Do you have an eye for design? Do you know how to make a room really pop? Did you hate it when the people on TLC’s Trading Spaces upholstered the walls with tacky-looking fabric? If you’re still practicing law, then maybe you’re in the wrong field. Perhaps you should consider taking a cue from the subject of our latest foray into career alternatives for attorneys and become an interior designer.
Because helping people make their houses feel like homes is just as heartwarming as it sounds….
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Say hello to Nicole Lanteri. She’s a graduate of UVA Law, and began her legal career as an associate at Curtis Mallet before lateraling to Akin Gump. She loved being a lawyer, but like so many of the attorneys we’ve profiled, she looked to the future and in search of something different for her life. Now, Lanteri is an interior designer, and she talks about her career change in this interview with Spencer Mazyck of Bloomberg Law:
It looks like Lanteri learned the hard way that sometimes, you have to work for free before you can turn a profit, especially when you jump into a new industry without any experience whatsoever. But hey, at least she was in a position that allowed her to trade pilates classes for interior design services! What more could a girl want? You know, besides her student loans paid off in full — Lanteri says she still has significant loan debt.
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She apparently charges flat fees for most of her design projects because she recalls hourly billing from her Biglaw days and clients’ anger after receiving surprisingly expensive hourly bills. If you’re interested in learning more about Lanteri’s new endeavor, On My Agenda, an interior design firm which is marketed toward busy people with even busier lives, click here. Congratulations to Nicole Lanteri for all of her successes!
P.S. On My Agenda does NOT do kitchens; come on, everyone knows busy people don’t have time to cook.
Stealth Lawyer: Nicole Lanteri, Interior Designer [Bloomberg Law via YouTube]
Earlier: Prior ATL coverage of career alternatives for attorneys