Tracey Mylecharane is the Director of Tracey Mylecharane Solicitor, a virtual, online boutique law practice providing legal services to individuals, businesses and corporations Australia wide. With a slew of legal qualifications and experience, Tracey has also lectured in law at ANU and UNSW.
With a passion for helping SME businesses build foundations for success in their business, she has also just launched a new course, The Empowered Entrepreneur. This course has been designed to remove the overwhelm and uncertainty surrounding business law and legal matters for SMEs, providing crystal clear clarity around legal obligations and good strategy.
After being a Founding Partner in a firm for six years, why did you start your own law firm Tracey Mylecharane Solicitor?
This is a classic “we don’t’ know what we don’t know”. For so long I honestly thought that the busyness and intensity of my life and career was what practicing law was just supposed to be like. Then I had my little boy (who is now 6 years old) and within a couple of weeks I realised this wasn’t for me any longer. That if I continued on with that mindset, something was going to give, and I wasn’t prepared to let that be parenting.
So I pivoted, left the practice of law, and took my life in a completely different direction. Five years later, and with a daughter as well, I created a way to be able to dive back into the passion I had for practicing law and enriching the lives of my clients – whilst allowing myself some time and space to parent without missing out. The rest, as they say, is history.
How do you operate as a trusted advisor to businesses, and why has this become even more important during COVID?
Practicing law for me is so much more than acting on a matter for a client, and then saying goodbye. I have developed long standing relationships with almost all of my wonderful clients, and I am so grateful for that. What that ultimately means is that when they have an issue moving forward, or a question – whether it be in relation to a contract they want to enter into, or a question about a contractor they are thinking of taking on, or if they haven’t been paid – they feel comfortable picking up the phone and chatting to me about it, or sending me a quick email.
It’s like I have become part of their team, and I am included in decisions moving forward. This has become particularly important during COVID because there has been so much uncertainty for small business owners, and often they had nowhere to turn for support, and for answers. I have been privileged to be able to offer support where I can, and to help address their questions and strategise future direction. This is without doubt, one of the highlights of my job!
WHY DID YOU DESIGN THE EMPOWERED ENTREPRENEUR AND HOW DOES IT HELP PEOPLE?
It has became increasingly clear to me that small business owners are engulfed by so much uncertainty and overwhelm in business, with the long list of things on the to-do list never ending. Small business owners can’t do it all alone, and they shouldn’t be expected to.
In designing The Empowered Entrepreneur I have taken the pain points that I know from experience that small business owners are suffering from, and I have developed a 4-week course to dive in to these issues to demystify all things business law and legals. The course is delivered entirely online, in 4 x 1 hour zoom sessions with me – live. My hope is that small business owners can take confidence in knowing that they have somewhere to go to enrich their knowledge, and empower themselves moving forward.
What are some of the topics you will be covering in the your new podcast, Rise Up In Business?
My intention with Rise Up in Business is to reach more small business owners and help them by distilling and explaining important legal matters, in a really simple way. The topics that I am planning to cover can become very boring very quickly for most people (that is, for non-lawyers!).
I aim to prevent the ’eyes glazing over’ with some clever, practical and easy to adopt discussion, tips and tricks, in short and sweet episodes (no more than 10 minutes each!). The first season will cover the basics for small business owners, business structures, business legals, the Australian Consumer Law, website documents, and so much more!
Your greatest challenge?
Bucking the trend and backing myself to create a business model that works for me – and by extension, helps significantly more clients. When I started my business in early 2019, I was met with so much negativity within the profession. It won’t work. It’s not sustainable. It’ll never take off. You name it. But here I am more than 18 months later, with a thriving business, some real balance between work and home life, with time for my family, and with a new podcast launching! I honestly couldn’t be happier that I made the call to back myself and jump in boots and all.
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