Latest / The Lawtino™ / We Belong Here: Leadership, Community, and the Power of Representation

Transcript

We Belong Here: Leadership, Community, and the Power of Representation · The Lawtino™

• 0:00
  SPEAKER_05: Welcome to the Latino Podcast, where we amplify the voices of Latino professionals, entrepreneurs, and leaders coming together to educate, inspire, and connect across one of the most dynamic binational regions in the world.
• 0:12
  SPEAKER_05: Bicultural, premium, powerful.
• 0:20
  SPEAKER_03: Hey, it's John Gomez.
• 0:22
  SPEAKER_03: Welcome to the next uh episode of the Latino.
• 0:26
  SPEAKER_03: We're here in Washington, D.C.
• 0:28
  SPEAKER_03: We're mobile on the road at uh Hispanic National Bar Association's annual conference.
• 0:34
  SPEAKER_03: And right now we are joined by a very special guest, a big uppity up in the group that we happen to meet and happen to jump on the podcast.
• 0:42
  SPEAKER_03: But uh this podcast, as always, this episode is sponsored by Gomez Trial Attorneys, a national consumer rights law firm.
• 0:50
  SPEAKER_03: We are bi-national, that is, we have offices both in Mexico and the United States.
• 0:55
  SPEAKER_03: Bicultural, we offer the very highest level of legal representation both in English and Spanish, and with cultural sensitivity and best in class, we do believe we're the best lawyers in the business for what we do.
• 1:07
  SPEAKER_03: So, David Areguin, originally my guest on the podcast that now is part of my firm and my co-host always.
• 1:15
  SPEAKER_03: Um, so we have a very special guest here today, a big deal, a big shot uh in uh this organization and uh the world.
• 1:24
  SPEAKER_03: So please get us started with our guests.
• 1:26
  SPEAKER_04: I mean, the the biggest of deals at this point, right?
• 1:29
  SPEAKER_04: Right.
• 1:29
  SPEAKER_04: Like we're we're happy to welcome the president of the Hispanic National Bar Association.
• 1:35
  SPEAKER_04: First, what a privilege to have you here.
• 1:37
  SPEAKER_04: You taking the time to be on the Latino podcast.
• 1:40
  SPEAKER_04: We appreciate you.
• 1:41
  SPEAKER_04: Uh Rose Valley, is it Rose Valley, right?
• 1:44
  SPEAKER_04: Uh please let us know like what your background is, how you got involved with HMBA.
• 1:48
  SPEAKER_04: We'll go through like a few questions, but mainly we want to hear about your story.
• 1:53
  SPEAKER_04: So, welcome, welcome.
• 1:54
  SPEAKER_01: Well, thank you, and thank you for being here.
• 1:56
  SPEAKER_01: We're supporting the HMBA and taking the time to speak to not only me, but our members.
• 2:00
  SPEAKER_01: Uh, something that we're always trying to do is bring visibility and awareness on some of the amazing things that our members are doing and how we're supporting the Latino community.
• 2:08
  SPEAKER_01: So thank you for having us.
• 2:10
  SPEAKER_01: Wow, looking back, my path, right?
• 2:13
  SPEAKER_01: Um, actually, you know, we're going, you know, we're here at the conference, and it's actually the 25th anniversary of 9-11.
• 2:20
  SPEAKER_01: Um and I wrote an op-ed which I you know encourage you tomorrow to read.
• 2:23
  SPEAKER_01: It's gonna come out tomorrow morning.
• 2:24
  SPEAKER_01: And the reason that I bring it back because it's 25 years since I entered the law profession, and I started my Liu career um at the World Choice Center as a summer associate.
• 2:34
  SPEAKER_02: Wow.
• 2:35
  SPEAKER_01: Uh and I was supposed to be in the towers that day.
• 2:38
  SPEAKER_01: Um so just it's it's kind of a full circle moment for me.
• 2:44
  SPEAKER_01: Uh you know, I decided to go to law school along the way.
• 2:47
  SPEAKER_01: I'd always liked, you know, debate, right?
• 2:49
  SPEAKER_01: They had to tell you you should go to law school, debate, you know.
• 2:52
  SPEAKER_01: But really, at the center of everything I've done since I was a young girl has been around advocacy and community empowerment.
• 2:59
  SPEAKER_01: Uh, I remember as a young girl in high school, you know, people kind of lowering their expectations of what was expected.
• 3:07
  SPEAKER_01: Where are you going to high school?
• 3:08
  SPEAKER_01: I went to uh Clarborn High School in Crown Heights, right?
• 3:11
  SPEAKER_03: Is that like in New York?
• 3:12
  SPEAKER_01: Brooklyn, in New York, Brooklyn, or you're Brooklyn, inner city schoolgirl, uh, inner city public school system.
• 3:18
  SPEAKER_01: And the truth of the matter is that for many Latinos in in high school, the expectation is that you're not gonna graduate.
• 3:26
  SPEAKER_01: And so that's what you're working towards.
• 3:27
  SPEAKER_01: So graduation is the benchmark.
• 3:30
  SPEAKER_01: Not really thinking about well, actually, there's more than just graduating.
• 3:34
  SPEAKER_01: It's going on for higher education, there's college, there's graduate school, right?
• 3:38
  SPEAKER_01: But those weren't the opportunities that were being presented to many of our colleagues.
• 3:43
  SPEAKER_01: In fact, it was alternative.
• 3:44
  SPEAKER_01: But I had a really good guidance counselor, always remember and honor her, Marion Finn.
• 3:50
  SPEAKER_01: And Marion Finn saw something in me.
• 3:52
  SPEAKER_01: And what did she do?
• 3:53
  SPEAKER_01: She contacted uh Barnard College Emissions, and she said, I have a young girl.
• 3:57
  SPEAKER_03: Oh, that's a that's a that's a fancy school.
• 4:00
  SPEAKER_01: I would like that.
• 4:02
  SPEAKER_01: What we what we soon learned, right?
• 4:04
  SPEAKER_01: I mean first generation going to college in my family, so you know.
• 4:08
  SPEAKER_01: Where's your family from?
• 4:09
  SPEAKER_01: My family's from Puerto Rico.
• 4:10
  SPEAKER_03: Okay.
• 4:11
  SPEAKER_01: Uh so I was born in Puerto Rico, moved to Brooklyn, you know, elementary school, middle school, and then high school.
• 4:17
  SPEAKER_01: Uh spent all my summers in Puerto Rico with my family.
• 4:20
  SPEAKER_01: What a treat.
• 4:22
  SPEAKER_01: It was a treat.
• 4:23
  SPEAKER_01: It really informed who I am and my love for the island.
• 4:26
  SPEAKER_01: Uh, and that's why we're going to Puerto Rico next year.
• 4:32
  SPEAKER_01: I can't wait.
• 4:33
  SPEAKER_03: I can't wait.
• 4:34
  SPEAKER_00: A presidential decision.
• 4:37
  SPEAKER_01: Very excited, excited to be here.
• 4:39
  SPEAKER_03: He's a Puerto Rican out here.
• 4:41
  SPEAKER_01: Uh but yeah, but it was Mary and Penn, and I and I met this young lady, and she invited my mother and I to go to Barnard.
• 4:46
  SPEAKER_01: Uh, and we didn't know much, and we didn't have the internet back then, so we just showed up at Barnard, an amazing school.
• 4:53
  SPEAKER_01: Um, for those of you who may not know, Barnard College is a women's college and it's part of Columbia University.
• 4:59
  SPEAKER_01: Uh, and I got a full ride.
• 5:01
  SPEAKER_01: I got a full ride because we're gonna be.
• 5:02
  SPEAKER_04: Congratulations on that.
• 5:04
  SPEAKER_01: Uh, thank you very much because one person saw my potential.
• 5:07
  SPEAKER_01: And it always stays with me because I feel like throughout my career and everything that I do is when I see potential, I want to make sure that there's a path forward for them and about giving them access.
• 5:18
  SPEAKER_01: Because I've always said, and when I was in high school, I was actually part of a program called Aspira of New York.
• 5:23
  SPEAKER_01: Um, and Aspina was was a program which was about bringing opportunities and access to education to Puerto Rican and Latino communities because the graduation rate was was so low.
• 5:34
  SPEAKER_01: And so I continued to work with Aspina, and one of the founders, Antonia Pantoja, you know, would say, you know, I learned along the way that I belonged to my community, and that words, those words always stuck with me.
• 5:46
  SPEAKER_01: Uh so fast forward, I ended up at Barnard College, I was an economics major, uh, and I decided to go to law school really with community in mind and service.
• 5:56
  SPEAKER_01: And as a young lawyer going into law school, many of us don't know what our path is.
• 6:01
  SPEAKER_01: Um, we go there, we have this idea of what law is, and I mean to this day, many of us don't know what it's like to be a part of that profession.
• 6:09
  SPEAKER_01: Uh, and many times you're presented with lots of law firms that come and are offering positions or corporate, and you're trying to figure out what you know what what is that path.
• 6:17
  SPEAKER_01: And so that took me that summer.
• 6:19
  SPEAKER_01: I interned um at a at a firm at the World Trade Center, uh, and on the 85th floor.
• 6:26
  SPEAKER_03: Jeez.
• 6:27
  SPEAKER_03: And the first tower?
• 6:28
  SPEAKER_01: Second tower.
• 6:29
  SPEAKER_03: The second one, aye.
• 6:30
  SPEAKER_01: Second tower.
• 6:31
  SPEAKER_01: And that day, because I was still in law school and I was interning, I was scheduled to go to court.
• 6:37
  SPEAKER_01: And so I was closing my door to go to court before I went to the office when I got a phone call saying, Did you turn on the TV?
• 6:43
  SPEAKER_01: Where are you?
• 6:43
  SPEAKER_01: And I said, I'm closing my door, I'm heading to court, and I go back inside.
• 6:47
  SPEAKER_01: And that's when the first tower had hit.
• 6:50
  SPEAKER_01: And I remember vividly calling my supervisor and trying to get in touch with anyone to see what was what was happening.
• 6:58
  SPEAKER_01: Uh ultimately, we know that the second tower got hit.
• 7:02
  SPEAKER_01: Um, we lost six people.
• 7:04
  SPEAKER_01: One of them uh was a man by the name of Mark Brisbane who had mentored me that summer.
• 7:10
  SPEAKER_03: Oh gosh, so sorry for that.
• 7:11
  SPEAKER_03: So sorry for your loss.
• 7:13
  SPEAKER_01: But I think this is just the best way to honor his story because you know, reflecting when you ask about my path, it always takes me back to that summer and the doors and opportunities that were given to me.
• 7:25
  SPEAKER_01: I happen to be the only Puerto Rican, the only Afro-Latina, the only actually woman uh intern that summer of the small group class.
• 7:34
  SPEAKER_01: Um and so naturally there are moments where you question whether you belong there.
• 7:39
  SPEAKER_01: Or you don't see yourself reflected in folks around you, and you are, you know, there's a there's a moment of imposter.
• 7:47
  SPEAKER_01: There's a moment of imposter.
• 7:48
  SPEAKER_01: And many of us um actually go through that a different way, at different times in our profession.
• 7:53
  SPEAKER_01: Um but Mark would always come in and we'd work through the assignments, and he'd you know, you know, talk to me, mentor me, always made me feel like a colleague.
• 8:03
  SPEAKER_01: Uh and it was how I wanted to lead my path, how I wanted others to experience me.
• 8:09
  SPEAKER_01: And I've continued to live that through the work that I do.
• 8:12
  SPEAKER_01: I think it's a guiding purpose in everything that I do, it's always around, you know, moving the path forward and helping to advance.
• 8:19
  SPEAKER_01: Um, I will I will fast forward, uh, you know, stayed with them after 9-11.
• 8:26
  SPEAKER_01: Um, I actually became the first Latina partner at that firm.
• 8:29
  SPEAKER_01: Wow, congratulations.
• 8:30
  SPEAKER_01: Several years later.
• 8:31
  SPEAKER_01: So congratulations for you.
• 8:32
  SPEAKER_01: Thank you very much.
• 8:33
  SPEAKER_01: Several years later, I became the first Latina partner doing what we do, right, in terms of building a successful practice.
• 8:40
  SPEAKER_01: Um, and then I had a different opportunity presented to myself.
• 8:43
  SPEAKER_01: I was doing a lot of work on the side, I would say moonlighting, doing somewhat you know, work with the various bar associations.
• 8:50
  SPEAKER_01: So getting back to your questions, like how did I end up with the HMBA?
• 8:53
  SPEAKER_04: Giving back, giving back.
• 8:54
  SPEAKER_01: I I guess I was actually started involved with the Puerto Rican Bar Association in New York and I became president.
• 8:59
  SPEAKER_01: I was one of the second youngest presidents of the Bar Association.
• 9:03
  SPEAKER_01: Uh, and during that time was when we were collaborating with the HMBA.
• 9:07
  SPEAKER_02: Okay.
• 9:08
  SPEAKER_01: So as part of the Puerto Rican Bar Association, we were an affiliate.
• 9:10
  SPEAKER_01: So the HMBA has affiliate bar associations across um 19 regions that we have, including Puerto Rico.
• 9:17
  SPEAKER_01: And so during that time, I got to learn the organization and the work that they were doing on a national level.
• 9:24
  SPEAKER_01: Uh and I later on was asked by the president at the time whether I would consider being on the board.
• 9:31
  SPEAKER_01: Uh, and when I uh ended my presidency with the Puerto Rican Bar Association, I joined the board up as board secretary.
• 9:37
  SPEAKER_01: And so I've been serving the HMBA in some capacity on the executive committee for over 10 years before I actually decided uh to run for the position of president.
• 9:48
  SPEAKER_01: Well, congratulations on your victory.
• 9:50
  SPEAKER_01: Thank you so much.
• 9:51
  SPEAKER_03: It's gonna be an exciting year.
• 9:53
  SPEAKER_03: And so, you know, like, let me just ask, you know, what you think about, because you were a kid that got plucked out of you know Brooklyn public school system just because someone took an interest in you.
• 10:06
  SPEAKER_03: Uh, what do you think about the just general concept of diversity, equity, inclusion in law?
• 10:12
  SPEAKER_03: Like, is it important?
• 10:13
  SPEAKER_03: Does it matter?
• 10:14
  SPEAKER_03: How can we, you know, find kids like you or make our you know legal system more accurately reflect the our community?
• 10:23
  SPEAKER_01: Yeah, it's important, it matters, and it makes a difference.
• 10:27
  SPEAKER_01: Um so I practiced for about 10 years with the firm, and I made a transition, and that transition was to focus on diversity, equity, and inclusion.
• 10:38
  SPEAKER_01: Uh, I actually uh started to teach, I went to Fordham Law as an adjunct professor there, a course called um DI and law practice.
• 10:47
  SPEAKER_01: And what does diversity, what does equity, what does inclusion look like in everyday practice and the value?
• 10:53
  SPEAKER_01: Uh and that was the several conversations and years of conversations with clients and different legal professionals around.
• 11:00
  SPEAKER_01: It's not just about the numbers, it's not about having people in seats, which is what often people confuse diversity initiatives around.
• 11:09
  SPEAKER_01: But it's really about do we have the best at the table?
• 11:13
  SPEAKER_01: And we don't have the best at the table if we don't have the diversity of perspectives and experiences that many of our communities bring to those tables.
• 11:22
  SPEAKER_01: It's understanding that in order to service our clients at the highest levels, we need the best of the best.
• 11:29
  SPEAKER_01: And the best of the best is going to be a diverse group every single time.
• 11:33
  SPEAKER_01: There's science, there's data that supports all of it.
• 11:36
  SPEAKER_01: And inclusion is not at the exclusion of others.
• 11:40
  SPEAKER_01: It is just making room for more people.
• 11:43
  SPEAKER_01: And so I have built the second half of my career around diversity, equity, and inclusion and making sure that access to systems, access to justice, and that we're setting up organizations that are preparing for the future.
• 11:58
  SPEAKER_01: I mean, Latinos, highest population.
• 12:01
  SPEAKER_01: How can you have an organization?
• 12:03
  SPEAKER_01: How can you run any business without a Latino in your organization?
• 12:07
  SPEAKER_01: How are you setting up to service the populations that are around you, right?
• 12:11
  SPEAKER_01: Um I think we're in a difficult time, right?
• 12:16
  SPEAKER_01: Where people are using diversity, equity, and exclusion as an excuse, right?
• 12:21
  SPEAKER_01: An excuse not to do the work.
• 12:23
  SPEAKER_01: Um and unfortunately, some people have succumbed to fear.
• 12:28
  SPEAKER_01: Fear of ramifications, fear of being called out as the as a reason to step away.
• 12:36
  SPEAKER_01: Um but as you maybe have heard earlier today and some of the themes that we've been talking about here at the conference, uh, we're celebrating 250 years of America.
• 12:47
  SPEAKER_01: And you know, this morning we opened up with talking about that.
• 12:49
  SPEAKER_01: What does that look like from the Latino lens?
• 12:52
  SPEAKER_01: Uh what is our history, right?
• 12:54
  SPEAKER_01: It's a long history, it's an intertwined history.
• 12:56
  SPEAKER_01: We have been at every central moment in history from America, you can find a Latino.
• 13:05
  SPEAKER_01: And so I think it's really important to remind ourselves that we've been here.
• 13:11
  SPEAKER_01: Uh we belong here, we bring value, we bring perspective.
• 13:17
  SPEAKER_01: Uh, and that if there is a table that doesn't understand that, then maybe that's not the table for us.
• 13:24
  SPEAKER_01: Because we also heard on our lunch plenary about the entrepreneurial spirit of Latinos and how many of our members, how many are just going out there and starting businesses and the success of those businesses, of all new businesses.
• 13:40
  SPEAKER_01: I think that the rate of it was like one to six was the ratio of six of them being Latinas and themselves.
• 13:46
  SPEAKER_01: Uh so there's a lot of power in our community, and we need to access that power, we need to trust that power, um, and we also need to empower that them for the future because they are the future leaders, they are here.
• 13:58
  SPEAKER_01: So I find that it's our responsibility.
• 14:01
  SPEAKER_01: Um, and again, I'm paying it forward for the person that opened the path, but it's really our responsibility to be able to empower and be able to help them succeed.
• 14:10
  SPEAKER_01: And the HMBA, that's what we've been doing with many of our signature programs.
• 14:14
  SPEAKER_01: We're looking at how do we bring someone from a lost student trajectory to a Fortune 500 general counsel.
• 14:21
  SPEAKER_01: At the HMBA, there's a program at every level of your career that's gonna support that.
• 14:27
  SPEAKER_03: Yes, amazing work that you and your group or our group is doing.
• 14:32
  SPEAKER_03: Um, salute you for it.
• 14:35
  SPEAKER_04: Um, and and you know, she mentioned like you belong, we belong.
• 14:39
  SPEAKER_04: Like you're our second guest to say that.
• 14:42
  SPEAKER_04: Like you belong, we belong.
• 14:43
  SPEAKER_04: Uh it was April uh Toy, who you may know, of course, but I I feel like that's the mentality surrounding HMBA, like you said, taking someone from a law student to like uh like a Fortune 500 company.
• 14:55
  SPEAKER_04: So thank you for what you do.
• 14:57
  SPEAKER_03: Yeah, and just very well thought out, you know, policies and pathways.
• 15:03
  SPEAKER_03: Like I'm developing a greater and greater admiration for the group and the programs and the work um that it does.
• 15:12
  SPEAKER_03: Like, what do you what do you view like what is your big thing for the year?
• 15:15
  SPEAKER_03: What is your big goal?
• 15:17
  SPEAKER_01: So this year, one of our biggest goals was addressing a gap that we noticed, right?
• 15:20
  SPEAKER_01: We had law student programs, young lawyer division programs, we had leadership academies for our you know early career folks, and we had our GC ready program for folks that were stepping into those general counsel seats.
• 15:32
  SPEAKER_01: But we were looking at where where is it in your career where you're making a pivot to even think about being a general counsel?
• 15:39
  SPEAKER_01: It was between that mid to senior year career point.
• 15:42
  SPEAKER_01: So we instituted a program called Puente Leadership Institute, where we brought together the 30 in-house and 30, you know, uh law firm attorneys uh for a six-month program.
• 15:51
  SPEAKER_01: And yesterday I got an opportunity to attend their graduation, and it was such a power for room, uh, not only in terms of the people and the talent that was in the room, but how they supported each other and learning, at least five of them already over the course of six months had been elevated into either a new position within uh an external company or even within their organizations, being able to advance just because they had spent time with you know in this program.
• 16:18
  SPEAKER_01: But also because they had a support network.
• 16:20
  SPEAKER_01: Like we can't do any of this alone.
• 16:22
  SPEAKER_01: Um, and being the only Latina in many spaces over the last 25 years in this profession, it can be very lonely and isolating.
• 16:30
  SPEAKER_01: And I always come back to the fact that at least twice a year I know that there's an HMBA conference where I'm going to be with family.
• 16:37
  SPEAKER_01: And you know, everyone talks about well, what makes the HMBA sort of unique in other in terms of other organizations?
• 16:44
  SPEAKER_01: And I was like, it is that sense of familia.
• 16:46
  SPEAKER_01: And it's that energy that you draw from that family, and it's that being able to talk to people who are having similar experiences and who can empower you uh and help you along along the way.
• 16:57
  SPEAKER_01: And it was just beautiful to see that, um, knowing that we had seen that gap, we had identified a way to move that that cohort forward, um, and to see them yesterday just together and so grateful for that opportunity.
• 17:12
  SPEAKER_01: Um, over the years I've had great opportunities to participate in our external affairs.
• 17:16
  SPEAKER_01: Like, you know, this past year we've did a lot of advocacy, we've joined partnerships with organizations like Unidos and Maleo, making sure that folks have access to voting, right?
• 17:29
  SPEAKER_01: Um we we had a partnership this year with kinds, kids in need of defense, making sure that our attorneys are giving back because no child should have to go into an immigration court alone.
• 17:39
  SPEAKER_01: It breaks my heart to know that there's a five-year-old child that's sitting there in an immigration court unrepresented.
• 17:44
  SPEAKER_01: Uh and so we made a really collaborative effort to partner with organizations that are on the ground and you know giving back to community from a grassroots perspective.
• 17:55
  SPEAKER_01: So those are just some of the proud moments.
• 17:58
  SPEAKER_01: Um there are many over the years, and I'm sure there'll be many more in terms of as the HMVA you know moves forward.
• 18:05
  SPEAKER_01: Uh but for me, it is about seeing the strength of our community and seeing that visibility and that and that talent that we have highlighted.
• 18:14
  SPEAKER_03: Let me ask, you know, uh, thank you for all that.
• 18:17
  SPEAKER_03: Uh let me ask a lot of our you know listeners and a lot of people in this profession, you know, have questions about balance, you know, and and and life.
• 18:29
  SPEAKER_03: And you, um, we were talking, you you do have a family, you're a mom, uh, you've been at the highest levels of, you know, um bar associations, Puerto Rican Bar, Hispanic National Bar Association, and you're a practicing lawyer at the same time.
• 18:45
  SPEAKER_03: Um, like how do you make all that work at such a high level?
• 18:48
  SPEAKER_03: What advice would you give?
• 18:50
  SPEAKER_01: Well, I always tell people if you're looking for balance, you're not gonna find it.
• 18:54
  SPEAKER_01: Sometimes you get caught up and I have to balance, and you know, that just doesn't really work in this profession.
• 19:00
  SPEAKER_01: It is a high intense, it demands a lot.
• 19:03
  SPEAKER_01: Um, it requires someone that knows how to prioritize in those moments.
• 19:08
  SPEAKER_01: So I look at my life as one life.
• 19:10
  SPEAKER_01: I I don't separate what's going on.
• 19:12
  SPEAKER_01: If you look at my calendar, you might see a few color codes, but you see what's going on with my kids, you see what's going on with at work, when you see what's going on with the bar association, whatever it is, it's all there together.
• 19:23
  SPEAKER_01: Um, and you know, when my kids were younger, it was important for me to spend time with them.
• 19:27
  SPEAKER_01: And I, you know, was lucky I would have my mom.
• 19:30
  SPEAKER_01: I have photos of my kids here at past HMBA conferences.
• 19:34
  SPEAKER_01: Oh, wow.
• 19:34
  SPEAKER_01: Uh since they were small, at the table, listening and being part of this, right?
• 19:39
  SPEAKER_01: I wanted them to have role models.
• 19:40
  SPEAKER_01: I didn't want my kids to be to feel when they were in college, it's the first time that they're meeting a lawyer or the first time they're meeting someone that's a doctor.
• 19:47
  SPEAKER_01: I didn't, I didn't want that.
• 19:48
  SPEAKER_01: That was one of my experiences.
• 19:50
  SPEAKER_01: So I was very conscious to make sure that I was always bringing them along.
• 19:54
  SPEAKER_01: So they also knew they were spending time, you know, spending time with mom.
• 19:58
  SPEAKER_01: Um, and I was always sort of prioritizing to be in their spaces.
• 20:02
  SPEAKER_01: Um, and I and I tell young parents this one time August came, I would always pull the school schedule for the year, and I would give it to my sister, and I would say, make sure all these dates are blocked on the calendar.
• 20:12
  SPEAKER_01: There's no travel on these dates.
• 20:15
  SPEAKER_01: So, guess what?
• 20:16
  SPEAKER_01: So, when a meeting needed to be scheduled, okay, she has a conflict, whatever that conflict is, doesn't matter.
• 20:20
  SPEAKER_01: There's a conflict on that day.
• 20:22
  SPEAKER_01: Not moving there.
• 20:22
  SPEAKER_01: The rest of the week, everything is there, right?
• 20:24
  SPEAKER_01: But it required planning, right?
• 20:27
  SPEAKER_01: It requires intentionality.
• 20:29
  SPEAKER_01: Uh, and it requires, in terms of you, valuing the things, right?
• 20:33
  SPEAKER_01: We make time for the things that we value uh and that we prioritize.
• 20:37
  SPEAKER_01: Um, and it's been an amazing experience.
• 20:38
  SPEAKER_01: You asked me about my daughter last year, she actually was the one that introduced me when I was presented as president.
• 20:44
  SPEAKER_02: Oh, cool.
• 20:45
  SPEAKER_01: And so many people afterwards came up and said she did an amazing job.
• 20:49
  SPEAKER_01: She was so you know comfortable up there speaking in front of over 500 lawyers, right?
• 20:54
  SPEAKER_01: After that speech, someone found out that she wanted to go to Duke, and they came up to her and said, I would love to write you a letter of recommendations.
• 21:02
  SPEAKER_02: Wow.
• 21:03
  SPEAKER_01: So she did that for herself, right?
• 21:05
  SPEAKER_01: She did that for herself.
• 21:06
  SPEAKER_01: She went out there and Familia.
• 21:08
  SPEAKER_01: The family came through and they said, I want to recommend this young girl, not because she was my daughter, but because she was able to go up there and be comfortable and speak about her mom in such an eloquent way that she that she did so.
• 21:21
  SPEAKER_01: That she showed that she proved that she can be there.
• 21:24
  SPEAKER_01: She she had the record already, uh, uh, and now she was able to be in a position and be given an opportunity to highlight some of her talents.
• 21:35
  SPEAKER_03: That's an amazing story.
• 21:36
  SPEAKER_04: Yeah, just the the fact that she was able to connect with the audience, you know, because that's what we do as lawyers, right?
• 21:40
  SPEAKER_04: Yes.
• 21:41
  SPEAKER_04: And just the fact that she's doing that at a conference this big, that's a lot.
• 21:45
  SPEAKER_04: But you know, she's gotta thank you for that opportunity too.
• 21:48
  SPEAKER_04: Yeah.
• 21:48
  SPEAKER_01: Well, that's a skill set that she learned by watching.
• 21:50
  SPEAKER_01: By coming here, yeah.
• 21:51
  SPEAKER_01: She was coming here for years to all the conferences, so in her dresses and what she was doing, networking and talking.
• 21:56
  SPEAKER_01: And yes, mom said, go introduce yourself.
• 21:59
  SPEAKER_01: Mom said, go through these things and you get them accustomed, right?
• 22:03
  SPEAKER_01: Uh, but this became part of her extended family.
• 22:07
  SPEAKER_01: Uh, and I think that's something that's really unique again to this organization, and we, you know, we encourage folks to do that because we want the next generation to come from our own community.
• 22:19
  SPEAKER_03: Awesome.
• 22:20
  SPEAKER_03: Well, thank you so much, Prez, for spending your time with us.
• 22:22
  SPEAKER_03: Thank you for inspiring us.
• 22:25
  SPEAKER_03: Thank you for your leadership.
• 22:27
  SPEAKER_03: We're looking forward to Puerto Rico next year.
• 22:29
  SPEAKER_03: You're gonna be in San Diego on 29, so come and see us.
• 22:33
  SPEAKER_03: Uh so in in closing, um, if you had to write in the sky words for all the world to see, what would you write?
• 22:41
  SPEAKER_03: What would your message to us be?
• 22:43
  SPEAKER_01: So, this is something I tell myself almost always when I would first have to do an argument in court or when I would have to go up on any stage when I first started giving speeches, and that I say to my kids now, it's you got this.
• 22:56
  SPEAKER_03: You got this.
• 22:57
  SPEAKER_03: I like it, you got this.
• 22:59
  SPEAKER_03: Well, beautiful advice.
• 23:00
  SPEAKER_03: And I do believe that that those of us, you know, who believe in ourselves and taking the chance.
• 23:07
  SPEAKER_03: I I think everybody, like you're a kid that got plucked out of school, they put you in Barnard, and you were probably like the smartest kid there.
• 23:13
  SPEAKER_03: Like it's all like I believe you take a kid with with talent and and motivation and gusto, and you can pull them from anywhere, like and put them in among the most prep school-y, boarding, you know, the and over kids, the extra kids, the kid from from Brooklyn or the kid from South San Diego is gonna do just fine.
• 23:36
  SPEAKER_03: So uh thank you.
• 23:37
  SPEAKER_03: You know, you do got this.
• 23:39
  SPEAKER_03: And that concludes, um, thank you for being a guest.
• 23:42
  SPEAKER_03: That concludes this episode of the Latino.
• 23:44
  SPEAKER_03: If you like us, follow us, share us, um, comment.
• 23:48
  SPEAKER_03: Um, if folks want to find you, how do they find you?
• 23:51
  SPEAKER_00: Oh, I guess I'm on LinkedIn and uh you can follow Rosebelli's Journey on Instagram.
• 23:56
  SPEAKER_03: Okay, all right, what's the handle?
• 23:57
  SPEAKER_00: It's Rosebelli's Journey.
• 23:59
  SPEAKER_03: On the mail.
• 23:59
  SPEAKER_03: Okay, all right.
• 24:00
  SPEAKER_03: Find her there, we're gonna find you there.
• 24:02
  SPEAKER_03: Thank you for being on the show.
• 24:04
  SPEAKER_03: Um, and we sign off.