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What Building Advanta Taught Me (That No One Prepares You For)

Almost two years into Advanta, and the biggest lessons didn’t come from clients or strategy decks — they came from the chaos.

When I started Advanta Legal Tech, I had a simple plan:

Solve real problems.
Stay lean.
Build trust.
Deliver outcomes.

Sounds focused, right?

It was. But plans are what you sketch out before reality punches you in the face.

Here’s what actually happened.

When Feedback Hits Harder Than Expected

One of our earliest GC clients used our Legal Ops Maturity Tool and said:

“This is a strong framework... but not how we define maturity inside legal.”

That feedback stung.

But we didn’t push back.
We listened.
We rewrote the entire model.
Relaunched it within 48 hours.

Lesson: Tough feedback can be your blueprint — if you’re brave enough to hear it.

When Pricing Pushback Becomes a Catalyst

We lost a deal because our pricing didn’t reflect the firm’s internal value model.

So we stayed up that night.
Redesigned our pricing — modular, transparent, and scalable.

The next three deals? Closed faster than ever.

Lesson: Pricing isn’t just about numbers. It’s about how you communicate your value.

When Tech Breaks Down — Live

Five minutes before a big demo, the app failed.

No plan B.
No fallback team.
No time.

So I rebuilt it during the meeting.

Lesson: Panic quietly. Perform publicly.

When Time Zones Don’t Care About Your Sleep

A potential client once said:

“I can do a 30-minute call tomorrow — in Abu Dhabi.”

I caught the red-eye.
I was there before their coffee arrived.

Lesson: Sometimes, your presence is your pitch.

When You Can’t Hire Experts — You Become One

We couldn’t afford a Make.com + Zapier automation expert.

So I became one.
Two nights. Ten videos. Countless trial runs.

That same stack now powers lead gen, onboarding, and reporting for clients.

Lesson: Early-stage founders aren’t titles. They’re problem solvers in motion.

When People Leave Mid-Project

We had team members leave mid-sprint.

Personal reasons. Burnout. Better offers.

We picked up the work. Delivered the project.
And rethought how to build resilient teams, not just productive ones.

Lesson: People will leave. Your mission can’t.

What No One Tells You

No one tells you:

  • How lonely it gets between milestones.

  • How many follow-up emails go unanswered.

  • How rejection becomes routine.

But no one tells you this either:

When a client says:

“You’ve helped us shift how we think — not just what we use,”
it makes everything worth it.

So, What Is This Really About?

This isn’t just about legal tech.
It’s not even about consulting.

It’s about building with belief.

And doing the invisible, unglamorous work that powers every “overnight success.”

At Advanta, we don’t just give advice.

We build.
We test.
We break things.
We fix them.
We meet people where they are — and help them go further.

If You’re Building Too…

Whether you’re in legal ops, innovation, or growing your own firm — I see you.

You’re not alone in the quiet pivots, the emotional rollercoaster, the late-night wins.

Let’s keep building — and build better.

My inbox is always open.

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