About
Nicole Abboud, Host and Producer
I look pretty happy in that picture, don’t I?
Well, rewind to about 7 years to when I first passed the bar and started practicing law, and you’d see a completely different picture. A few months into being a new lawyer, I found myself in a weird place. I was unhappy, stressed, and unfulfilled all the time. At first, I brushed it off to being a baby lawyer. But when those feelings persisted for years, I had to figure out what was going on. In 2014, I left the firm I was working for, opened my own practice, and switched from practicing Family Law and civil litigation to focusing on Fashion Law.
While running my own practice eased the feelings of unhappiness, it didn’t completely eliminate them. It took me a few more years to realize that it wasn’t the lack of experience or my chosen practice areas that made me unhappy, it was the entire practice of law. That was a huge pill to swallow.
But I put my big girl pants on and decided to do something about it. I realized that I couldn’t be the only one going through that experience so I launched this podcast in March 2015 in an effort to reach out to and speak with other young lawyers who were feeling the same thing BUT who decided to do something about it! I wanted to hear their stories and be inspired by them. You can read more about the podcast here.
Well it worked! After 5 years of practicing law, I finally decided to quit the practice of law. I dove into the business world with my first business, Abboud Media, where I helped lawyers build their brands using podcasts and video marketing.
I have 2 siblings (I’m the middle child!), 2 adorable nephews and a niece, and I run for fun.
Karima Gulick, Former Host
Growing up, I never thought I would ever be an attorney. In fact, it wasn’t until I was 24 that the idea of becoming a lawyer and starting my own practice became a goal of mine. After a few years of working as an engineer and working at a large company, every day started looking the same. It was Groundhog Day every single day and I couldn’t understand why anyone would be satisfied with going to the same place only to collect a paycheck. I read Tim Ferriss’s The 4-Hour Workweek”, started following his work, and I wanted to convert all my coworkers to entrepreneurs! (No wonder I love working with entrepreneurs!) So after sitting on the innovation council at work and loving hearing new inventions, and after volunteering for Human Rights Watch, I decided to become a lawyer. I mean it’s a great career that opens a lot of doors, and sounded like the perfect option for a multi-passionate person like myself: I could choose from various practice areas, work for different size firms or companies, start my own practice or even teach at some point!
Knowing that I wanted to start my own practice, I thought it would be best to get some training at a law firm before going solo. I loved learning new things and loved working at that firm until I didn’t. I became consumed with the thought of going out on my own and being in charge of my own journey. I am so happy I took the plunge and started Gulick Law, a patent and trademark practice where I help entrepreneurs protect their inventions and brands. It’s exactly what I needed in my life! I have never been happier with my career and I have been able to find the time for all the things that I love doing like cooking, scuba diving, travelling, biking, flying, reading, listening to podcasts all while helping entrepreneurs. You can reach me at karima@genwhylawyer.com
