you influence about what it's really like being a lawyer so we can normalize these life shifts.

October is Domestic Violence Awareness month. To raise awareness of the social and personal impact of domestic violence, Siria is releasing an episode from the Pivotal Moments HQ podcast, Surviving Chaos (episode 31). Co-host Melissa Robaina interviews Siria about her chaotic and violent childhood. Trigger/Content warning: Siria's story involves domestic violence and self-harm. Listener discretion is advised. If you've been a victim of domestic violence, you can reach out to: 1-800-799-SAFE (7233).

Meet Jennifer Laskin, Esq. Jen is an attorney and educator. On this episode, Jennifer shares how the law is her second career, how she uses law and education to help youth, and how she created a unique legal position for herself. 

Stereotypes of what a lawyer is supposed to do are dangerous and do not serve anyone. Siria talks about checking in with yourself and how you want to be, rather than thinking or acting in a manner because you believe that you are "supposed" to do it in that manner.

Siria shares some breathing techniques to help you with stress management. She introduces you to box breathing, nostril breathing, and 4-7-8 breathing to help calm yourself down.

Meet Jennifer Fuentes Langi. She is an immigration attorney out of Salt Lake City Utah, an educator, and loves advocating for people. Her journey to immigration law is fascinating and shows us how following what our mind thinks is best, may not be our path. Jen's courage in finding her true path is inspiring.

Are you hoarding your knowledge? Knowledge is only as good as what you put into action. Siria invites you to use your life's knowledge by putting it into action and teaching someone something from your knowledge. She also briefly discusses and recommends the book Limitless by Jim Kwik.

Siria discusses money and money concerns that you may experience in transitioning to more fulfilling work or out of the practice of law. She encourages you to know yourself and what you are comfortable with in making these hard choices. https://educationdata.org/average-law-school-debt

Siria discusses how she paid off $165k in student loans and $50k in interest to be free from the crushing debt of her legal education in 2019. Siria shares the mistakes she made, what she learned, and how paying off this debt was her choice.

Siria interviews Merlyne Jean-Louis. Merlyne is a business and entertainment lawyer. She's one of the OGs in the virtual law firm space and overall badass. We discussed her path to the law and how she loves helping creatives protect themselves. Merlyne helps her clients become CEOs and protect their ABCs (assets, brand and content) via contracts, intellectual property (trademark and copyright) and entities. For more information, a free business checklist, and an informative blog, visit: www.jllaw.net. Merlyne is also a virtual law firm coach/consultant who helps attorneys successfully and confidently build their own virtual law firms. For more information and a free law firm checklist, visit the website of Gambit Academy for Lawyers www.gambitlawyers.com

Siria shares her profound life changing experience at Rythmia Life Advancement Center with plant medicine, specifically Ayahuasca. She shares her healing journey because she is not a gate keeper, wants to share alternative healing modalities, and part of being a good lawyer is taking care of yourself first.

Catherine is a former Big Law litigator turned meditation teacher, relaxation guide, executive mindfulness coach, and wellness consultant. They discuss her path to and out Big Law and dealing with "the next right thing syndrome." Learn more about Catherine at: lawyer.catherinezack.com  

Siria discusses how important hobbies are to living a fulfilng life. She encourages all listeners to dust off their old instruments, take the class they want, and overall give themselves permission to enjoy something. She also recounts how sad it was that she always prioritized work as a young attorney to the detriment of her creative side. 

Siria interviews author and former lawyer Erin Gordon. We discuss her road from big law to journalism school and a career spanning over 20+ years in legal journalism. Erin shares her path to publishing fiction in writing book club fiction.

Crappy clients are draining. Siria shares tools for dealing with ungrateful clients and reminds you that your attorney-client relationship is a choice.

Siria interviews Rachel Burch. Rachel is a former lawyer turned life transformation coach and mentor, stand up comedian, and hosts of The Transformation Maven Podcast. Rachel takes us on her journey from trial lawyer and general counsel to the "finally good enough" reason to leave the law: her son. Rachel shares her insights about leaving the law and how one does not need to climb Mt. Everest and stay at the top, you can come down and climb a new mountain.

Siria finally announces Gutierrez Law, PLLC and shares her journey into becoming an entrepreneur and solo practitioner. The names of prior employment places have been omitted and bleeped out. You can learn more about her PI and consulting practice at gutierrezlawpllc.com. 

Siria discusses the question "are you proud of how you achieved it?" This powerful reflective question gives you the opportunity to think about the process and how to take action aligned with your values.

Siria interviews entertainment lawyer Adrian Chung from Toronto Canada. They discuss his journey in the law and how he spent time learning what he didn't want in his legal practice and moved to an area he does like. Legal careers are not linear and Adrian shares his journey with us.

Siria discusses the stories we tell ourselves and how our brains work to confirm and present evidence of these stories to our subconscious mind. She shares two tools for helping you re-write the negative stories you have about transitioning to a more fulfilling practice area or out of the law all together.

On this episode, Siria interviews attorney, motivational speaker, and founder of The Self-Love Challenge™ Brandy Wilson Edwards. Brandy empowers the legal community by speaking on happiness and stress management. They discuss her legal journey and how she found her purpose in helping others through The Self-Love Challenge. Once Brandy started using her unique gifts, she felt a shift happen and increase her own happiness. Brandy invites everyone to "Love yourself while you work on yourself!"

On this special 10th episode, Siria shares three books that really impacted her. Gretchen Rubin's Better than Before, Brene Brown's Dare to Lead, and Felicia Day's Embrace Your Weird. Each of these books gave her tools and insights on her current journey. She also drops the new album cover for Lawyered with Siria.

On this episode, Siria discusses mentorship and how it is not reserved for young people. She encourages you to seek out and cultivate mentoring relationships and to be a mentor to someone. Your story is the blue print for someone else's life.

Siria interviews Frank D. Durand, the Associate Dean for Student Affairs at William S. Boyd School of Law. He shares his journey from Standford Law to academia. The discussion touches on culture shock of going to a big school, imposter syndrome, and how having a strong support system helped him stay true to his values. https://www.chronicle.com/ The Chronicle for Higher Education

Siria talks about being in a boundaries ninja and how she was able to build up this muscle. She shares the power of the word "No" and how saying yes to everyone around you is saying "No" to yourself and your values.

Siria discusses doing introspection and discussing her number one rule of life: You Must Know Yourself. She discusses asking powerful questions in order to know what boundaries to put up and gives you tools to help you figure out what you want, including the wheel of life. 

Siria discusses the idiom "the law is a jealous mistress" and how it will take everything you decide to give her. Yes, you can always do more, but what is the cost?

Siria interviews Blanca Estela. Blanca is the founder of LIP - Latinas in Power, a global community of conscious, heart-centered Latinas leading the frontier of transformation for all women.

Siria interviews Chris Madeksho of the Madeksho Law Firm. Chris has a national reputation for managing asbestos and other toxic torts cases. When Chris is not lawyering, you'll find Chris spending time with his family.

Siria asks you to remember why you went to law school. Remembering your why can help you reconnect with the law or with your purpose.

On this episode, Siria discusses the different meanings of “Lawyered,” how this podcast came to be, and the goals for this podcast.

Welcome to lawyered, a podcast for lawyers looking to get out of the law or transition to a more fulfilling practice area or law students who want to explore the wide range of possibilities of work with a law degree. On this podcast, you'll hear interviews with authors, entrepreneurs, academics, and many more on the different ways they have used their law background on their current ventures and from practicing attorneys who enjoy the practice of law.