The Evolution of a Contracts Lawyer: Shaun Sethna's Path of Discovery

In this episode, Laura Frederick chats with Kwame Christian, Founder and CEO at the American Negotiation Institute, Forbes contributor, and the host of Negotiate Anything, the world's #1 negotiation podcast.  Kwame shares his journey of figuring out negotiations and contracts. He talks about the importance of self-awareness and emotional self-regulation, touches on how humility can help you become a great lawyer, and shares advice on how to become great at negotiations. He also talks about his first steps in finding his first clients.Follow Kwame Christian on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/kwamechristian/ Follow Laura Frederick on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/laurafredericklaw/ 😂 Sonny & Cher Song Parody: https://www.linkedin.com/posts/john-lindsey-0bb6a3212_contractsconisamustattendevent-damnrightlauracansing-activity-7063816439538872320-Vwso?utm_source=share&utm_medium=member_desktop Learn how you can improve your contract drafting and negotiation skills with How to Contract: https://www.howtocontract.com/   Buy your copy of Laura's bestselling book Practical Tips on How to Contract: https://www.amazon.com/Practical-Tips-How-Contract-Commercial-ebook/dp/B0BHTLQP3V Sign up for How to Contract’s free weekly newsletter to get links to each podcast episode, the contract tips Laura posts on LinkedIn, plus special offers and events: https://www.howtocontract.com/newsletter   Get access to over 70 hours of practical contract training videos, over 400 contract tips and cartoons, and over 80 checklists, guides, and other contract tools: https://www.howtocontract.com/HTC-training-library Get an email every time a new episode is out: https://www.howtocontract.com/you-can-contract-episodes

In this episode of the You Can Contract Show, Laura Frederick chats with Sasha Magee, director, strategic sourcing at Intermountain Healthcare, and adjunct professor at the University of Dayton School of Law.  Sasha shares her unconventional career choice after graduating from law school. She touches on the importance to combine formal training, hands-on training, constant coaching, feedback loop, and letting people fail to help contract professionals without a lot of contract skills to level up.   She gives advice to those who are looking for an alternative career in contracts after finishing law school.   Laura and Sasha also discuss how to deal with imposter syndrome to keep growing as a professional.OTHER LINKS:  Follow Sasha Magee on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/sashamagee/   Follow Laura Frederick on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/laurafredericklaw/ Learn how you can improve your contract drafting and negotiation skills with How to Contract: https://www.howtocontract.com/   Buy your copy of Laura's bestselling book Practical Tips on How to Contract: https://www.amazon.com/Practical-Tips-How-Contract-Commercial-ebook/dp/B0BHTLQP3V Sign up for How to Contract’s free weekly newsletter to get links to each podcast episode, the contract tips Laura posts on LinkedIn, plus special offers and events: https://www.howtocontract.com/newsletter   Get access to over 70 hours of practical contract training videos, over 400 contract tips and cartoons, and over 80 checklists, guides, and other contract tools: https://www.howtocontract.com/HTC-training-library Get an email every time a new episode is out: https://www.howtocontract.com/you-can-contract-episodes

In this episode, Laura Frederick chats with Shahed Kader, Managing Attorney at Kader Law. They explore the intersection of sales, law, and the power of continuous learning.   Shahed shares his quite unconventional journey from selling local newspaper ads door-to-door in 2008 to launching his own tech-enabled law practice ten years later. He discusses his early exposure to contracts in sales and reveals his strategies for becoming proficient in contract drafting and negotiation.  Shahed talks about the power of curiosity when learning contracts. He also shares specific steps he takes to help his current clients learn about contracts and how to negotiate them.Follow Shahed Kader on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/shahedkader/  Follow Laura Frederick on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/laurafredericklaw/ Learn how you can improve your contract drafting and negotiation skills with How to Contract: https://www.howtocontract.com/   Buy your copy of Laura's bestselling book Practical Tips on How to Contract: https://www.amazon.com/Practical-Tips-How-Contract-Commercial-ebook/dp/B0BHTLQP3V Sign up for How to Contract’s free weekly newsletter to get links to each podcast episode, the contract tips Laura posts on LinkedIn, plus special offers and events: https://www.howtocontract.com/newsletter   Get access to over 70 hours of practical contract training videos, over 400 contract tips and cartoons, and over 80 checklists, guides, and other contract tools: https://www.howtocontract.com/HTC-training-library Get an email every time a new episode is out: https://www.howtocontract.com/you-can-contract-episodes

In this episode, Laura Frederick interviews Will Drewery, founder and CEO at Diagon, and a former lead for Tesla's supply chain segment for manufacturing equipment.    Will talks about ways to create synergy between lawyers and supply chain managers to generate better contracts and manage risk more effectively.  This episode would be great for lawyers who want to learn how to best work with the supply chain on contracts.Follow Will Drewery on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/williamdrewery/ Follow Laura Frederick on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/laurafredericklaw/ Learn how you can improve your contract drafting and negotiation skills with How to Contract: https://www.howtocontract.com/   Buy your copy of Laura's bestselling book Practical Tips on How to Contract: https://www.amazon.com/Practical-Tips-How-Contract-Commercial-ebook/dp/B0BHTLQP3V Sign up for How to Contract’s free weekly newsletter to get links to each podcast episode, the contract tips Laura posts on LinkedIn, plus special offers and events: https://www.howtocontract.com/newsletter   Get access to over 70 hours of practical contract training videos, over 400 contract tips and cartoons, and over 80 checklists, guides, and other contract tools: https://www.howtocontract.com/HTC-training-library Get an email every time a new episode is out: https://www.howtocontract.com/you-can-contract-episodes

Carolyn Elefant is a recognized change-maker in energy and environmental justice law and the legal profession. Over 20 years ago, fresh out of law school, she got a job at the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission. Later she opened her law firm to help her renewable energy clients, co-founded an organization which lobbied for hundreds of millions of dollars in R&D for the renewable energy industry. She also started the award-winning blog, MyShingle.com and wrote Amazon #1 Bestseller Solo by Choice.In this interview, Carolyn talks about the art of balancing regulatory and commercial approaches to contracting, and shares advice on figuring out what to draft, what to revise, and what to negotiate in contracts. She also gives her tips on working with and educating clients on contracts.LEARNING RESOURCES MENTIONED IN THE EPISODE  - Practical Tips on How to Contract by Laura Frederick: https://www.amazon.com/Practical-Tips-How-Contract-Commercial-ebook/dp/B0BHTLQP3V? - Contract Redlining Etiquette by Nada Alnajafi: https://www.amazon.com/Contract-Redlining-Etiquette-leverage-negotiations-ebook/dp/B09PB41Z9C/  - Tech Contracts Handbook by David Tollen: https://www.amazon.com/Tech-Contracts-Handbook-Agreements-Businesspeople/dp/1634251784   OTHER LINKS:  Follow Carolyn Elefant on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/carolynelefant/   Follow Laura Frederick on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/laurafredericklaw/  Learn how you can improve your contract drafting and negotiation skills with How to Contract: https://www.howtocontract.com/   Buy your copy of Laura's bestselling book Practical Tips on How to Contract: https://www.amazon.com/Practical-Tips-How-Contract-Commercial-ebook/dp/B0BHTLQP3V  Sign up for How to Contract’s free weekly newsletter to get links to each podcast episode, the contract tips Laura posts on LinkedIn, plus special offers and events: https://www.howtocontract.com/newsletter   Get access to over 70 hours of practical contract training videos, over 400 contract tips and cartoons, and over 80 checklists, guides, and other contract tools: https://www.howtocontract.com/HTC-training-library  Get an email every time a new episode is out: https://www.howtocontract.com/you-can-contract-episodes

In this episode, Laura Frederick interviews Aramide Fields, an Associate General Counsel at a Fortune 500 company, and a former litigation attorney at Morrison Foerster.“Contracts aren't scary. You can learn this, you can figure it out,” says Aramide.She shares how she went from hating contracts with passion when working in litigation to loving them when working with tech transactions.Aramide also talks about the importance of knowing the business context and the magic of melding business and legal. She shares tips on negotiating cross-border deals and gives learning advice to new contract lawyers and professionals.Follow Aramide Fields on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/aramide-fields/Follow Laura Frederick on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/laurafredericklaw/Learn how you can improve your contract drafting and negotiation skills with How to Contract: https://www.howtocontract.com/Buy your copy of Laura's bestselling book Practical Tips on How to Contract: https://www.amazon.com/Practical-Tips-How-Contract-Commercial-ebook/dp/B0BHTLQP3VSign up for How to Contract’s free weekly newsletter to get links to each podcast episode, the contract tips Laura posts on LinkedIn, plus special offers and events: https://www.howtocontract.com/newsletterGet access to over 70 hours of practical contract training videos, over 400 contract tips and cartoons, and over 80 checklists, guides, and other contract tools: https://www.howtocontract.com/HTC-training-libraryGet an email every time a new episode is out: https://www.howtocontract.com/you-can-contract-episodes

In this episode, Laura Frederick interviews Lisa Lang, General Counsel of Ohio Northern University, and a contributor to Above the Law. Lisa talks about her experience learning contracts and the advice she has for others, including the power of admitting you don't understand something, ways to overcome imposter syndrome, and two tips for reducing anxiety when you're new to contracts.Follow Lisa Lang on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/lawyerlisalang/ Read Lisa Lang on Above The Law: https://abovethelaw.com/author/lisalang/ Follow Laura Frederick on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/laurafredericklaw/ Learn how you can improve your contract drafting and negotiation skills with How to Contract: https://www.howtocontract.com/   Buy your copy of Laura's bestselling book Practical Tips on How to Contract: https://www.amazon.com/Practical-Tips-How-Contract-Commercial-ebook/dp/B0BHTLQP3V Sign up for How to Contract’s weekly newsletter to get links to each podcast episode, the contract tips Laura posts on LinkedIn, plus special offers and events: https://www.howtocontract.com/newsletter   Get an email every time a new episode is out: https://www.howtocontract.com/you-can-contract-episodes

In this episode, Lucy Bassli, founder and principal at InnoLaw Group, former Assistant General Counsel at Microsoft, as well as a legal writer and LinkedIn thought leader, talks with Laura Frederick about her transition from her first job in a bankruptcy boutique to working in-house at Microsoft to starting her own consultancy.   She discusses the importance of trusting your instincts and judgment when it comes to contracts, as well as learning to find a compromise in negotiations.   Lucy also touches on combining the substantive, creative stuff of contracts with automation and efficiencies.Follow Lucy Bassli on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/lucybassli/ Follow Laura Frederick on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/laurafredericklaw/ Learn how you can improve your contract drafting and negotiation skills with How to Contract: https://www.howtocontract.com/   Buy your copy of Laura's bestselling book Practical Tips on How to Contract: https://www.amazon.com/Practical-Tips-How-Contract-Commercial-ebook/dp/B0BHTLQP3V Buy your copy of Lucy's book CLM Simplified: Efficient Contracting for Law Departments: https://www.amazon.com/dp/B09GXH7JPF? Sign up for How to Contract’s weekly newsletter to get links to each podcast episode, the contract tips Laura posts on LinkedIn, plus special offers and events: https://www.howtocontract.com/newsletter   Get an email every time a new episode is out: https://www.howtocontract.com/you-can-contract-episodes

In this episode, Shaun Sethna, General Counsel at TechGC, talks with Laura Frederick about his legal career and how he ended up working with contracts. He discusses the challenges he faced when he first started his in-house roles handling contracts, the imposter syndrome he experienced, and the value of learning from colleagues and opposing counsel. He also shares advice for lawyers interested in transitioning from different practice areas.Check out the full transcript here: https://www.howtocontract.com/blog/you-can-contract-with-shaun-sethnaFollow Shaun Sethna on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/shaunsethna/Follow Laura Frederick on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/laurafredericklaw/Learn how you can improve your contract drafting and negotiation skills with How to Contract: https://www.howtocontract.com/Buy your copy of Laura's bestselling book Practical Tips on How to Contract: https://www.amazon.com/Practical-Tips-How-Contract-Commercial-ebook/dp/B0BHTLQP3VSign up for How to Contract’s weekly newsletter to get links to each podcast episode, the contract tips Laura posts on LinkedIn, plus special offers and events: https://www.howtocontract.com/newsletterGet an email every time a new episode is out: https://www.howtocontract.com/you-can-contract-signup