Join host Patrick Patino and guest Shams Merchant as they discuss taking ownership of your career with joy. Shams shares how he started building a book of business even before becoming a licensed attorney and how he took control of his career through intentional business/personal brand development. About Shams Shams is a real estate private equity attorney, representing investors, developers and real estate private equity firms in their transactional and securities matters. Shams has represented some of the largest real estate investment firms in the world and currently represents many active real estate players in the Texas market. https://www.cre.law/ https://mwfirm.com/shams-merchant https://www.linkedin.com/in/shams-merchant/ About this episodes sponsor stage: Stage is a women-owned legal marketing and business development firm specializing in business development coaching and actionable strategies to boost empathy, revenue, and visibility for lawyers, with a particular focus on women. They love working with lawyers and legal marketers to turn touchpoints into “trustpoints.” They believe stage stands out as one of the pioneering in-house legal marketing teams to transition from Big Law and launch an independent company as a united team. They stay true to their ethos by providing free business development coaching to support working parents before/after parental leave. Their love of working together shines through for all who collaborate with them. They bring experience from Big Law + Big Four + investment banking. They have worked side-by-side with lawyers at all levels, bringing together practice groups, collaborating with professional/talent development teams, and deepening client relationships and revenue ranging from start-ups to Fortune 500.