How to Make the Adjustments That Open the Door for Bigger New Opportunities with Elizabeth Hill

Welcome to this episode of the Million Dollar Mastermind. I'm Larry Weddell. And before we get started, if you want to know exactly how to win again and again, go to Wydell on winning.com webinar now to watch something I've put together for you. Now let's get going into this episode of Million Dollar Mastermind.

I'm here with attorney and entrepreneur from Lubbock, Texas, the incredible Elizabeth Hill, my new friend.

Hi, Larry. So glad to be here.

I know where I'm gonna go eat when I go to Lubbock, Texas next time.

Yes, yes, definitely. Come see us.

And the name and the location is.

So it's Berkeley Hill. It's spelled kind of funny because we spelled it authentic to family. It's B U R K L E E. Berkeley Hill Vineyards. And we have a bistro and tasting room in downtown Lubbock at 1109 Broadway. And Lubbock is really working hard to renovate downtown. We're kind of late to the game. Some other cities have done it before us and done such a beautiful job. So we are part of that effort to renovate the Lubbock downtown area.

Well, you've got a chance to learn from everybody else. And so tell me about, talk about changes. And, you know, here you are, a super successful attorney, you start your own practice and things are going well. You get the recognition from the Texas State Bar and you become a member of that elite group and, you know, your reputation, the community, strong. You're one of only two.

What is it?

Board certified?

Yes, board certified in civil appellate law.

It's civil appellate law in Lubbock. And so you're sitting in the sweet spot. You know, you've earned yourself a really prestigious and lucrative position, niche in the legal profession, doing what you love. And now all of a sudden comes the opportunity to get involved in the entrepreneurial side with the vineyard and the bistro through your husband. What kind of changes and adjustments have you had to make? Schedule wise, expectation wise, staff wise, and maybe skill set wise too. Make this happen. Because you, if this is going to be a success, it's going to take time. It's going to take. And you're already fully invested in the legal field, you know, so talk about what you said to yourself, what kind of things you did to allow that to happen. You had to clear things out, get more help, you know, get some new stuff in here. And that reorganization, how did you go through it, what stages you go through? And when it got tough, how did you talk your way through it because the big thing is self coaching ourselves, you know, we get to where we don't want to do things, you know.

Yes.

And I would imagine you got a little, you might be a little bit set in your ways because your ways are very successful and it might be some reluctance to disrupt that pattern. Know.

Yes. Well, you know, one thing I did is I tried to figure out how I could use my current skill set to help us in that area. And so I educated myself on winery and vineyard law and I made sure that I found out the resources that I needed and where to go to find the answers to everything about wine law because it's very, it's regulatory heavy and there's a lot to know. And so I viewed it as, hey, I'm an attorney. How lucky is it that you know a winery which is very regulated by the government. I'm an attorney. That's great. I can help us out on that. And so that's one way that I did it. And I've learned a lot. And now I actually help other wineries get their permits. And so that's wound up expanding your business. Yes, yes. And so that's been really neat. And it also develops relationships in the industry, which is so needed. And really here in Texas, it's still very community. Like I hear that like in places like California and maybe Oregon, that it's gotten a little bit more cutthroat, so to speak. But I think for the most part in Texas, we're still pretty friendly and we all encourage and help each other because we're trying to expand the industry. So that's been one way that I've helped. And also I really love marketing. And so it's kind of one of those things that I think, well, if I wasn't going to be an attorney, I'd be in some type of marketing. And so that's been a fun outcome outlet for me to really stretch my skills in marketing and learn more about it and do some fun stuff there. And so that's my primary role with the winery. Although I'm involved in a lot of the decisions, I'm not there during the day. I'm at my computer working. But I did just literally this week, I signed a lease to move my law office to an office across the street from the winery and restaurant. So that's going to be fun. Yeah.

So it's just a matter of making the changes that the situation what you want to do. And this is. I was going to bring this up when you're talking about mentors the whole idea behind the mentor and behind making these changes is what needs to be done to make this as easy as possible for me to do it. Because I've already made my mind, I'm going to do it. And so, you know, we're not in the debate thing. I've already checked that part out, so that ship has sailed. I'm going to do it now. How can I make it as easy as possible, as stress free as possible so I can be at my best in the time I put into it and I can get the most satisfaction? Because you usually expand a thing like this because it's things you want to do. You know, it's your decision to complicate and ruin your life by adding this new thing. You know, you didn't have a gun to your head. You know, you decided, I want to do this. I'm excited about doing this. But now it's like the practical side of it is put some thought into how you can make it as easy as possible rather than, you know, biting nails and I'll do this and I'll work around the clock and grit my teeth. No, find a way where you can do it with style, with enjoyment and that, that leads to being able to do it for a long, long time. Where your efforts can compound and multiply and your name can spread throughout Texas and the community. And if people know how to spell Berkeley because they've been there many times.

You know, yes, yes, that's what we're working for.

And so moving that office across the street, just when did you think of that? How did you think of that?

Well, we'd been kind of working on it for a while and we had tried to explore some other options like an upstairs office. And that would have been really fun. Maybe one day I'll be the lawyer that's upstairs from a water, but I find that I feel a little bit disconnected because my office is across town. And so we decided to just start looking and this opened up and it ended up working out perfectly. I can literally see the front of the winery from my window. And so it just, it's, it's really neat. I'm excited. It's going to be a fun next step to blend my two careers.

Hey, listen, there's a lot of information online, but there aren't a lot of people who have actually done something. In my case, I've actually built a successful business, has accrued over 5 billion in assets under management and has done well even during trying times. Now, if you want to know exactly How I've done this. Go to Whiteellumwinning.com webinar now. I've compressed a decade of learning into five short weeks. Just for those of you who want to give yourself an incredible advantage and are tired of waiting and watching others move up.

And did you need to staff up or you're able to do this? Did you cut your. You know, because it sounds like your legal business is expanding. If you've got your different specialties that you'll be known for in addition to general work, it sounds like your practice will be expanding. And so how are you finding the hours of the day? Usually that has to do with adding staff?

Well, you know, right now I just. I have an assistant, which. She's awesome. She helps me so much. I have thought about the possibility that at some point I may want to take on an associate attorney that maybe I can help mentor, so I have room for that at this new office. And so I'm at least allowing for expansion as needed.

Yeah. And the thing is, it's not needed right now because you really haven't been able to do the restaurant, you know, with co. And so now you're getting into that thing where the time commitments can start to be an issue. And so as you. What is your picture? You have. Usually things will go better if you have some kind of game plan of where you want to head. What is it that you want to do? How do you want to be known? Your legacy? Do you want to leave a legacy in Texas law? Do you want your firm, how dominant do you want your firm to be? How big you want it to be? What do you want to accomplish in law from this point? I mean, when you started, it was, I want to do it, I want to get in it. And now you're in it. Well, I want a business of my own practice. Now you got your own practice, and you've been recognized and this. That you've done it. And so now what is it just about? Because I don't know how attorneys think. You know, do attorneys just keep pushing along, or do you have some. Some. Is. Is there a bigger picture out there that you're working towards with your law firm?

Well, I would like to continue to expand the appellate practice that doing the appeals for people, and a lot of times those referrals come from other attorneys. So it's been good for me to be involved in my legal community, and I should continue to do that. But that's kind of the dream for me is to be able to mostly be an appellate Attorney and I, you know, it's kind of nerdy, but I really enjoy researching and arguing the law and arguing on behalf of my client. And so that's kind of the dream. But also I really enjoy, you know, I wouldn't call it life coaching, but just inspirational. You know, I had the Legit Endeavors podcast that I've been working on and things like that. I really would love to do more speaking once we have, you know, events again, things like that.

All right, and so tell us about the podcast.

Well, so Legit Endeavors was started with the aim of helping entrepreneurs make their life and businesses legit. I still enjoy that purpose, but I'm slowly shifting to a little bit more of the what helps businesses be successful because the entrepreneur has that determination, that growth mindset, what we've been talking about today.

Well, so even beyond the appellate, it's really an interesting mix. The nerd side who likes to get in, research the law, debate the law, argue the law, the fine tune, and then go out and be a marketer. Usually you have to be more like a cheerleader. You know, it's like I was in construction when I first got out of Georgia Tech, and for four years I was basically a butt kicker, you know, because you have all these subcontractors and you gotta get things done within a certain timeframe. And then if it's not done, it's my fault. Nobody, nobody knows. This group with knuckleheads over here didn't get it, you know, and they don't want to hear the knucklehead stories either. They just want it done and they want it done right. And so I, that was my responsibility. So I was, I was, you know, tough and insistent and I was dogmatic and I was detailed, you know, Mr. Detail on top of things. Because if you don't pay attention to it, that's where, you know, if you don't lock the door, that's the door the robbers are going to come in. So if you don't keep up with everything, that's where you're going to miss your deadline. So. And there's about 800 things involved in building the house. So there's lots of things to keep up with. And then I went from that and went into financial services and sales and marketing. And so I had to. It probably took me about four years. It's like a Marine coming back from the war where I became a human being and relax and talk, you know, have to kind of get that toughness and it's, you know, you can't go in on a sale and say, buy it now, stop spreading around. You know, it's like that just doesn't work. And so you have to learn how to coach people, make them feel comfortable, build your own credibility with them, explain things in simple terms so they can feel confident about it. But that was a big change for me. Now you're talking about you being able to do both of these things you got. It wasn't an accident that you were the gold winner. Well.

Yeah. You know, there, there are definitely weeks and days that I don't get it all done. And I try to give myself grace and just remember to prioritize what's most important and what really needs to get done. And so that kind of helps me survive it during the really tough times.

Yeah.

Also to just know that continually learning and improving and becoming more efficient as we were talking about, trying to figure out the way to make it easier and less stressful. And so just continuing to have that determination to just figure it out.

Well, thanks so much, Elizabeth. I'm going to let you go because you have really been incredibly generous with your time and your insight and information. And let's agree that we're going to stay in touch because I know you're going to have many adventures and we're going to want to, if we can tap back into that in the future. And we're going to be growing, hopefully we'll be growing together and we'll be sharing with each other what we're learning. You like that idea?

That sounds great, Larry. Thank you for having me.

I appreciate you and proud of what you're doing and thank you for your inspirational example for so many people. I want to encourage you, as you know, to get anything you can do to get a wider voice out there. I know you're going to be a difference maker to everybody who hears from you. So thanks so much for sharing all these things with us.

If you enjoyed what you've heard and are dead serious about finding out for yourself exactly how this works in the real world, I've taken the most valuable business lessons I've learned over 40 years and put them into something for you to watch, go to whiteellumwinning.com webinar now in order to move up as fast as possible. I'm Larry Wydell and I run the Million Dollar Mastermind. Go, go, go.