What If Today Was the First Day of Your Practice?
The unexpected reminder about building a practice I still want to show up for.
Earlier this summer, I heard Robin Arzón say something that stopped me in my tracks—and I haven’t stopped thinking about it since. She said,
“I’m celebrating 11 years at Peloton, and it still feels like Day One.”
I thought, Wow.
After all that time, she’s still chasing it?
The energy. The vision. The fire.
Not the chaos of being brand new, but the clarity of knowing why you started.
This week, I’m celebrating 10 years in practice.
It has been a full decade since I graduated from law school, hung my shingle, and built something that is 100% me.
And I’ll be honest: it doesn’t always feel like Day One.
Sometimes it feels like year two parenting chaos, year seven exhaustion, year eight wondering if I should just burn it all down and become a beekeeper, and year nine pivoting.
But today?
Today it feels like Day One.
And that’s something to celebrate.
What “Day One” Looks Like Now
Ten years ago, Day One was all adrenaline and duct tape.
I was learning everything—the law, tech, taxes, client management, how to say no without sounding like I was apologizing for just existing.
Now, Day One feels quieter, but deeper.
It feels like recommitting to the kind of practice I want to build next.
It feels like returning to the parts of the work that light me up.
It feels like letting go of stuff that’s been weighing me down, not because I can’t handle it, but because I don’t want to anymore.
Make Today Your Day One
You don’t need a 10-year anniversary to do it.
You don’t need a rebrand, a sabbatical, or a “big moment.”
You just need a decision:
To stop coasting.
To stop managing what you built by accident.
To start choosing what comes next—on purpose.
And maybe it starts with one question:
What would you do differently if you were starting your practice today?
Would you:
Charge more?
Say no to certain kinds of work?
Build better systems?
Ditch that client who’s been draining you since 2015?
Whatever it is, that’s your sign.
You don’t need to wait 10 years to start building a practice that you love.
The Longer You’re In Practice, the Easier It Is to Drift
I say that with all the love in the world.
The longer you’re in it, the more things you tolerate—not because you want to, but because “this is what practicing law is like,” or “I don’t have time to fix it,” or (my favorite) “this is how it’s always been done.”
But you didn’t go solo to tolerate your way to retirement.
You went solo to build a career on your terms.
One that supports your life, not swallows it.
Today, I’m Recommitting
To the parts of my practice that make me proud.
To serving clients the way I want to.
To growth that’s impactful—not just profitable.
To 25–hour workweeks.
To peace over performance.
Because I want to want to show up every day.
Even 10 years in.
Even when it’s hard.
Even when I have every excuse to coast.
Here’s to your Day One,
Lauren
P.S. Want a quick reset? Try this: Write a note to yourself as if you were starting your practice today. What would you absolutely insist on this time around? What would you refuse to incorporate?
Stick it on your monitor. Call it your Day One Manifesto. It’s never too late to start again—on your terms.
🎉 congratulations! Im definitely at that stage where I’m learning everything and I can’t wait to see where I’m at in 10 years!