Announcing The Lawyer Forward Podcast
In his first episode, 'Connection,' Mike Whelan explores the loneliness and isolation many lawyers feel right now.
Back during the August 2009 OCI season, amid the wreckage of the Great Recession, a UT-Austin 2L named Mike Whelan sent in a tip to ATL. Mike wanted to share some obnoxious and insensitive remarks he overheard from visiting law firm interviewers. Appended to his account, he included a few “Notes,” including, “Note to self: start a law firm, and do it better than these guys.” Indeed, he went on to start a successful solo practice, while simultaneously managing to become a sought-after speaker, writer, and consultant.
Early on, Mike saw there was something amiss with the current practice model and the culture it fosters. Not only is it destructive to lawyers, but it is also, at best, unsatisfactory for the clients it means to serve. Mike is on a mission to find another path for the profession, and we are thrilled to add his Lawyer Forward to our growing family of ATL podcasts.
Lawyer Forward is a unique entry into the exploding legal industry podcast landscape. The format is narrative — stories that illustrate principles explored in Mike’s highly regarded book of the same name. Lawyer Forward will bring to bear (to quote Nicole Abboud) Mike’s “unique ability to distill and explain oft-confusing concepts” to “lay out a roadmap for lawyers to carve out their own space in the future of the legal profession.”
In his first episode, Mike explores the loneliness and isolation many lawyers feel right now. He gives surprising advice on how to tackle that isolation — including purposefully building social silos — and how doing that work makes for better lawyers and happier clients.
Make sure you take advantage of the show’s Q&A feature. You can ask Mike questions about the latest episode and he’ll answer at the end of the next episode. Just submit your question in the form at the bottom of this post.
