We recently connected with Karen Alegi and have shared our conversation below.
Hi Karen, thanks for joining us today. Before we get into specifics, let’s talk about success more generally. What do you think it takes to be successful?
I think everyone needs to think about what “success” means to them. It is not just financial wealth. For me it includes my physical, mental and emotional health as well as my family’s. Our society has historically associated being “rich” with being successful. But I know a lot of “rich” people or are miserable or just not nice people. Are they “successful”? I don’t think so. Part of my success includes making a positive impact on those around me. That could be by sharing knowledge in my professional role, or just spreading kindness every day. I have focused my practice to estate planning because it allows me to meet a lot of people and help them with an essential legal matter. A lot of people find estate planning confusing and morbid. But I have simplified my process to make these matters easy to talk about so that my clients can get their documents in place quickly and easily.
As always, we appreciate you sharing your insights and we’ve got a few more questions for you, but before we get to all of that can you take a minute to introduce yourself and give our readers some of your back background and context?
I grew up in and around Philadelphia, PA. After I finished my undergrad degree I moved to Washington, DC. I started law school in 2001 and stayed in the Maryland/DC region since then. My husband and I and our 2 kids live in Montgomery County, Maryland. My early legal career started in civil litigation. This was incredibly valuable experience that taught me a lot about how to stay out of court! About 11 years ago, I decided to start my own business which added real estate and estate planning to my practice. I found that I really enjoyed doing estate planning work because I was able to meet a lot of clients and help them avoid problems in the future for their loved ones. I felt like it was a more proactive approach to legal matters since the proper estate planning documents help reduce the possibility of family fights or battles after you are no longer around. The relief and satisfaction that clients feel once their documents are in place is so rewarding! I love having a positive interaction with clients rather than working with folks who are involved in a pending dispute. I have a very practical approach to estate planning that many other firms do not practice. I make sure that my clients understand their plan and how to manage it throughout their lives. My method also establishes a bond with my clients so that as other legal matters happen in their life, they know they have an attorney they can call for advice and direction.
Are there any books, videos, essays or other resources that have significantly impacted your management and entrepreneurial thinking and philosophy?
Rich Dad, Poor Dad. Robert Kiyosaki. When I decided to become a business owner and started to read a lot of books about business and investing. This book help explain why your mindset makes all the difference in your decision making. Kiyosaki explains that how you define “wealth” and “success” is the first step in achieving it. How you think about money impacts the decisions you make every day. You must be intentional in everything you purchase or spend you your time on.
How’d you build such a strong reputation within your market?
Lawyers do not have the best reputation as an industry. When I was litigating I interacted with a lot of other attorneys as opposing counsel. Some I came to respect; some I came to loathe. A mentor had told me once that I should not let the attorney on the other side of a case affect how I practice. Just because the opposing attorney is rude, aggressive, or unprofessional, that does not mean that I have to mirror that behavior to be successful. Be who I am and good at what I do and I will get results for my clients (and feel good about it). I often pass that advice on to attorneys that I train and mentor. I refuse to let my client’s problem become my problem. Or the animosity between the parties involved in the dispute become animosity between me and opposing counsel. Attorneys on the opposite sides of a case need to remember that they are colleagues, not enemies. I strive to maintain my composure and professionalism in all interactions.
Contact Info:
- Website: https://alegilaw.com/
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/alegilaw/
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/karen.alegi
- Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/karen-hulme-alegi/
- Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/@KarenAlegisIllumination
- Yelp: https://www.yelp.com/biz/alegi-law-laytonsville
- Other: https://www.martindale.com/attorney/karen-hulme-alegi-4514463/