Teaching Kids The Power Of Advocacy feat. Shanene Muldrow

4 hours ago

4 min read

Shanene Muldrow is a financial services professional, chief of staff, and children's book author who turned an unexpected career change into an opportunity to build a different future. In this episode, Shanene shares how law school rejection led her into financial services, why she created the Sawyer Kid Lawyer book series with her brother, and how teaching children to advocate for themselves connects to lessons she's learned throughout her own life.

About This Episode

Background

Shanene Muldrow grew up in Teaneck, New Jersey, before moving to Charlotte, North Carolina, in 2018. She has spent nearly two decades working at Equitable, where she serves as a chief of staff supporting the company's legal leadership. Although she originally planned to become a corporate attorney, her career took a different direction after she was not admitted to law school. She eventually transitioned from working as a legal assistant into financial services, where her interest in contracts, negotiation, and problem-solving became valuable professional skills.

“I have been with this company, August makes 19 years that I've been with this company," shares Shanene Muldrow on You Are A Lawyer.

Throughout her career, Shanene has learned how to adapt to different responsibilities and support the people around her. In her chief of staff role, she helps attorneys and legal leadership prepare for meetings, manage initiatives, and navigate changing priorities. Rather than supervising a traditional team, she describes herself as a utility player who steps in wherever her skills are needed. That flexibility has helped her build a long-term career in an industry she hadn't originally imagined entering.

Why Law School

Shanene always imagined herself becoming a corporate attorney. Growing up near New York City, she pictured a career in Manhattan, complete with business suits, designer shoes, and a penthouse apartment. She studied political science in college and interned at a law office from her sophomore through senior years, preparing for what she believed would be her future profession. However, after applying to law school and receiving rejections, she began reconsidering her plans.

“I always thought I was gonna be clear huxtabal and be like some kind of corporate attorney. I didn't have a plan B," explains Shanene Muldrowon Episode 269 of You Are a Lawyer.

Although the rejection was disappointing, Shanene didn't abandon her interest in legal work. She continued working as a legal assistant while exploring other possibilities. A conversation with a friend eventually introduced her to an opportunity at Equitable involving contract analysis and pension-related work. Initially, Shanene worried that the position required more financial knowledge than she possessed, but she discovered that her experience with contracts and attention to detail made her a strong candidate. That opportunity became the beginning of a career she has continued developing for nearly two decades.

What Can You Do with a Law Degree

Although Shanene did not earn a law degree, her career demonstrates how legal experience and transferable skills can create opportunities outside traditional legal practice. Her early work as a legal assistant gave her experience with contracts, negotiation, and detailed analysis. Those abilities helped her transition into financial services and eventually into a chief of staff role supporting corporate attorneys and legal leadership.

“I think the way you position it is how everyone should start thinking about essentially their transferable skills. That's all it is. You're doing these aspects. The title just changes," shares Shanene Muldrow on Episode 269 of You Are a Lawyer.

Shanene encourages professionals to recognize the value of what they already know, even when their job titles or industries change. She believes career development requires flexibility and a willingness to explore unfamiliar opportunities. Her own experience shows that someone can contribute meaningfully to the legal profession without becoming an attorney, and that skills developed in one position can support success in another. For law students and young professionals who feel uncertain about their futures, Shanene emphasizes that not having a detailed plan doesn't mean they're falling behind.

Lawyer Side Hustles

Outside her corporate career, Shanene is the creator of Sawyer Kid Lawyer, a children's book series she developed with her brother, Sheldon, who illustrates the books. The idea grew from Shanene's lifelong love of creative writing and her desire to build a family legacy project. During the COVID pandemic, she returned to storytelling and began developing characters inspired by her own family. The series follows Sawyer, a young girl learning to advocate for herself and others through everyday childhood experiences.

“What we instill in each of our books is really a lesson about empowerment,” Shanene Muldrow expresses in Episode 269 of You Are a Lawyer.

The first two books, Teacher vs. Naptime and Playground Debate, introduce young readers to respectful advocacy, fairness, and problem-solving. Shanene and her brother were also developing a third book, Scout versus Sawyer, which shifts the focus toward sibling relationships. Beyond writing, Shanene participates in readings at schools and churches and has introduced a Sawyer doll to accompany the series. She hopes to continue expanding the characters and eventually explore opportunities in television or other media. For Shanene, the books combine creativity, entrepreneurship, and the advocacy lessons she first learned as a child.