From Rock Bottom to a $5M+ Law Firm: Practical Business Lessons for Ambitious Law Firm Owners (Ep.114)
Heather O’Connor’s story is proof that it’s possible to turn personal adversity into a thriving, purpose-driven law practice. On this episode of The Lawyer Millionaire Podcast, host Darren Wurz dives deep with Heather, founder of O’Connor Family Law in Massachusetts, who grew her firm from a kitchen-table startup to a 25-person, multimillion-dollar operation.
While the heart of our discussion is Heather’s inspiring story, the episode is packed full of practical business and financial insights—tailor-made for accomplished law firm owners ready to scale, pivot, or find renewed purpose in their work.
Below, we break down the key business and financial lessons from Heather’s journey—along with actionable suggestions you can implement in your own practice.
1. Passion Is a Business Asset—But It Needs Direction
Heather didn’t always envision herself as a law firm owner. Originally, running a multimillion-dollar firm wasn’t in her plans. The turning point was her own difficult divorce, which fueled her desire to make the family law process better for others.
Takeaway:
Choosing a practice area or specialization that genuinely motivates you isn’t just good for your soul—it’s good business. Passion fuels long hours and builds the resilience needed to weather uncertainty and growth.
2. Create a Holistic Client Experience
Heather’s firm stands out for its unique approach: Every client has access to a life strategist coach—at no additional cost. This helps clients manage the emotional rollercoaster of divorce and keeps legal fees under control by reducing non-legal calls to attorneys.
How This Drives Growth:
A service model that goes beyond legal work creates real differentiation. It positions the firm as client-centered and increases referrals.
Actionable Advice:
Look for ways to innovate your client experience.
Consider bringing in professionals from other disciplines (such as coaches or therapists) to support clients during tough transitions.
Track if these changes improve client satisfaction, case outcomes, or firm efficiency.
3. Build Your Team with Personal Connection in Mind
Heather intentionally hires team members with personal connections to divorce or custody issues. This means they bring genuine empathy to every case.
Why This Matters:
Empathy is a competitive edge—clients feel understood, and team members are more committed to the firm’s mission.
What You Can Do:
Revisit your hiring criteria. Do your team members share the firm’s core mission?
Ask about personal connection to your area of practice (where appropriate) to foster empathy and understanding.
4. Invest in Professional Coaching & Ongoing Education
Heather credits much of her business acumen to coaching and professional development—pointing out that while law school teaches you the law, it does not teach you how to run a law firm.
Key Point:
The most successful firm owners invest in business coaching, join professional networks, and pursue ongoing education.
Suggested Next Steps:
Join a peer network or mastermind for law firm owners.
Budget for at least one business or leadership coach.
Encourage your team—especially future leaders—to seek outside mentorship.
5. Delegate and Build an Executive Team
As the firm grew, Heather transitioned from litigation to leadership. With key executives in place—including a long-tenured director of operations and managing attorney—Heather focuses on strategy, vision, and scaling the business.
For Firm Owners Eyeing Growth:
Identify high-potential team members early, and give them leadership opportunities.
Document your vision and mission and share it often.
Let go of some casework to focus on building the business.
6. Prepare for Succession—and Legacy
Heather’s focus is on building a firm that will thrive beyond her, including plans to train and mentor new attorneys from the ground up and a clear commitment to mission-driven impact.
If You Want Your Firm to Outlast You:
Develop mentorship and training programs.
Document processes and invest in leaders who will carry your mission.
Consider the long-term value of your firm as an asset.
7. Diversify and Expand Meaningfully
Heather isn’t stopping at family law. She’s launching a criminal practice and a nonprofit for coaching, both in line with her professional mission.
If You’re Ready for Next Steps:
Consider complementary practice areas that meet unmet client needs.
Evaluate if your next move still fits your personal and professional mission.
8. Adopt Proven Business Frameworks
Heather is a fan of “The 12 Week Year,” using short-term goals to drive high energy and accountability across her team.
Business Planning Tip:
Rather than planning only year by year, set aggressive quarterly goals and evaluate progress every 12 weeks.
Ready to Transform Your Law Firm?
Heather O’Connor’s journey shows that deliberate, mission-focused planning—and a willingness to invest in yourself—can turn adversity into both financial success and meaningful impact.
For law firm owners looking to scale, exit, or simply achieve greater efficiency and satisfaction with their business, now is the time to take action:
Resources:
Connect with Darren Wurz:
Connect with Heather O'Connor:
Linkedin: Heather O'Connor
O'Connor Family Law
Transcript:
Timestamp is based on audio
Darren Wurz [00:00:00]:
All my eggs are in my basket. Welcome to the Lawyer Millionaire podcast. Helping law firm owners go from grind to greatness. I'm your host, Darren Wurz. You know, starting your own law firm really is a bet on yourself. And today's guest bet on herself. From day one, building a 25 person multimillion dollar law firm from the ground up. Heather O' Connor is the founder of O' Connor Family Law in Massachusetts.
Darren Wurz [00:00:29]:
Drawing from her personal experience with divorce and as a domestic violence survivor, she's created an innovative model of legal services for individuals going through divorce. One that puts transformation and empowerment at the center of every case.
Intro [00:00:47]:
We are on a mission to help lawyers and law firm owners maximize wealth and achieve financial independence. Welcome to the Lawyer Millionaire with Darren Wurz from Wurz Financial Services.
Darren Wurz [00:01:01]:
All right, Heather, thanks so much for joining me today. I'm excited to talk with you and.
Heather O' Connor [00:01:06]:
I am super excited to be here.
Darren Wurz [00:01:08]:
Yes, yes. We met at Legal Week and it was a great panel that you were on. So wanted to have you on the show to share your expertise. And you've built really an incredible operation, really scaled it out and built. How big is your team now?
Heather O' Connor [00:01:27]:
We have 25 currently and we're in the process of hiring some more.
Darren Wurz [00:01:33]:
That's amazing. That's really, really amazing. So I want to start off with a big question. You know, if you were to go back in time and talk to your younger self about business ownership, what is one of the key things that you would tell your younger self that you've learned in your journey of growing a practice?
Heather O' Connor [00:01:54]:
I think that's a great question. And I feel as though in my situation at least, I don't know if my younger self would have necessarily listened because where I ended up was not the plan whatsoever. My plan was very different than how my life turned out. So I think if I had gone to my younger self and said, well, oh, you're going to be running a multimillion dollar business and you know you're going to be a lawyer, I would have been like, oh, no, no, no. That is not what I have planned at all. So I think if I were going to tell somebody who's really inclined on business is figure out what it is that you're passionate about and really go after that. Because I honestly believe if you have a drive that extends to what the either the service or the product is that you're giving, you're going to be able to make that successful. But it really comes from that drive because it is a lot of Work.
Heather O' Connor [00:02:51]:
So you have to be prepared for it.
Darren Wurz [00:02:53]:
Yeah, absolutely. So I want to know so much. I mean, you, you didn't envision yourself here, but here you are. Right. Tell us a little bit about your practice, the size and scope of it, what you guys do so that our audience can. Can be familiar.
Heather O' Connor [00:03:06]:
Sure. So we. I'm opening a second firm currently, but we're going to ignore that one since it's still up and coming. I opened a law fir 2016 that focused on divorce and custody. My goal was to do it on. Really focused primarily on high conflict because that's what I came from. You know, I decided to become an attorney. I only had a high school diploma.
Heather O' Connor [00:03:31]:
I decided to become an attorney when I went through my divorce. I came out of that with three young kids under the age of six. And I said this process needs to be done better. And I. I really felt that I could do that. So I went back to community college, I went to undergrad, I went to law school. I clerked for a couple of years. I joined another firm, opened my firm in 2016 with the goal to make the divorce process different.
Heather O' Connor [00:03:57]:
So we've grown from that point. I was terrified opening my own practice because, you know, you don't have that guarantee of a paycheck. So it's really scary. At that point, I still had. Two of my kids were still under the age of 18. So it was terrifying. But we've grown from that to now. We're a team of 25.
Heather O' Connor [00:04:18]:
We're doing, we're on track. This year we should go over 5 million, but our real goal is to hit 10 million either this year or next. And so that's our big push goal. We're getting there, but we've done it differently. Where I take, or we really take a more holistic approach where we have a life strategist coach on our team full time. It's completely complimentary to our, to our clients. And she works with everyone as they come in for the legal side to do their job. She works with them on building up their communication skills, the way they think about things, because that is really the part that's going to give somebody a successful post divorce or post litigation life, where the legal part of it only gets you those words on a piece of paper.
Heather O' Connor [00:05:06]:
And it's everything that really she does that provides you with the opportunity to flourish.
Darren Wurz [00:05:12]:
Oh, my goodness.
Heather O' Connor [00:05:13]:
That's what we've done.
Darren Wurz [00:05:15]:
I love that so much. That's so innovative. Was that. Did that. Where did that idea come from? Did that Come from your own experience or how did that originate?
Heather O' Connor [00:05:25]:
So when I went through my divorce, it was a situation where I felt my attorney obviously knew the law because they knew all the legal mumbo jumbo, but I felt didn't really understand the emotional ups and downs that you go through when you're going through a process like that. And so I've always said, you can pay a lot of money to get a piece of paper with those words on it that you want, but you're not. That is not in and of itself going to change your life. And that really exemplified itself within a case that I had where my client came in and he was incredibly angry. He hadn't seen his kids for quite a while. However, he had also was up on attempted murder charges because he caught his wife cheating and he went after her boyfriend. Oh, my goodness. So he was really angry, rightfully so, because there was the whole cheating aspect.
Heather O' Connor [00:06:23]:
But at the same time, you know, he took the actions that landed him in some hot water. And he had sat down with me and he wanted to hire me. And he was telling me about how it was unfair and it wasn't right. And I said to him, look, I'm willing to represent you, but right now where you are mentally is not in a place where I can work with you. And I was like, so you have to promise me that you'll get involved in some therapy, that you'll get involved in something where you really start to fix yourself. He promised, and he went full in. And there was one point within our representation, because I've done a lot of personal development myself, a lot of therapy to get myself to where I am. And he was calling me, talking about how he was reacting for things that she was saying to him.
Heather O' Connor [00:07:18]:
And I remember saying, I'm charging you $400 an hour. You should speak with your therapist. They're so much cheaper. And he said, it doesn't matter. Like, I want to talk with you. I actually get more out of you than with my therapist. And this guy is somebody who really was the epitome of change your life, change the way you think, change, change everything around you. Because we went at the very beginning of the divorce, he had nothing.
Heather O' Connor [00:07:45]:
He had been kicked out of the house. He wasn't seeing his children, you know, nothing. By the end of the case, we went to trial. He was awarded the children, he was awarded the house. He kept almost his entire retirement account. And she had to pay a majority of my legal fees.
Darren Wurz [00:08:02]:
Wow.
Heather O' Connor [00:08:03]:
And that's a great legal result. But I would not have been able to get that if he had not really focused on changing himself and put himself in a place where. Where once that door opened, we were able to jump in and grab it.
Darren Wurz [00:08:18]:
Wow. Wow. So having. Okay, so this is amazing because having. What would you call it, a life strategist, a life strategy coach, having that person not only is a great service to the client, but also can help you be more successful as an attorney.
Heather O' Connor [00:08:36]:
It sounds like it works in so many different ways. I hope other firms start grabbing onto this idea because not only is it great for the client and we offer it complimentary, so we are not charging our clients for this. So one, it helps keep their fees down, because in any other legal circumstances, there's a lot of emotions that go on. There's a lot of that feeling of fear of the unknown. And so you reach out to your attorney, and a lot of times you're speaking with your attorney on things that aren't just about law. And so your bills skyrocketing.
Darren Wurz [00:09:11]:
Yeah.
Heather O' Connor [00:09:12]:
So this allows. And our attorneys have become very good at it. When they. They see getting to that line where this isn't really so much legal, this is really more the coaching aspect. They. They siphon the client off to Stacy, and that way, it helped keep their bill down as well. It allows our legal team to really focus on what they do really well. And it.
Heather O' Connor [00:09:33]:
It does. When somebody clings on to Stacy and starts to changing how they are, we get them better results.
Darren Wurz [00:09:41]:
Amazing. Wow. What other innovative things are you doing in family law? I'm. You know, this is. This is an incredible. I'm sure there's other cool things you're doing that are different. Yeah.
Heather O' Connor [00:09:54]:
Now I have to think, because to us, everything seems normal.
Darren Wurz [00:09:58]:
Sure, sure. Well, do you. Is this a big reason that you think you've grown so much? I mean, the growth that you've had over the last nine years is just incredible. Is that a part of it? Having this more holistic approach? Do you feel like that's really been a key to your growth over the years?
Heather O' Connor [00:10:13]:
I think so. I think it's a matter of when I'm hiring for my team. I'm looking for people that have some sort of personal relationship with divorce or with custody. It might be that they've personally gone through a divorce. It might be that their parents went through a divorce and they grew up in that type of household. It might be that a close family member or friend, they've really walked them through that process. But what I'm looking. Looking for are for people that have that personal relationship, Because I think it is so important to always have in the forefront what our clients are going through and that understanding and empathy of.
Heather O' Connor [00:10:53]:
We get it, where it's not just. You're not just talking to somebody about the law, you're talking to them about their life. And I think that connection and that relationship is. Is really what has catapulted us and allowed us the growth that we've had.
Darren Wurz [00:11:09]:
Yeah. So you came to this, you know, for this purpose. You know, you became an attorney because you wanted to do this very exact thing. You were kind of an outsider in that. In that regard. Right. So do you. Do you owe.
Darren Wurz [00:11:24]:
Do you think that a lot of your innovation comes from that? That you weren't like, you know, in a bigger law firm and then branched out, but you just. You went into it with this in mind? Tell us about that.
Heather O' Connor [00:11:37]:
Sure. So I went in, like I said, went through a marriage. My marriage had become very unhealthy. And one day I said to my husband at the time, I looked at him and I said, this isn't good. We need to get a divorce. This just is not a good situation for either one of us to be in anymore. And he looked at me and he said, if you leave me, I will make sure you have nothing. I will make sure that you have no house, you will have no money, you will make sure our kids will hate you.
Heather O' Connor [00:12:09]:
You'll be lucky to sleep on a park bench. And it was really scary for me, even with that threat, which I completely believed he had that power to be able to move forward with a divorce that eventually came. And so throughout that, I've constantly been told that if I do something, there's going to be a repercussion. And what I've found over and over again is I can do anything that I want and nobody else can tell me that I can't do something. And so I saw that, you know, when I went back to school, I was older, I had three kids. I was in a class full of, you know, young 18, 19 year olds, and then there's me. So I never fit in to the general mold. It was.
Heather O' Connor [00:13:00]:
I was always different, and that just became normal to me. So when I went to law school, I remember saying, oh, I'm going to open a family law firm. You know, one day I'm going to make a ton of money. I'm going to be able to open a pro bono division. I'm going to do all these things. And they were like, you can't do that unless you work at a bank firm. And I was like, well, no, I want to. And so it was time and time again when I applied for.
Heather O' Connor [00:13:25]:
I ended up clerking for the Chief justice of the Rhode Island Supreme Court. When I had applied to that, you know, I was all excited about it. He had a family law history in his past, so I was like, I'm going to learn a lot from him. I was interning with the AG's office, and my boss at the time, she's like, oh, you have your interview with the Chief justice today? And I said, yeah. She's like, are you nervous? And I said, no, I'm going to sparkle. And she goes, you're going to sparkle for the Chief Justice? And I said, yeah. And I got the job. So I feel as though I have always been in a position where people don't expect me to do things, and then I'm able to show them that you can do it.
Heather O' Connor [00:14:09]:
So I think for me, it's given me the ability to never feel as though I can't bust through that glass ceiling.
Darren Wurz [00:14:20]:
Absolutely. I love that so much. I've been very much an outsider in my life. I feel that way because I started out, I was a teacher for five years. I did that, and then I transitioned into the business I'm in now. And everybody told me, you've got to join a big firm and you've got to get the training, and, you know, you're not going to be able to do it on your own. And I was like, screw that. You know, worst case is I fail.
Darren Wurz [00:14:48]:
Right? You know, let's. Let's give it a shot.
Heather O' Connor [00:14:51]:
Yeah. I haven't been able to eat before. I mean, it could happen. But that's where I really believe that it's that passion. Because from the. From the day I decided that was what I was gonna do, I had such laser focus. Everything. Even in law school, I founded the Family Law Society.
Heather O' Connor [00:15:10]:
Everything was about, what can I learn about family law? This is where I'm going. Even when I worked for the firm, I remember sitting there on the interview, and the guy, my. The managing attorney, he looked at me and he said, heather, where else have you applied? And I looked at him, and I go, well, nowhere. And he just kind of leaned back, crossed his arms, gave, like, a little smirk, and said, oh, so you have all your eggs in this basket? And I looked at him, I go, no, all my eggs are in my own basket. This is my backup plan. And immediately, the owner was like, she's hired. She has the job, but it was, I've always been very laser focused in exactly what I wanted to do and it gave me the energy, the passion to be able to pull those, you know, even now there's still weeks. I work 80, 80 plus hour weeks.
Heather O' Connor [00:16:06]:
But I love it.
Darren Wurz [00:16:08]:
Absolutely. You know, growing your, your business, you have a 25 person team now. How do you effectively manage that team? What are the, what is the structure look like that enables you to really be productive and have a team that functions well?
Heather O' Connor [00:16:24]:
I am probably the luckiest person in the world because I have such a great team and, and it really came. The leaders, what we refer to as our executive team, they've been with me a really long time. My director of operations came in, I believe they're going on eight years. We've only been open for nine. My managing attorney, she came in, I believe she's going on her seventh year with us. They're people that listen to my vision, listen to my mission and fully bought in and could see it. They believe it just as much as I do. And so we've really been able to do it together.
Heather O' Connor [00:17:03]:
Together. And it has taken, you know, it's so true that it takes, it takes a village to do something and I am surrounded by amazing people.
Darren Wurz [00:17:13]:
Yeah. Well, what a great example of how when, when you're, when your passion lines up with your work, magic can really happen. Right. You can't replicate that.
Heather O' Connor [00:17:24]:
It rubs off on everyone. You know, I, I've been told that when I show up at work because a lot of our legal team works virtually at this point. But every once in a while when people get together, they're like, it's like the energy just falls off of you and then you go home and you're like, I need to do more.
Darren Wurz [00:17:42]:
Yeah, yeah, absolutely. Have you implemented any like business frameworks? Like are you a EOS person or scaling up person or how did you, how did you accumulate your business acumen? Where did it come from?
Heather O' Connor [00:18:00]:
So I'm the first one to say that when you don't know what to do something, how to do something, you look for other people for how to do it. So when I decided to open my own firm, I joined a company called how to Manage. And so they were really implemental or they were really helpful at the very beginning of getting that going then. I've always believed in coaching and now I work with eight figure firm. I've used a bunch of different people. There's a lot of great coaching out there for different aspects. But I, one year One year I got audited by the irs. And the thing that flagged me, they said, there's a lot here on professional coaching.
Heather O' Connor [00:18:42]:
And I said, yes. And I gave her the example of it's very similar if you go to school, you go to school to learn how to do something. I went to school to learn to become a lawyer. They didn't teach me how to run a law firm and how to run a business. So now I'm doing that. Well, I build the business. So if you want to think of it like education, that's what it's. That's the whole point of it.
Heather O' Connor [00:19:05]:
And she goes, okay, I guess that makes sense. So when are you going to be done with your education?
Darren Wurz [00:19:10]:
And I was like, never.
Heather O' Connor [00:19:13]:
Like what? So she didn't quite understand the whole point. But I fully believe and will always invest in my growth.
Darren Wurz [00:19:22]:
Yeah, definitely. That you need to be inspired by others. And the most successful law firm owners I have seen surround themselves with that team of people of, you know, maybe multiple advisors who are helping them really transform and think higher level because you don't know what you don't know. And it's an evolution that you go through over time. How has your thinking kind of evolved as a business owner?
Heather O' Connor [00:19:51]:
Well, every day I feel like I say, wow, when I opened a law firm, I never thought this was going to be an issue. So it's had to evolve from me and then one other person, so very solo practice to, okay, we're a team. I have a handful of cases that I still work on, but for the most part, I don't even litigate anymore because my full time job is how do we build this company? How do we achieve the dreams that, that I want that are out there? And they're big, you know, they're very, very large. And I love litigation. So that was very difficult for me to give up. But it's all about priorities. And as you continue to grow, it's a matter of where does your priority lie and what is the most important thing for you at that point? Because that's where you have to put all your effort in. Because if you spread yourself too thin, you're not going to be able to do much of anything.
Heather O' Connor [00:20:48]:
So I think that the biggest change has been constantly kind of just developing myself to fit the new mold that I have to be in for the position that I'm in at that point.
Darren Wurz [00:21:01]:
Yeah, yeah, absolutely. You know, on this show we've talked before about, you know, building the value of your, your business as an asset. Right. As Something that actually has value that extends beyond you. As someone who is very mission driven, I'm sure you're thinking about how you build an organization that's going to continue to have an impact long after you. What are your thoughts on that and how are you kind of setting up the firm to kind of be something that will continue to flourish long term?
Heather O' Connor [00:21:36]:
Yes. So one of the goals is to have something obviously not a big, huge firm like in Boston, because they deal with way more things than I want to be able to deal with. But what we've started to do is really focus on our education. And my goal has become to create the judges that are going to be taking our bench and have those judges really come out of the lawyers that we're producing. So one of the things we started to do, we had our first class last year. We're getting ready to do another one, but we're running a junior associate program. So when people are coming straight out of school, they come in and we put them through a three to six month training before they're able to actually start practicing. Where we've partnered up with some of the retired judges that come in and actually teach them all the tips and tricks to walking in front of a court.
Heather O' Connor [00:22:33]:
We have them go through a ton of training, a ton of shadowing. We utilize that to help provide low, low, either pro bono or low bono needs to give them more experience. So we've started doing this and it has created a really great way for. Because from what I've heard, a lot of family law firms will not hire somebody that's fresh. You know, they want somebody with experience. But then you're in the conundrum of how do you get experience when no one will hire you.
Darren Wurz [00:23:05]:
Yeah.
Heather O' Connor [00:23:06]:
So it's one of the things we're really putting into play. And we're going to be running a new class every single year to continue, you know, that education going on and really build up a name for ourselves of being the. The most prestigious family law firm in Massachusetts.
Darren Wurz [00:23:23]:
Very cool. Very good. That's really a great idea. And thinking, you know, beyond just the law practice itself, the impact that you can tell us about what's next for you, you've built a successful practice. What are you looking towards next? Do you want to talk a little bit about your, your new practice that you're launching or. Yeah, go ahead.
Heather O' Connor [00:23:44]:
Yeah, I can talk about everything.
Darren Wurz [00:23:46]:
Okay.
Heather O' Connor [00:23:49]:
So we're going to be opening a criminal firm for a number of couple different reasons. One, when I, when I first decided to become an attorney. Based on my past, I really thought I would be more plaintiff's rights, more. I don't want to say pro domestic violence victim, but really taking that advocacy position. And unfortunately, what I have found in family law is there are a lot of people who utilize the domestic violence system as a strategy to get an upper hand in divorce and custody. Now, not everybody, and there are 100% people that need it. I was one of those people. I know there's a lot of people out there that truly need the protection, but that is the exact reason it has become just as passionate for me to fight people who are putting out those false accusations or going in on.
Heather O' Connor [00:24:44]:
I don't know if I can swear here, so I'll just say a BS restraining order. And I remember a case, I actually just ran into him at the courthouse. I represented him 13 years ago, and he had a baby with his. His girlfriend. At the time, they weren't married, and she had been threatening to leave and take off New Hampshire, which is a completely different jurisdiction. So he had hired us basically because of that. She was served. And literally within 48 seconds, she was on the.
Heather O' Connor [00:25:22]:
On the phone with the police reporting rape.
Darren Wurz [00:25:25]:
Oh, wow.
Heather O' Connor [00:25:29]:
So this was a huge fight. And this is something that I have seen over and over and over of people who falsely accuse others solely to get what they're looking for. And it's not right. And it's something that I, again, I am so passionate about and just as much as protecting somebody that really does need it. And so with that, you know, we've seen that interplay of how as soon as you have a restraining order or as soon as you have been accused of a crime, it's almost like this black mark against you in family court, and it's not fair. And so the domestic assault and batteries is really an interplay that we're going to be able to help people go through both aspects of the law. And so that's. Then there's a whole bunch of things.
Heather O' Connor [00:26:15]:
I don't know if you know anything about the Karen Reed trial that's going on around here at this point in time, but it's horrible. Like, the. The police work was bad, the record keeping was bad, and justice requires people to follow rules. And that's really where we're coming from with the kind of. The tagline, because it's what I believe is no one is as bad as their worst mistake. So how do we take where you are? Whether it's because you've been falsely accused or maybe you've Just made a mistake. And how do we get you back on track to be able to live a great life where you don't have to worry about your job, you know, losing your job or finances or your family? So that's. That's one of the next things that we have going.
Darren Wurz [00:26:58]:
Yeah, that's very exciting.
Heather O' Connor [00:27:00]:
And then I can keep going because there's more.
Darren Wurz [00:27:02]:
Okay, sure. What's. What's more?
Heather O' Connor [00:27:04]:
So we're also starting a nonprofit with the focus on coaching. And this really stems from within the family law firm. We've had a lot of. And I'm sure there's men as well, but we've really seen it with women. And I'm a woman who has experienced the same feeling where they call in and they just stuck. And the only thing they can come up with is to make a change in my life. I think I'm at the place where I need to get a divorce. So they call our firm to get that information.
Heather O' Connor [00:27:36]:
What are my rights? What are, you know, what. What does it look like? But there's nothing that we're hearing that this relationship is toxic or unhealthy or abusive. It's just not happy. And a lot of times when, again, as a woman I can relate with it is you wear so many different hats. You wear a wife hat, you wear a mother hat. And a lot of times you forget to put on your own hat and take care of yourself. And that leaves you in a place of just feeling like you're repeating day in and day out and you're just trying to make it to the next day.
Darren Wurz [00:28:13]:
Yeah.
Heather O' Connor [00:28:13]:
And so the whole thought was, if we can take this segment of women and one either help them find the joy back in their life, help them refind what they are passionate about, one that can either spark up their marriage so that they stay married and they can stay together and they can stay on that path, or help them make an educated decision of moving forward with a divorce and hopefully avoid the situation where it becomes a high conflict divorce. Because high conflict is not good for anyone. If we could get rid of high conflict divorce, that would be great. It's what we do. But it's not the best for either party or the children. And so I've sat in conferences where the two parties are sitting across from each other, and you can see the daggers, just the hatred that extends across the table. And I've sat there thinking, how do we not get to this point? How do we make it where somebody. The anger, the jealousy.
Heather O' Connor [00:29:19]:
I really believe that's from marriages sometimes hanging on a lot longer than they should. And so this whole program is about education of really make it or break it, and that's what we're calling it, is whether or not, you know, you're going to really put your effort and your energy into your marriage or you're going to make that decision to move forward, but hopefully be able to do that on a much more amicable basis.
Darren Wurz [00:29:45]:
Wow. Wow. That is really exciting stuff. And Heather, I love that everything you're doing flows from kind of your overarching mission. It all comes back to that, which.
Heather O' Connor [00:29:59]:
Is really, really cool because there's just everything can be better in life. And that's my mission, is to create a better life for everybody.
Darren Wurz [00:30:10]:
Fantastic. I've got one last question for you. Part of what we do is we have a book club for our listeners and our clients. And right now we're actually reading the book Shoe Dog by Phil Knight, the creator of Nike. We read one book a quarter. So I'm curious, you know, and a lot of law firm owners and lawyers are readers. Is there any book that you're reading right now that you're really excited about or maybe a book that you read that was really life changing for you in terms of your, your law practice or your business?
Heather O' Connor [00:30:41]:
I think right now I'm reading Grant Cardone's book. I think it's unstoppable or unshakable or I forget the name of it, but I'm listening to that on audible. And then the. The book that really resonated with me recently was, I believe it was called the 50. The. No, the 12 week work year or 12 week year or something like that. And it really took the emphasis because when you plan for the entire year, if your quarter doesn't quite hit, it kind of sets you on this downward trajectory. And the 12 week year really, really refocused everything.
Heather O' Connor [00:31:20]:
And I found that ever since we started incorporating that energy is up all the time because we, we act as though one quarter is really our year focus. And so it's just a different way of looking at something that completely changed everything for me. And I will always come back to that book. I think I've read it three times now.
Darren Wurz [00:31:40]:
Okay. How cool. I haven't checked that one out, but I will put that on my list for sure. That's an interesting way to kind of reframe that. Yeah.
Heather O' Connor [00:31:47]:
I can't remember if it was the 12 week work year or the 12 week year or it's something 12 weeks.
Darren Wurz [00:31:53]:
Okay.
Heather O' Connor [00:31:53]:
Yeah, it's really, really good.
Darren Wurz [00:31:54]:
Well, we'll make sure we find it and put it in the show notes for sure. For sure. Okay. Well, Heather, thank you so much for joining me today. This has been really fantastic.
Heather O' Connor [00:32:02]:
Yeah, thank you so much for having me. I enjoyed telling you my story a little bit.
Darren Wurz [00:32:07]:
Absolutely. Thank you so much.
Heather O' Connor [00:32:09]:
All right, bye.
Darren Wurz [00:32:10]:
All right, well, a huge thank you to Heather for joining us on today's show and sharing her incredible story. From Single mom to Multimillion Dollar Law Firm CEO. You know, what I learned from Heather's story is that your pain can be the birthplace of your greatest purpose. And it's a great reminder that it's never too late to start making your dreams a reality. Heather's story is proof that when you build with intention, your firm can become more than just a job. It can become a platform for lasting impact. That's what we're all about here at the Lawyer Millionaire Founders Network. We help elite law firm owners figure out exactly how to turn their success into long term significance.
Darren Wurz [00:32:57]:
If you've built a successful practice and you find yourself asking the question, what? What's next? You belong in our community. Jump on a call with me to explore our membership options. You'll find the link to schedule a call in the show notes and you can learn more about us on our newly designed website. Check it out. Head on over to lawyermillionaire.com well, that's a wrap for this episode of the Lawyer Millionaire podcast. I'm your host, Darren Wurz. See you next time.
Outro [00:33:33]:
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