Thanksgiving Eve Gratitude

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Deep Dive

Thanksgiving Eve Gratitude

You’re chopping onions, responding to the family group text, refreshing Slack, and wondering if that one redline will come through before dinner.

It’s a far cry from the Wednesday before Thanksgiving of the past (hometown bars with high school friends, anyone?), and yet, it can be wonderful.

This time of year has a way of blending everything: the personal and professional, joy and logistics, holiday prep and quarter-end crunch.

But if there’s one thing I’ve learned as an in-house lawyer, it’s that there’s always something more to do—and that makes it even more important to pause and notice what’s already good.

So that’s what I’m doing this week. And I invite you to join me.

Gratitude for how far you’ve come

If you’re an ambitious in-house lawyer, your focus is usually on what’s next—the next project, the next crisis, the next career-defining role. But what happens if you take a moment to look backward?

What would your ten-year-old self think of the fact that you’ve built a legal career helping companies navigate real problems in the real world?

What about your past self ten years into your legal career? Or even just last year?

If you pause to really see what you’ve built, I bet you’ll feel two things: pride in what you’ve done and gratitude that it was even possible.

Gratitude for the people on the journey with you

None of us builds a career alone. Like life, work gets richer because of the people we build it with.

I am personally so grateful not only to my loved ones who have supported me in everything I do, but to my professional colleagues, mentors, and friends, who have made the journey not only possible, but also a whole lot more fun. Like the teammate who makes a dull compliance review feel manageable with their infusion of humor, or the mentor who helped navigate a first executive meeting.

Gratitude for the possibility ahead

We live in wild times. Technology is advancing at an unprecedented rate, and it’s changing how we work. When I think about how I use technology now, compared to how I used it even 12 months ago, I’m blown away by the things it can do. Tools like AI copilots, automated redlines, and legal intake bots can now do things I didn’t think were possible a year ago.

And I love this, because when tech can do more of the basics, it frees up more of my time and energy for the work I love most—like helping shape strategy, mentoring teammates, or navigating new business models. I am so grateful for what’s to come.

Gratitude for all the little things

The big milestones matter. But so do the small things: a sunny walk before a call-heavy day, the first sip of really great coffee, a book that makes you laugh out loud.

I’m a huge fan of gratitude lists, and I used to write them daily. I talked about how I got started and my experience with them in this previous issue. I’d encourage anyone to give them a try!

Final thoughts

Gratitude means choosing amid the chaos, the pressure, and the ambition, to notice what’s good. What’s working. What’s worth celebrating. And I hope that this week, you get a moment to do that.

To look back at how far you’ve come.
To appreciate the people who’ve helped you get there.
To feel excitement for what’s ahead.
And to enjoy the small, beautiful moments in between.

Try jotting down five things you’re grateful for, big or small. And if one of them is a person, tell them.

It might just make their day. Or yours.

P.S: I’m grateful for YOU!

When I started this newsletter less than a year ago, it was just an experiment—a way to share ideas about building an in-house legal career that supports a life you are actually excited to live.

The same was true when I first started posting on LinkedIn. I wasn’t sure who, if anyone, would resonate with what I had to say. But over 22,000 people later, I’ve learned something important: there are a lot of us out here looking for more honest, more human ways to thrive in this profession.

If you’ve read, replied, shared, or just quietly kept reading, thank you. Your time and trust mean more than you know.

I'm so glad you're here.