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» VISIT US ONLINE @ DSNEWS.COM 11 at the firm, but it never occurred to me to focus on that. I worked hard, got involved, spoke up, and took advantage of the opportunities that came my way. I asked questions, I learned. No excuses, no free ride. I hope to bring a fresh, creative perspective to the operation of the firm and to expand on our "work hard/play hard" culture. WHAT HAVE BEEN SOME OF THE CHALLENGES YOU'VE FACED DURING YOUR CAREER, AND HOW DID YOU OVERCOME THEM? First, I am a wife and a mother of two boys, both of whom I had while I was practicing law full time. My husband, Todd, and I worked together as a team and made plans and decisions that would allow each of us to succeed in our own careers and as parents and spouses. at was not always easy, and we all had to make sacrifices. It was very important to us that our boys saw us working as a team and that anything worth doing or having is worth working for. Second, being often the only woman, and for most of my career so far, youngest partner, I had to figure out a way to gain respect from both the other partners and the staff. I over- came this, frankly, by putting in the work— getting my hands dirty. I had to learn when to listen and when to speak up; when to take care of it myself, and when to ask for help. It is also really important to me that the staff know that I have their back and that I would never ask them to do something that I wouldn't or couldn't do myself. I am someone who never met a task that was beneath me. Finally, the challenge of navigating a department—and now firm—through the ups and downs of this industry and the ever- changing legal services market. Early on in my career in this industry, things were very quiet and quite routine. When the mortgage market crashed and the largest firm in New York closed—and both happened in quick suc- cession—everything we knew changed. Our own practice more than tripled in size in about a little over a year, and that, coupled with all of the new laws and procedures surround- ing foreclosures and servicing, made it nearly impossible to navigate. I have a team-based management style, so I assembled the team, put together a plan, met often to adjust it, and then we worked hard. It wasn't easy, and we made some mistakes, but overall we survived the storm. We also learned a lot from the process and have used those lessons to navigate new challenges since. e reality is, I would be nothing without the great people around me: my husband, boys, partners, and staff. Delivering news you need. When you need it. Sign up for new alerts each morning to get the industry's top stories delivered direct to your inbox. Register for the Daily Dose at DSNews.com F R E S H L E Y B R E W E D , E V E R Y M O R N I N G R E G I S T E R F O R T H E D A I L Y D O S E A T D S N E W S . C O M GET YOUR MORNING PICK-ME-UP

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