A full transcript follows.

Monika Oyama never thought she would set up her own law practice, especially when she made partner at a firm at a young age. Listen as we hear how Monika was able to start her own firm that incorporates her “dream firm” aspects that she wrote down in a journal years ago while also contributing to causes that mean a lot to her.  Thanks to Mangyo Kinoshita at southgate for introducing Monika to us!

In this episode you’ll hear:

• How Monika was guided to law even though her family are all scientists

• The skills that contributed to her becoming partner at a young age

• The decision to go solo and to create a firm that supports her passion for ocean conservation

• Her favourite podcast and other fun facts 

About Monika

Monika graduated from Keio University with an LLB in 2010 and Pennsylvania State University, Dickinson School of Law, attaining her JD in 2013. She is licensed in Illinois, California, and New York. Monika started her career in 2013 at a Chicago based firm after being promoted at the fastest possible track to become the youngest partner, shareholder, and board member at her firm.

In March, 2022, Monika opened her solo practice which focuses mainly on general corporate, domestic, and cross-border M&A commercial transactions and intellectual property matters. Monika has many leadership roles including the National Asian Pacific American Bar Association International Law Committee previously as their vice-chair and now chair. She's also vice chair of the Chicago Mita-kai, which is the Keio University Alumni Group, and she has been giving her time to Global Kids Judo Network as their board member since 2020 and was also part of the US Japan Council Emerging Leaguers Program 2020 to 2021. Monika has a wide variety of interests including traveling, cooking, wine, tasting, gardening, Spanish, Latin music, dancing, culture, as well as scuba diving, tennis and golf.

Connect with Monika 

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/monikaoyama/ 

Website: https://www.oceana.law/ 

Links

Podcast: https://hubermanlab.com/category/podcast-episodes/ 

Connect with Catherine 

Linked In https://www.linkedin.com/in/oconnellcatherine/

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/lawyeronair

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/catherine.oconnell.148

Twitter: https://twitter.com/oconnelllawyer 

YouTube: https://youtube.com/@lawyeronair 

Transcript

Catherine: Hi everyone. Welcome to another episode of the Lawyer on Air Podcast. I'm the host of the show, Catherine O'Connell. I'm a Tokyo based commercial lawyer, independent board member, and a coach mentor to lawyers who want to go to the next level in their careers. Well, today I am joined by Monika Oyama, who is the founder of Oceana Law PC, a law firm based in Los Angeles, California in the USA.

Monika was born in Palo Alto, California. She moved to Potsdam, New York at age two, then to Blacksburg, Virginia at age six, and after that to Tokyo at age 11. Being international is in Monika's blood. She came from a family who has historically been extremely international, traveling, living, getting educated, and working abroad for generations on both sides of her family.

That traveler spirit is in Monika's DNA, and this spirit ultimately led her to starting her own law practice that we will hear about today. It's the practice that's based on enabling Monika to be able to have the freedom to travel while working. Monika was educated at Pennsylvania State University, Dickinson School of Law, attaining her JD in 2013.

Following on from her study at Keio University where she attained her LLB in 2010. She's qualified in Illinois, California and New York Bar in 2020. Monika started her career in 2013 at a Chicago based firm after being promoted at the fastest possible track to become the youngest partner, shareholder, and board member at her firm.

Monika decided to pivot and become independent to serve her clients and to make a difference in the world. And so it was that she forged ahead and opened up her own firm Oceana, in March, 2022. Her practice focuses mainly on general corporate, domestic, and cross-border M&A, commercial transactions and intellectual property matters. Throughout her career, she has assisted foreign clients enter and grow in the United States, supporting them in all stages of the business cycle, from formation and expansion to divestiture and dissolution.

She's represented clients in many different industries and of all sizes, from Japanese publicly traded companies and Fortune Global 500 companies through to startups. Monika has also had plenty of clerking and secondment experience sprinkled all over her earlier career, working as a summer clerk or as a consultant at law firms; Steptoe & Johnson, White & Case, Allen & Overy, and Baker & McKenzie, and as a secondee at the legal departments of the headquarters of SUBARU Corporation and Suntory Holdings Limited. 

Monika has many leadership roles that she is involved in. She is on the National Asian Pacific American Bar Association International Law Committee previously as their vice-chair and now their chair from 2020 onwards. She's also vice chair of the Chicago Mita-kai, which is the Keio University Alumni Group, and she has been giving her time to Global Kids Judo Network as their board member since 2020 and was also part of the US Japan Counsel Emerging Leaders Program 2020 to 2021. 

A native Japanese and American speaker. Monika has a wide variety of interests, as I mentioned at the top she loves travelling, but she's also into cooking, wine tasting, gardening, Spanish, Latin music, dancing, culture, as well as scuba diving, tennis and golf. Wow, what an introduction, Monika.

Yes. I can't wait to get started. Welcome to the show.

Monika: Hi, Catherine. Thank you so much for having me. I am so excited.

Catherine: I'm so excited to have you. You're in the US and I'm here, back in Japan. And of course it's gonna be a little bit of time before we do meet up in person, but if we do that, where would we meet up? Do you have a favourite wine bar over there that you like to go to, a restaurant or somewhere?

And what would you choose from the menu?

Monika: Great question. Well, I will invite you to one of my favourite wine bars in Chicago. Well actually it kind of closed recently, so I'll find a different one, but it was a nice wine bar called DOC and it had a lovely selection of wine and amazing charcuterie boards. And my selection of wine would be a good old world Red, like a barolo or burgundy, with some smelly cheese.

Catherine: And so you've moved through to LA, is there not a local wine bar that you go to?

Monika: Yes. So I only moved a few months ago, so I hadn't had the chance to really explore yet, unfortunately. So, the one that comes to mind is actually this one in Chicago.

Catherine: Sure. Well, by the time I finally get to see you in LA you may have discovered something in the neighbourhood.

Monika: Oh, for sure. Yes, I will.

Catherine: Well, it's so great to have you here. We were introduced by Mangyo Kinoshita of Southgate Law Tokyo. Right?

And I really thank him for that. How do you know him?

Monika: I know him through mutual contacts at White & Case. 

Catherine: Sure. 

Monika: Which was one of the law firms that I summered at during law school. But I actually should've met him then, but I actually met him after starting work.

Catherine: Right. There's a timing for everything, right? He's such a great guy and Mindy Allen, who was another guest on the podcast, used to work with him as well, and I've met him and enjoyed anything that I've been able to be involved in with him. He's such a great practitioner and such a lovely guy.

Monika: Absolutely. 

Catherine: Thanks Mangyo. Right, and so Monika, as you just mentioned, you have been moving cities. You've been really busy setting up your new life in law practice in LA, so I'm so glad that we could finally connect today on the podcast.

Right. So we talked a little bit there about you moving around when you were a child in various places, but in those early days, can you remember if you had any thoughts about the kind of career that you wanted to do?

Monika: I had no idea that I was gonna become an attorney. Actually becoming an attorney was the last thing that I wanted to do growing up, because I did not like litigation. And I thought if you become a lawyer, you're gonna do litigation. And I'm not a very confrontational person, so I didn't think I wanted to be a lawyer.

But then later I learned that there's this other type of practice called Transactional Law, and that's what I do now.

Catherine: Fantastic. So when was that that, you know, you learned about the other side of law, right? The non litigious side, transactional, commercial, corporate, whatever it is, side of law. When was that? Do you remember?

Monika: Yes, I learned about it in high school. At that time, I initially wanted to be a vet. Growing up I always wanted to be a veterinarian because I love animals. But then I did some research and learned that I couldn't become a vet just because I liked animals. And I changed my dream and I was exploring other options and as you may know, in Japan, you have to decide your major before entering college by choosing the department you want to join. And, I was set to go to Keio University and I was looking at all the options they had, and I knew I wanted higher education and become a professional in something.

So I was looking at all the departments that were available and through the process of elimination, at the end, I was torn between studying biology and law and coming from a family of scientists, actually four generations of them, the world of science was very familiar to me, but law was intimidating because I had no idea what it entailed. After a lot of thought in having the opportunity to speak with a professor at Tohoku University who really inspired me, I decided to study law.

Catherine: Mm. What was it about that professor's words to you that inspired you?

Monika: Mm-hmm. So he told me that in this day in age where society and the world is becoming one and united, so now there was NAFTA and the European Union and all these countries with different languages, different cultures, different laws coming together, doing things together, he said that in this day and age, where countries are coming and doing things together the function or the role of law is critical. 

And it really inspired me and it made sense to me. Cause all these different cultures, languages, people were coming together. We need one set of common rules. And I didn't know anything about law, but it inspired me.

Catherine: Mm. So in the face of four generations of scientists in your family, how did you broach this with your family? Did it matter that they were on board with you to go off and do law, or did they think it was fine? What was the reaction there from your family?

Monika: They never expected me to do science and they never pushed me towards that direction. Maybe they saw that I wasn't really into it, I wasn’t really talented at it. They were actually very excited when I decided to do law.

They said that they were excited to learn about the world through me, like a different type of world through me. And it was actually my grandfather, who's also a scientist, that first gave me that idea to become a lawyer.  

Catherine: How’d that happen? Yeah. Tell me about that. Yeah.

Monika: So he was a scientist. He was a professor like everyone else in my family.

And we were travelling in Paris together, and I just, I remember vividly we were going up this elevator or escalator, and he asked me what I was gonna do in college, I didn't even think about law at the time. I was like, I don’t know, I'm thinking about biology.

And then he said, how about law? You like people. You like connecting with people and you can speak English and Japanese, so why don't you do something that makes use of your linguistic skills and your people skills? And I was like, Hmm, I never thought about that.

Catherine: Isn't that great? You know the wisdom of the elders who, you know, your grandfather, who's a family member of course, and can see you from that angle, but also your Tohoku university professor. They're kind of looking on you as guardians and guiding you. You've gotta make your decision, but looking to people in the community to give you information that you may not know yourself. How interesting. Right? 

And that it was very distinctive. You were in that, what was it, the escalator, on the escalator talking about these things And he gave you that hint. So how did, what happened after that?

Monika: After a lot of thought, I decided to study law. I didn't know what I was getting into, but I wanted a surprise in my life. So I decided to do law and went on to Keio University and studied law for four years with a goal of becoming an attorney. 

Initially I was studying to become an attorney licensed in Japan, But growing up in the US I had always wanted to return to the US to study. And I also knew after studying law for four years in Japan, that if I were to study law in the US I wanted to do the full three year JD program as opposed to the one year alum program.

And I had the option of going to law school in Japan first, becoming a bengoshi, then going to law school in the US, or to just go ahead and do law school in the US. 

And seeing everyone around me, all my friends, applying to law school in Japan again, I was like, I wanna do something different. And I just went ahead and did law school in the US, because that was what I actually wanted to do most.

Catherine: Well, I'm hearing from you this choosing the road less travelled and maybe that's the theme of today's podcast episode with you is everywhere along the way, I'm picking up, you've chosen the road less travelled. 

I mean, it's so easy to do what your friends are doing, and it's so easy to do what your family have always done. And I don't mean that to lessen the fact that easy means it isn't worthwhile. I mean, it's harder to make a decision in the other direction.

Did you move to the US then and do your three year JD?

Monika: Yes. So after graduating college, I went straight to law school in Pennsylvania and was there for three years.

So after graduating law school, I joined my prior employer, a midsize law firm in Chicago. I chose that employer because I really wanted to live in the US. I wanted to live and work in the US representing Japanese clients, do business in the US, and that firm happened to be one of the biggest, or the law firm that had the biggest Japan practice in the US.

So I really wanted to join this cause I thought I’d be a perfect fit. And they hired me so I moved to Chicago.

Catherine: Fantastic. So tell us about those first few years then in the firm and some of the things you loved and some of the challenges or surprises that came up for you.

Monika: The first few years it was basically me trying to learn as much as I could. It was great because I got a lot of hands-on experience from day one. I was talking to and meeting clients right off the bat, I felt like I was being thrown into the ocean and learning how to swim on my own.

But because of that I learned a lot very quickly and was able to develop relationships with clients early on.

Catherine: Hmm. What surprised you then about that practice? I mean, learning things hands on is a little bit different perhaps than what a lot of other experiences are for people who are joining law firms, they're often given things that are not quite so practical. How is that different for you and how did it lead you then to gather your real interest in the law in a particular area?

Monika: Yes. Well, obviously I did have attorneys supervising my work, and it was a great environment because the firm had an open door policy and I was able to walk into a partner's office and ask questions whenever I wanted. So it wasn't like I was figuring out everything on my own. They did provide me guidance and helped me figure out a lot of things. How was it different? Honestly, that was the only way I knew, I don't know what to compare it with.

Catherine: Right. It was your first experience, so that's what you presumed would be pretty usual.

Monika: Exactly. 

Catherine: What were some of your highs and lows then that you can think about in those days working there? Some things that really made you so happy and other things that were a bit challenging along the way there.

Monika: Sure. The highs were the fact that for some reason I was bringing in a lot of clients and a lot of work early on. 

The lows were, I guess, I couldn't travel at all. As I told you earlier, or as you mentioned early in my introduction, I have a huge travel bug and throughout my whole life I've been travelling nonstop. And it's just something in me. And I remember for the first three years I didn't take any vacations, I would not take a whole week off. I would probably take a day or two in addition to like a three day weekend where there's a holiday.

I would take like one or two days, but not an entire week off. And that really prevented me from visiting family. And that was hard because my whole family was in Japan or in Europe.

Catherine: Right. That's hard, isn't it? I mean, for someone who's got vacation like literally in your blood flowing through your veins, that would be very suffocating. And I mean, we've all experienced this last two and a half, three years during the pandemic, and that was bad enough, not being able to see family. But for you to do that while you are working in your initial days,

years in the firm, that's also really, really hard to deal with. Yeah. But you were a rainmaker for the firm, right? That was one of your highs. Often that associates are able to bring in clients. And so I think your grandfather's observation of you, the people skills part is really shining in those early days.

It's really great.

Monika: didn't why, why they trusted such a young attorney, but I'm very grateful, and to this day they're all still with me, so I'm very, very grateful.

Catherine: Fantastic. So I mean, you worked really hard and enjoyed those parts as well as the other bits that were a little bit more trying, but you were promoted and you got this fastest track possible to become youngest partner, shareholder, and board member at that firm.

Monika: Yes. 

Catherine: But you decided, you decided to take that different path, the road less travelled and you did something entirely different.

Goodness me, and you went on to open your own firm, Oceana Law in March, 2022, and I just thought about you when you said you were thrown into the ocean and swimming on your own. And the connection, the connection between that and the name of your law firm.

Monika: You are so right. 

Catherine: So tell me, tell me, tell me about this movement of being from, you know, that fastest to become youngest partner, shareholder, et cetera.

Most people would hang around a firm, but you didn't. Tell us about this story. I'm so interested to hear.

Monika: I never intended to go solo. It was never a goal to go solo, but it just happened. It was just the best way to do what I wanted to do. As you get used to your work, initially you're trying hard to learn the law. Yeah, my goals, I guess, changed over the years and the three, I guess I have three reasons why I decided to go solo.

One is I wanted to provide better services to my clients. Two, I wanted to travel. Three, I wanted to contribute to ocean conservation.

Catherine: Ooh, really? The third one's interesting. How are you doing? Let's go through those, but let's go from the reverse order. How on earth are you doing ocean conservation As a lawyer?

Monika: Yes. So I really, really, really care about the ocean. I grew up going to the ocean. I'm a huge scuba diver, and if I'm not an attorney, I'd be doing ocean conservation and oceanic research. So how I am gonna do ocean conservation is I vowed when I opened the law firm, that I was going to donate a generous portion of my profits to ocean conservation efforts, and research, and or to do volunteering work myself and I don't think the practice of law and ocean conservation is mutually exclusive and I want to prove that.

Catherine: Mm. How are you doing that?

Monika: Yeah, so well, if it's just donating my profits, That's just, you know, sending money. So it's not that difficult. But if I am going to do volunteer work, there are a ton of programs out there that seek scuba divers help, you know, getting better information underwater. There's a lot of organisations, so I would love to be part of that.

Catherine: Right. So you are doing that. Is it in your, what is it, the profile or the brochures that you have or information on your website about that? I couldn't pick that up, but maybe it was hiding somewhere there.

Monika: There is information about my SDGs commitment on my website. Yes. So the UN has Sustainability goals and one of them is ocean conservation and research.

Catherine: Yes. 

Monika: So my ocean conservation goals for my law firm are actually hidden in our SDGs commitment page.

If it's my brochure, there's a little paragraph about it. I didn't wanna talk too much about it. I didn't want it too much on my website or my brochure because otherwise clients would be like, What are you doing? You know, you're a law firm, but it's in there.

Catherine: I almost challenge you on that in a way because I actually think you might find it's completely different to what you think and that clients will love that you are doing this. I mean, I didn't know this about you until we talked today and I think it's extremely interesting and I think you are unique.

And I also believe that it’s time to shine and tell people what you are doing. And you know what? I also think it will inspire others to not only work as a volunteer, but you know, donating profits from a firm, especially as a solo it's a big undertaking, let's just say that. 

And I think what you're doing should really inspire others who perhaps are running their own business, entrepreneurs, not only lawyers, to be able to do something like you are doing.

So I would say ramp it up a bit.

Monika: I appreciate it. When I first drafted my website, like my description of my website and my description of my law firm for my brochure, I had so much information about the ocean, and how much help it needs, and the people that were reviewing my draft just crossed everything out saying that you're a law firm, not an NGO, so maybe I should reconsider.

Catherine: I'll introduce you to my web designer and I know that she will be very interested in helping you actually amplify what you're doing, and I would, I'd suggest that she might even say, you should have a photo of you in your scuba gear. 

Monika: Oh my goodness. That would be amazing. 

Catherine: Well, there we go.

Monika: That would make me so happy.

Catherine: Yeah, that's it. It's gonna make you happy and I think your happiness will shine out to others. And my goodness, she's also doing that and it's different. Why not be different as a solo practitioner? You've got it all there ready for you. So I think that's amazing. It's obviously also running through your blood, like the travel part that you talked about. 

And that's the second thing that you mentioned, your reason for starting your own practice. So how does the travel side then come into what you do now? Are you travelling as you work?

Monika: I can't tell my clients, but I'm travelling a lot, but I'm being very productive while I travel. So, I just came back from Virginia last week. I'm going to Hawaii next week, and then I'll be in Napa Valley, Las Vegas, and then Chicago in the next three weeks, so I'm gonna be all over the place.

Catherine: Okay. That's, that's, that's travelling, that's for sure. That sounds really great. And also going back to that first reason then, you know, better way to give services to your clients.

How is that different then from being that associate move to partner that you could do it better now? Better in your words, what does better mean for services to your clients?

Monika: Sure. As you mentioned in the beginning, I specialise in corporate M&A, commercial and IP law, and I have to work with attorneys in other areas of law outside of my expertise like real estate, employment, litigation and being independent, being on my own, allows me to work with an enormous pool of attorneys and not just those at one law firm.

And I think this greatly benefits my clients because I can tap into so much talent and I can choose the best attorneys that fit my clients' needs and budget. And so I am solo, but it feels like I'm actually at a bigger law firm, if you know what I mean.

Catherine: I know exactly what you mean. It's almost like, well, it is like my practice too. I do my, stick to my knitting, right? Stay in my zone, but have this other network of fantastic lawyers who can support, and you can select them, right? You can choose who you want to work with, work alongside with, and call them in when you need that help.

So I hear you completely on that. That's great.

Well, if you could then turn back the time, Monika, to that maybe 18 year old self, 15, 16, 17, 18 year old self, what would you tell her about all this?

Monika: Wow. I remember being so anxious at that time cause I had no idea what law was and I had just decided to do law. But I would tell her everything's gonna be okay and to do what you are doing. But I guess the one thing that I did write is reaching out and talking to as many people as possible that are in that profession. And that's something I did starting in high school, I guess inadvertently when I spoke to the professor at Tohoku University. But I continued doing this throughout college and law school, and I still do it today. I reach out, if there's an area that I'm interested in, if I want to learn more about something, I reach out to people that are doing it already and not everyone has the same opinion.

So talk to as many people as possible so you're not affected by just one opinion. It takes a while to gather and process all the mass of information you collect, but at the end of the day make your own decision as to what you wanna do. 

Catherine: That's great advice. 

Monika: That’s what I would tell. 

Catherine: Great advice. Yeah.

I think to yourself and to anyone who's listening, that's really great advice. And Monika, in your opinion, what would you say is probably the most important personality or strength that someone needs to have to work in the legal industry and be successful? And there's many different variations of what successful means, but what is something in the personality or strengths area that you think is really useful for people working in the legal industry or to be successful in a role such as the one you've got?

Monika: I would say commitment.

Catherine: Mm.

Monika: So that starts with commitment to studying the law and then it becomes commitment to the service to your clients, commitment to whatever you're working on. Like I think you need a lot of grit and to become a really good attorney it's just commitment.

I think it's commitment.

Catherine: Commitment to self as well?

Monika: Yes. self, for sure. Yes. And that could mean continuing this study, continuing development of your skills or your expertise, commitment to yourself translates eventually to commitment to your clients.

Catherine: And so we often hear myths about working in the law or in your field of expertise or going out on your own, right? So are there any common myths that you have come across that you've said, no, that's not true?

Monika: In college, I was told in college that lawyers were gonna lose their jobs because computers were gonna start drafting contracts, and that definitely is a myth in my view.

Yeah, every client need is different.

Catherine: And it needs a human aspect. There is the human aspect of doing the law as you've picked out way back there with your grandfather talking about person skills. I don't think computers have been able to match that quite yet. But you also, you also have a lot of activities outside of law, so how do you balance those with your career and your broader life?

And is there some particular productivity hack that you've got that we don't know about. I think it’s really interesting, I mean, anyone listening to that introduction will hear that you just do so much with your personal and sporting activities as well as your leadership outside of the law, or maybe it's inside of, outside of the law.

But tell us a bit more about that. How are you doing all of that?

Monika: I honestly don't know, but what people tell me is that I'm always active apparently. I'm just 100% committed to work and then I'm 100% committed to play, so I'm like, work, play, work, play. So, that's just how I am, I guess.

Catherine: A hundred percent committed to work and also to play. And do you, do you schedule out, like, you know, you're in the evening there as we are talking, and I believe you've been and done some exercise before joining the call today. And so how do you do that? Do you schedule that into your calendar?

For example, I know previous guests have talked about actually scheduling time out, or going on walks and things like that. Are you doing that? Is that your hack perhaps for being able to manage everything?

Monika: Yes. Scheduling requires a lot of discipline. Like say, I'm gonna stop working at, say, 8:00 PM that requires a lot of discipline, I think, because you could keep on working and working. I'm trying to get better at that. I'm definitely trying to make balance by starting out my day.

By exercising, every single day I exercise before anything and I have a big breakfast. I journal and then I jump into work and then the day could get longer and I'm worse at, you know, getting off of work. But I try to be disciplined and, you know, call it a day after a certain time cuz I could just keep working.

Catherine: Mm. The journaling bit is interesting. 

Not a lot of people do that or talk about doing that. Tell us what that looks like for you and how much time you spend on that, and what sort of thoughts go in there and are you comparing day to day or what do you do with that journaling activity?

Monika: I've been journaling since I was 12 years old, actually maybe earlier since elementary school. So I have notebooks and notebooks of journals that no one can read. But, I highly recommend journaling. It's very therapeutic to me. It helps you organise your thoughts. 

And the amount of time I spend really differs day to day, when I have some big news or something I wanna, I can't quite organise in my head, but want to just put down on paper it takes more time. Some days I don't really have much to talk about, but on those days, I write out three things I'm grateful for.

Catherine: It's great, isn't it? I think that process of, when you find things hard to organise in your head and writing it down on paper, it kind of slows you down because if you are having to write it, everyone's writing is slower than what our mind thinks. So I think that's a great technique.

Yeah. And writing down what you're grateful for, I think sets you up for, you know, resting at the end of the day. And also into the next day with a grateful sense in your heart and mind as you move through the day. I love that. And I, yeah, I'd challenge anyone who is listening in to start doing journaling.

It really is a very therapeutic and invigorating experience. And looking back on the books. If you write idly, you can read them back later and be quite inspired. Especially, I find Monika, if I look back on something I've written in a journal a year ago from where I am now, it's quite interesting to see the development or the things that you struggled with that didn't, don't mean anything now, but they did at the time, right?

Or something that means more to you now than it did even a year ago.

Monika: Absolutely. And when I moved to LA I was putting away some of my journals and I kind of looked through them and surprisingly I had a journal entry in early 2018. This was before, I think, I became partner actually at my prior law firm. It was way before I started thinking about starting my own law firm. I had a journal entry, say my dream law firm, and it lists all of these characteristics of my dream law firm at that time. And it's what I'm doing right now. 

Catherine: No way. 

Monika: I had no idea, I didn't remember. Yes.

Catherine: That is fantastic. That is fantastic. 

Monika: I completely forgot about this journal entry.

Catherine: I think you need to go back and grab it and photocopy it and put it on your wall and just, you know, and put it in a frame even and just show yourself what you sort of, I guess, put out into the universe then in your thoughts that have actually come to be true.

What's a few things off that list that you can remember?

Monika: So it says, so I have this in front me right now actually. It says my law firm will be dot dot dot, it's all in bullet points, at home, remote, donating 10% of profits to ocean conservation efforts, sometimes in exotic locations so I can scuba dive and travel while helping wildlife, tailored towards Japanese clients for the most part, given my strength. Yeah, it will be professional, but honest, minimalistic, and fun. Yeah, so there's all, there's others, but these items, it's absolutely on point right now.

Catherine: Perfect, and that is what your new website needs to be based on, to show all of that. Wow. I love that. That is just really tremendous that you had that visualisation or the entry there and you've come back to it and wow, I think that's just fabulous to show others what can really be possible in this world.

Amazing.

Monika: It was before the pandemic, so people were not working remotely or at home. 

Catherine: No, that's right. And you already had it there. 

Wow. Any other pieces of advice then, Monika, for young lawyers or law students who are listening in and would love to hear what you've got to tell them to think about? You already mentioned, you know, checking against many different people, seeking out lots of different advice.

Is there something else that you could add there? Another one or two things?

Monika: Well, seeking out advice actually kind of leads to my best advice which is finding mentors. So say that that's one advice, you know, find a mentor, they're fantastic. Another advice that I would provide, sometimes people don't know what they want to do, whether they're scared, you know, to really fully commit.

But I would say if you find something you're, you like or you're interested in, do it excessively. You can't kind of tap into it, but not fully commit. I would say do it excessively and if it becomes your passion, great. But if you learn that you don't like it as much as you thought, that's also great because that's self discovery.

And then you can go on to find something else to become obsessed with.

Catherine: Oh, that's so good. Right. You know, put everything into something to really find out if you love it. And if you don't like it so much, it's fine. The next thing and self discovery, you hit on it. That is great. What good advice, goodness me. Well, let's wind down our conversation. I always finish the podcast on a lighter note with the final quick fire round and so the first question is, this is a tough one for you I know, if you could live anywhere in the world, where would it be?

Monika: I would say Spain.

Catherine: Oh.

Monika: Spain. 

Catherine: Spain. 

Monika: I love Spain and the Spanish culture, Latin culture, Spanish, yes.

Catherine: Great. I can see you going there in the future, and running your practice from there, part of the year at least even. Right? Great.

Cause you're learning Spanish too, so you can be your personable person self, with people in Spain as well. Wonderful. All right, if you could start a totally different business tomorrow, what would it be?

You spoke a little bit about this during the podcast, but tell us a bit more if it's the same thing.

Monika: I would have a business or an NPO dedicated to ocean conservation efforts and oceanic research.

Catherine: Perfect. So if you were writing a book tomorrow, what would you write it about?

Monika: I would probably write about how important the ocean is for the earth and humanity. I'm gonna get nerdy about it. Yes. It'll be a beautiful book with lots of pictures so that people would read it and just explain how important the ocean is.

Catherine: On the other side of things then if you listen to podcasts or you read books, what have you been reading recently or been listening to?

Monika: So I love reading nonfiction, fiction, and autobiography, but I'm gonna answer your question by providing you with my favourite podcast. It's called the Huberman Lab by Andrew Huberman, a neurobiologist at Stanford School of Medicine.

And he explains the neurobiology and the science of mundane things like sleep, hunger, and he gets into more advanced topics, but it's very accessible. He explains everything in layman terms. It's very interesting. And this must be the nerdy scientist family part of me that's loving it.

Catherine: Oh, I love it. Okay. That's going to be one I'll put on in today's walk when I'm out, and I'll listen to that one, give you some feedback.

Monika: Absolutely. Please do.

Catherine: Your favourite saying, is this something you say, a kotowaza, or a favourite saying or mantra that you have?

Monika: Yes. I have a favourite quote by Oscar Wilde, and it is to live is the rarest thing in the world. Most people exist. That is all.

Catherine: What does that mean to you?

Monika: So it means to really live life, instead of just going through the day, you know, oh, I have to work, go to work. Just checking off boxes and your obligations at work or family, whatever that's just existing, but with living with a purpose and living, doing things you care about that's rare.

To live is the rarest thing in the world, most people exist. That is all.

Catherine: Mm. It's really great to hear that actually. And the final question then is… actually no, I'm gonna ask two more. One is, a famous person or celebrity you would love to meet or have met, if you were given the opportunity to do that. And I've written the person's name down on my piece of paper in front of me.

I'm gonna see if it's the same one that you say.

Monika: Oh my goodness. Is it Sylvia Earle?

Catherine: No. 

Monika: No. 

Catherine: It was Jacques. It was Jacques Cousteau.

Monika: Oh, he's fantastic too. But honestly, my answer to this question was actually going to be something absolutely unrelated to what we talked about, I'm just gonna become a little teenager. My groupy little self for a moment. And the person is gonna be Hyde, H Y D E, the lead singer of L'Arc-en-Ciel a rock band that was popular in Japan during the nineties and early two thousands. We did not talk about the topic, but I love music and he is, he's my God.

Catherine: I know, I know who you mean. I do know who you mean. And that maybe that's, maybe that's leading to the last question, which was something about you that a lot of people don't know, and perhaps that's one of the things. But is there something else about you that people don't know? We've learned quite a bit about you that may not be so known to everybody, but is there anything else there?

Monika: I think a lot of people don't know that I actually love being a homebody. People think that I'm always out and about active travelling and always on the go, but I actually really love staying home too. Gardening, cooking, making artwork, knitting, sewing, and being creative.

Catherine: Perfect. It sounds like you're very well balanced with going out and being active and doing the travelling and everything, and also being the other side of you, right, that likes to relax and re-energise and doing different activities at home as well. I hear you on that cuz I'm pretty similar actually, but a lot of people know that cause I'm quite vocal about that.

Well, Monika, we have actually come to the end of the chat today and I just wanna thank you so much for being our first, let's see, scuba diving, ocean protecting, LA based, solo law firm owner guest. How's that?

Monika: Ah, that is so nice. Thank you so much.

Catherine: It was such a pleasure.

Monika: It flew by. I had a fantastic time. 

Catherine: Yeah. It was such a pleasure to speak with you and connect in this way. Can people who are listening reach out to you and how would they do that on LinkedIn or via your email?

Monika: People can find me through LinkedIn for sure. I have a page for myself and my law firm, and I will have a website by the time this podcast airs. 

Catherine: Perfect. All right. We'll put all of those into the show notes so people can connect with you and learn more from you and reach out to you, which is really great. And so we'll finish up here. And for all of my listeners, I know you've enjoyed the episode, cuz you're listening right to the end here.

And so please do like it, subscribe to Lawyer on Air and if you have time, please drop us a review. It really does help Lawyer on Air be seen and heard by more people. And also you can pop over to my webpage and actually leave a one minute voicemail. I love hearing the people actually talking about what they thought about the episode that they listened to.

So please go ahead, share this episode with someone who you think will enjoy listening to it and be inspired to live a wonderful lawyer extraordinaire life. That's all for me. See you on the next episode. Cheers, kampai, and bye for now.

Subscribe using your favourite podcast player.

Apple Podcasts| Spotify| Breaker| Google Podcasts| RadioPublic

We would love to hear from you!

You can record your feedback by clicking on the button below.

By recording a message you are acknowledging and agree that we may share your message with our subscribers and community on social media or other media. Thank you!

Lawyer on Air has been nominated for “Best Business Podcast” in the Quill Podcast Awards, 2022! Thank you to all our supporters who voted for the podcast!