What was your route to the top? I've been fortunate to have several wonderful mentors and sponsors who taught me great substantive and business development skills, both of which are essential to being a law firm partner. These individuals pushed me to be better than I ever thought I could be through constructive feedback and constantly telling me to dream bigger and aim higher. No matter which career route I chose, I knew these women and men had my back and that they wouldn't let me fail. This gave me the confidence I needed to succeed.

What keeps you up at night? (i.e. What are your biggest business-related concerns?) I tend to believe, correctly or incorrectly, that you're only as good as your last project and that it's very easy to fall from grace. I also recognize that several people vouched for me when DGS decided to make me a partner. And on top of that, I have an exceptional team of associates, paralegals, and assistants who are counting on me to bring in new work and keep them busy. This results in a lot of stress because I don't want to let any of these people down. I want to make them proud and feel good about welcoming me into the DGS family.

What is the best leadership advice you provided, or received, and why do you think it was effective? The best leadership advice I received is always lead with and talk from your heart. Find out what makes you tick and let that passion guide your career in terms of the work you take on, the clients you pursue, and the community service activities you participate in. The likelihood of success greatly increases if you're passionate about your work and being true to your core values.

Looking back, what do you wish you had known when you started out in the legal profession? I wish I would have known that there are many paths to success and that you don't have to be perfect to reach your goals. I would look at the women and minority partners when I was young and think that they must have had flawless careers to reach the top because there are so few of them. I later discovered that these people are human too—they fall down, make mistakes, and lose cases. But they also persevere and never let the obstacles and setbacks define them.

What is the most valuable career advice anyone has ever given you? Everyone makes mistakes and most people make really bad mistakes. Success largely turns on how you respond to those setbacks. Grit and growth mindset are key in this profession.