#78 Alina Lee - Happy Teams, High Impact

Alina Lee, founder of Aspire Law Group, discusses her business journey.

Key Takeaways

- Alina grew her law firm from solo practice to 9 attorneys and 4 staff in 4 years

- Focuses on enterprise clients (20) and small businesses (100+) as outside general counsel

- Emphasizes work-life balance, allowing flexible schedules (15-25 hrs/week) for most staff

- Leverages mentorship, coaching, and entrepreneurial groups like EO for continued growth

Topics

Alina's Background and Firm Overview

- Previously worked at law firms and as in-house counsel (Southern Company Gas, Mailchimp)

- Started firm 4 years ago, now has 9 attorneys and 4 staff

- Provides outside general counsel services to 20 large enterprise clients and 100+ small businesses

- Handles overflow transactional work for large clients, day-to-day legal needs for small businesses

Early Business Growth

- Wrote comprehensive 50-page business plan before launch

- Hired business coach Tim Fulton at 3-4 month mark

- Secured two large clients early on, but still faced financial challenges

- Joined Entrepreneurs Organization (EO) for support and networking

Hiring and Team Building

- First hire: Virtual assistant in Philippines through Pineapple Staffing ($8/hr, 15 hrs/week)

- Hired first lawyer after one year

- Now has 9 attorneys, most working 15-25 hours/week for work-life balance

- Uses Clifton Strengths assessments and paid test assignments in hiring process

Financial Management

- Experienced cash flow challenges when rapidly hiring attorneys

- Hired fractional CFO after 2 years to help with financial projections

- Implemented Profit First principles to focus on profitability over revenue

Business Pivots and Focus

- Initially targeted all business sizes, now focuses on enterprise clients for higher margins

- Rebranding from "Your Ad Attorney" to "Aspire Law Group" to reflect broader service offerings

- Launching Net Promoter Score (NPS) system to improve client experience

Work-Life Balance

- Allows flexible schedules for most staff (15-25 hours/week)

- Personally struggles with workaholic tendencies, seeing therapist to address this

Advice for Entrepreneurs

- Don't get stuck in the preparation phase - choose a path and adjust as needed

- Focus on profit, not just revenue

- Leverage mentorship and entrepreneurial groups for support and growth

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