Why Going to Law School Became Her Favorite Mistake — Davina Frederick

My guest for Episode #316 of the My Favorite Mistake podcast is Davina Frederick, founder of Wealthy Woman Lawyer, host of the Wealthy Woman Lawyer Podcast, and a business coach who has helped women law firm owners scale their practices to seven figures and beyond.

Episode page with video, transcript, and more

In our conversation, Davina shares why going to law school—an unconventional move at age 38—turned out to be her favorite mistake. Despite building a successful litigation practice, she realized that the traditional lawyer lifestyle wasn’t aligned with her long-term goals or well-being.

"I realized I didn’t want to spend the rest of my life sitting behind a desk or in a courtroom."

After stepping away from her first firm, Davina leveraged both her marketing background and the painful lessons of burnout to build a second, more sustainable law practice. That experience—and the power of hiring business coaches—ultimately led her to launch her own coaching firm. Today, Davina specializes in helping women lawyers grow their firms with clarity, confidence, and systems that reduce overwhelm and create balance.

We also dive into what it means to create a systems-driven law firm—and how that principle applies across professional services. From breaking the “grading papers” bottleneck to resisting perfectionism, Davina offers practical strategies for founders who are ready to scale without losing themselves in the process. Her journey is a powerful example of learning from mistakes, listening to your inner voice, and having the courage to change course.

Questions and Topics:

• What’s your favorite mistake?
• Why do you see going to law school as a mistake?
• What was your career before law school?
• What inspired you to make law your second career?
• How did you come to the decision to leave your first law firm?
• What happened between your first and second law firms?
• Why did you choose to launch a virtual firm in 2011?
• How did others react to your decision to work virtually?
• What did you do differently the second time to avoid repeating mistakes?
• What does it mean to have a systems-driven law firm?
• How do you help lawyers stop being the bottleneck in their business?
• Can you share examples of systems you recommend, especially for marketing?
• How do you coach lawyers through the fear of hiring after a bad experience?
• What mindset shifts help women lawyers move past perfectionism and indecision?
• What led you to focus exclusively on coaching women law firm owners?