When people think of being an entrepreneur, they think of a typical local business in a small downtown main street. They think of inventions and ideas, pitches on shows like Shark Tank. They may consider the world of technology, app creators, and large pools of corporate investors.
Henry Gereis isn’t your typical entrepreneur. He graduated from Pepperdine University Caruso School of Law in 2016, with a dual Juris Doctorate/Masters In Dispute Resolution, and after practicing Family Law and working at both the Santa Barbara and Kern County Public Defender’s offices, he decided to start his own law firm.
There were a variety of reasons as to why Gereis decided to go out on his own. He appreciated the unlimited potential to practice law without constraints to creativity, and shared the same longing as many in his generation to take his future into his own hands.
Another huge catalyst for this decision, however, was the tragic passing of great Kobe Bryant. A huge fan of the basketball player and the NBA as a whole, Gereis decided to take the risk and push himself to do something big, modeling himself after his lifelong idol.
“I just wanted to go for it,” Gereis explained. Life is too short not to pursue his dream to the best of his ability, so he used his entrepreneurial spirit to begin his own law firm, a spirit that could apply to any aspiring business maker.
Of course, this decision did not come without dissent. “Many skeptics continuously insisted “that I’m taking too big of a risk, that I’m too young and would struggle acquiring business.” He looked to Kobe’s career, however, to combat this rhetoric. As the youngest ever NBA All-Star in 1998, starting the game at 19 years old, Bryant proved that age does not translate to skill.
Gereis’ confidence in his ability as an attorney is the result of his experience litigating and negotiating client centered resolutions in thousands of cases. He knew he could seek justice for his clients as well as any other self-starting lawyer, and decided he didn’t have to wait in order to see his talents blossom in his own firm.
Gereis is comfortable with the fact that being an attorney is a continuous journey. “There are a million ways to practice law,” he said. “And it’s a practice. You learn something new every day.” He embraces this as a lawyer, and constantly finds new ways to better himself for the good of his clients.
This is at the heart of all successful entrepreneurial ventures: the need to go out and see for yourself the limits of what one can accomplish, and the understanding that you cannot predict what will happen in the future. You can only do your best at the moment. This philosophy was at the heart of Kobe Bryant’s career, and why Gereis is confident he can put together his own Hall-of-Fame caliber work as an attorney.
It has worked out for him so far. Even as the pandemic rages and fundamentally changes the legal profession in many ways, Henry Gereis consistently delivers for his clients as his law firm continues its upward trajectory. Against all adversity and dissent, there is confidence for the future. All he had to do was take that leap, yell “Kobe!” and shoot his shot. To learn more about Henry Gereis and schedule a free consultation call, visit www.esqaspire.com.
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