#36 - Shalini Quattlebaum: Attorney in the Spotlight

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Welcome to the court Reporter podcast. Hi. My name is Brynn Reynolds Seymour. I am a certified life coach, former freelance court reporter, and currently working in the court system. For years, I lived in constant, overwhelmed, drowning in pages, deadlines, and self doubt, feeling like I'm not even qualified to be doing the important work I'm doing. If you've ever felt like this, you're not alone. And it doesn't have to be this way. In each episode, I'll dive deep into the challenges we face in our daily lives and share practical coaching tools and solutions to help you reclaim your peace of mind and become the most confident person in the courtroom.

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Hello, everyone. So, I was editing this episode, episode 36, our interview with Shalini Quattlebaum. I realized that Pamela, my co host, I forgot we didn't introduce her. So I was hearing, I was talking, and then I didn't want the listeners to be confused, so we decided to get together and record a little introduction. So, basically, my friend, we actually go to church together. And her name is Pamela Acosta, and she's co hosting this with me because of her experience in beauty pageants. So I knew her passion for beauty pageants and the beauty industry. And when I came across Shalini on a networking group that we're in together, I saw that she was a beauty pageant winner and an attorney, and I thought immediately, I have to ask Pam to co-host this episode with me.

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So, Pam, why don't you introduce yourself?

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Hello, everyone. My name is Pamela Acosta, and thank you, Brynn, so much for having me as your co host. Thanks for joining.

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So excited. Yes, me.

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As Bryn explained, the way that we came together and we collaborated was, as she was explaining to me, all the podcasts that she's done with core reporters and attorneys. And then she brought up Shalini and her background in beauty pageant. So I was so intrigued, and I.

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Thank you so much for joining. It made me so much more comfortable to interview someone who has beauty pageant experience with someone else who has beauty pageant experience, because, like, I don't really have that experience. As you guys will hear Shalini's story, that opportunity was really handed to her. Like, it was really God's will for her to do that. And you, too, right?

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Yeah.

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But for me, that opportunity never presented itself. So it wasn't God's will, but, like, so I wouldn't really know much about it. So thank you for joining. And here we go. Welcome Shalini Quattlebaum. Hi, Shalini.

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Hi, you guys. How are you?

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We are great. Yes.

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I'm doing lovely today.

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How are you?

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Good. I'm so excited to do this with you.

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So excited, too. Welcome to the court Reporter podcast. So today on the podcast, we have a special guest. Her name is Shalini Quattlebaum. She is an attorney in California, and she's also a past beauty pageant winner, a social media influencer, and she has an amazing story to share. So we're really excited to welcome her. Let's welcome Shalini to the court Reporter podcast. Yay.

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Thank you, guys.

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So how did you go from being in a beauty pageant to becoming an attorney?

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Yeah, so when I started being in beauty pageants, because I was bullied a lot in high school and being bullied, I know there's a lot of people that are bullied, but when I was bullied, it just. I didn't. I lost all my confidence. So I didn't have any confidence in myself. I didn't even really know who I was anymore. I kept listening to all these people telling me, oh, you're worthless. You're never going to be anything in life, and you should go kill yourself. And all these just crazy things all the time.

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That's all I heard. I never heard any positivity. So then one day I got this flyer in the mail that was like, run for Miss Santa Clarita Valley. And I was laughing at it. So I was like, oh, no, me in a pageant? Absolutely not. That's not what I'm going to do. Then I decided. I kept getting more and more flyers, and I decided to reach out to the pageant organization and possibly run in the pageant.

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I did that. I got first runner up, and then I kept doing more and more pageants, and I gained so much more confidence. So that's kind of how I went into pageants. Yeah, you just. You gain so much confidence. You. You can be yourself, you know, and you could be authentic, and it's just an incredible experience.

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That's so amazing. So it was really like a calling. You were being called to join this beauty pageant. Even though you never thought about it, you never dreamed about it. It just, like, came to you.

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Yeah, it came to me, and it just. I don't think I would have been as confident as I am now just because of all the bullying and if I didn't do pageants. And people don't realize they're like, oh, these beauty pageants and they, they laugh at people who do pageants, but it's just such a strong message. You get to have a platform and advocate for your platform and, you know, it's an incredible experience. You get to raise money for homelessness and whatever you are passionate about and build so much confidence.

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So I saw that you raised $10,000 for relay for life one year. Was that accurate?

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Yeah, I raised a lot of money for relay for life. That was my platform at the time when I first did my first pageant.

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Because I did relay for life when I was in high school, and I never raised, I probably only raised like a $100. So good. I mean, hey, at least you have something. Yeah, but 10,000, that's so impressive. Like, what were your methods? How did you, how were you so passionate enough to raise $10,000?

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I lost my brother to cancer. So after that experience, I just wanted to help people who are like him. And, you know, I started designing t shirts and sweaters so people would buy that. Obviously, that didn't raise $10,000, but I did, like, little walks, like cancer walks. I organized those all over the city. So that definitely raised a lot of money. I did selling food, baked cookies. I just did, like, a bunch of things that would just be little fundraisers to make money.

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Wow, you really went above and beyond, and I remember you did. Was it 2000 hours of community service in a year?

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Yeah, that was. I, that was a while ago.

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I know.

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That was online. That one was cool because I got an award from, like, the, the senator's office, like, thanking me for all my service, which was pretty cool. So, yeah, I try to be very active in my community, which is what pageants do.

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They.

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Pageants make you very active in your community. It teaches you how to, like, go to businesses, get sponsorships from businesses and help have them help you in different, like, organizations.

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So, yeah, the types of volunteering that you would do normally, I would do.

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A lot of, like, food drives. I love food drives. I try to feed the homeless every month. Like, I really try to. I know it gets hard, it's busy, but I try to bring a lot of friends to help me with those as well. I still work with relay for life. I work out. I work with stomp out bullying, which is a bullying prevention campaign and organization.

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So those are my main three.

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Wow.

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And then, Shalini, I wanted to ask you, because actually bullying is such a perfect topic, you know, to discuss, especially when you do, when you join a beauty pageant and you want to give that message out to young girls. Was there anything that maybe you can share that during your pageant times, was there anything that you wanted, any sort of message that you wanted to share with how to overcome the bullying? Because nowadays we see it a lot. It's something that it has increased tremendously. And till this day, people, when they go through bullying, they go through either mental illnesses, you know, depression. So what experience can you share with us and with people in order for you to overcome that while you did your booty pageant?

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Yeah. So it was really tough because I remember at the time, you're, like, 1516 years old, and during that age, you don't really feel like you have much to live for because you're like, okay, what have I really done at 15 that's going to get me through all of these people saying, oh, you're worthless. Go kill yourself. And that's why a lot of, you know, people at that age are committing suicide. Cause they don't realize the future. Like, they don't see what the future has for them. So it was really tough for me to be strong during that, that whole thing. Like, I felt like I didn't have any friends.

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I didn't have anyone to turn to, and I did it by myself, so it was tough. But, you know, just. Just the pageants and doing things that I love, like, I tried to do things that were just different. You know, putting yourself in pageantry is nothing I ever thought I would do, but I wanted to try something different so I could see, you know, something in myself that nobody else saw. And now I realize, too, like, to all the young people in high school or junior high school who are dealing with bullying, I just want them to know that, yeah, maybe people will tell them they're worthless and they're not going to be anything in their life and they should kill themselves. But I'm so glad that I didn't, because now I'm sitting here as the, you know, first attorney in my family, and I would have never done that if I would have resorted to, you know, like, killing myself or believing what other people said about me and doubting myself. So I just want all the young people to know that there is a future, and they need to just stay put because they don't see their future yet. And they will.

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You prove not only to yourself, but also to the world that you are a strong woman and that you can do anything that you set your mind to.

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And that's very beautiful, because in your case, it's. Even though you went through that, you showed that you can do whatever you want. It doesn't matter. Either you believe about something. Whatever it is, it doesn't matter, because you are who you are and you know who you are and who you can be.

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But it's.

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Some people, they will try to limit, you know, the kids nowadays or say, you can't do this. Look at you. Or it's crazy. But you actually are a great example because you're an attorney and.

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Yeah. And a lot of people, you know, they go through this stuff. They just don't see their future. So I know every single person who's dealing with bullying, whether they're children or adults, they have a purpose, and they're supposed to be here. So it's just, you know, I hope that people don't doubt themselves. It's super important not to.

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Yes. Do you want to share anything about, like, why were people bullying you? Like, what happened?

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Yeah, so I. Well, first, there's one reason I was different in high school. I went to a high school where there were. There's nobody who looked like me. So people would judge me for, like, my curly hair or my. They would say things about my lips being bigger than other people and, like.

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It wasn't diverse or anything or something.

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It wasn't diverse. Yeah. So I was different, and I didn't understand. So I would, like, do things like straighten my hair all the time, even though my hair is straight now, but usually I leave it natural, but, yeah. So I would try to fit in as much as possible, and I never did. And then it got worse. One day, I got into a really bad car accident, and this one girl in my high school told the entire school and the entire area where I live in basically that I was lying about the accident to get attention, and this blew up everywhere. There were so hundreds of people texting me to kill myself and that I'm worthless, and they can't believe I would lie about a car accident.

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And it was awful because I was actually hurt in the accident and traumatized.

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Right.

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That is very immature. I mean, that doesn't. I mean, of course, what can you expect from high school? But. But, wow, you really went through it, and you came out strong. And it's national women's month, so. Celebrating women. Yeah. International Women's history month.

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Yeah. Shout out to the three of us and all the other women watching this. Hey.

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So as a beauty pageant winner and an attorney, now, that's quite. It seems like a very vastly different route. So how did that happen? Like, what did. What inspired you to become an attorney? You what attracted you to the law?

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So there were a lot of things. I think, when I grew up, I actually wanted to be a hematologist, pediatric oncologist, as a children's cancer doctor, because I wanted to help those who were like my brother. But that was a very depressing route. I did medical assistant. I was in a medical assistant for a while. I just did not like it because it was so sad seeing all these children diagnosed with cancer who were not going to live very long. So awful. I realized I couldn't do that anymore.

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And then pageants, I was always advocating for people, so I looked at it, like, advocating for injured parties, which is basically what I'm doing as an attorney.

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Oh, yeah, an advocate. Okay, there you go. Okay.

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Yeah. Like an advocate. So that's what I did, you know, basically my entire childhood. So I was like, how else can I do that? Because I'm not gonna be a doctor anymore. How else can I do that? So there was this experience in 2020 where this young african american woman got. She was protesting for the whole. The black lives. Do you guys remember the black lives matter?

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Yeah. Yeah. Mm hmm.

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So she organized a protest for Black Lives Matter, had thousands of people, was in San Luis Obispo. We were all over the news and everything. It was a great turnout. And there were people who were so upset about the protests that she held, so they basically, like, broke into buildings and smashed up a bunch of things and blamed it on her. So she got charged for, like, a litany of crimes that she didn't even commit, and it was awful. She was so young at the time. Her story's all over the place. So I raised, like, $80,000 for her legal fees so that she could have, like, proper representation.

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And I helped work as, like, a pro bono paralegal on her case and all those things. It was just really sad experience for her. And after that, I just decided, you know, why not become an attorney and actually represent people who are like her then? I just did. I was like, okay, so 2020. I actually got laid off by a bunch of jobs because of COVID and I had to deal with homelessness. I was living in my car for about six months, and during that time, I was just like, I never want to go through something like this again. So I am going to apply to law school right now and hopefully get in and never have to worry about finances.

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Wow, you really push through.

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Don't we all?

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Yeah. And so you got in, and then how was that journey?

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That was not the best either. Well, actually, you know what I did my first year and the school that I went to, I wanted to go to a higher ranking school, so I worked really hard to get top five of my class so that I would be able to transfer out to a better school, which I gave my life away basically, my first year. But you got to do what you got to do, right?

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Yeah. I talked about that in an episode how, like, for court reporters, too, it's, like, takes a lot of effort to get through school and to finally graduate. And when I did it, I just, like, I had to give up a lot of other commitments that I had, but I was emphasizing that, like, it's not going to last forever. Just, you know, just sit down with your friends and family and let them know this is really important to me. I have to put these other things to the side, but I'm going to focus on this for now, and then in the future, I'll be able to have my life back. That's true. Yeah.

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You got to let your friends and family know because nobody really understands the journey besides you or people who are doing it with you, you know, the same students. So, yeah, it's definitely important to let your friends know, like, hey, I have a dream I'll be back in a few years.

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Yeah. Like, it's not going to last forever, just, like, for the time being. Exactly. Exactly. So how was the bar exam? I've heard that's really hard.

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Yeah, the bar was awful, as everybody knows. I think the most challenging part was just people doubting you all the time, especially as a woman. You know, a lot of people, they doubt you, and they tell you that you can't do it, and you should choose another dream that's easier. Whatever. It's not male dominated, basically. That was really hard. Lots of self doubt. Even though I found a confidence in pageants, you still feel self doubt when people around you are always doubting you.

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So that's really hard. I would talk to other attorneys, and they would tell me, oh, no, you shouldn't do it. Someone like you doesn't fit the description of an attorney. And awful.

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Right, right. Like, what is it?

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Do you.

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Do you have to be a man to show that you could be an attorney? You know, attorney. She was amazing. You know, when I saw the trial, I was. I was in awe. I was so intrigued by it that I was like, I. It's not like I admire attorneys even more, women attorneys, because you can see the, like, their. The power, the strength that, you know, you know, just to fight for their client and the sacrifice and the hard work that they put, you know, just to show justice, you know, show, like, my client, you know, and the way that she portrayed it, I actually. It made me want to learn more about the.

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About the law. I was never into law, but I was telling Bryn, I was like, johnny Depp's case, the attorney, was amazing. I loved her, and I know I.

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Still want to watch that. I need to watch. It's amazing. She didn't know it was on Netflix, and she.

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She was, well, like, very well grounded. So this whole stereotype about attorneys, you.

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Know, not being female, this is just crazy. It's. It is.

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It's pretty sad, too, because what makes you. What makes you not be able to be an attorney? Just like you said, it's because you're a woman, so. And she just proved. Camila Vasquez, the attorney for Johnny Depp, she proved that you don't have to be a man to do the job, you know? So that was inspiring, and she was awesome. I saw her win an award at the hispanic gala last year, so.

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Oh, wow.

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She's hispanic.

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She's hispanic.

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Yeah. Oh, wow. Well, I was gonna ask you actually.

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Like, saw her in person, that experience.

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If you can just talk a little bit about it.

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Yeah, it was incredible. She was on stage, and she was just so happy to. It was, like, attorney of the year award, which she totally deserved. So she came on stage, gave a speech. I said hi to her, and her speech was awesome. You can see, like, the emotion she had behind receiving the award, because she was just so honored to receive it. And, yeah, it was incredible watching her get that award. She was just so nice, so humble, and she just.

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Well deserved.

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What's her name?

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Camila Vasquez.

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Okay.

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I guess I should have known. Well, okay, so you're a medical malpractice attorney, right?

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I do med mal, elder abuse, and personal injury.

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Okay. So, basically, a lot of the. Most of the things that deal with court reporters, and you do litigation, and you have to get the transcripts and everything. So, since this is the court reporter podcast, I wanted to ask you, as an attorney who works with court reporters on a regular basis, how do you view the role of a court reporter in the justice system?

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Court reporters are extremely important. Like, I. They're. You know, they type so fast. I always wonder how they do it when they're typing the whole deposition or whatever, I find most of the value of my cases in the deposition testimony. So even though, you know, I'm asking the questions or, you know, whatever, I know what I asked? It's really important for them to type the answers up because I won't have a case without the testimony. So the testimony is extremely important. And I go back in the transcripts, and I'm like, okay, so where can I find the most important information to help me with this case? Cause I can't remember it all, you know, oh, my gosh, those court reporters are just.

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Just, I need them so, you know, they're necessary and very much appreciated for all attorneys.

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And in California, do the court. I heard from Anna Fatima Costa. She's a court reporter instructor, and she instructs, like, she does mock trials with the court reporters. And attorneys are there, too. And I know in California, they have, I think, correct me if I'm wrong, but I think the court reporters do, like, a read on before, and they kind of explain and set the rules and, like, tell them how it goes, and kind of, like, in the beginning, they swear in the witness and do all, or do they swear on the witness in California?

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Yeah, I've seen some where they have, but I've also seen some where they haven't either. I think it's mostly the attorney will say, so they will do, like, the information in the beginning and kind of tell. Yeah. The person that's being deposed, what's going on, and how it works, from my understanding.

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Okay. Because, like, in New York, I just always wonder about that, because I feel like there's a disconnect between court reporters and attorneys, at least in New York, because we're kind of expecting the attorneys to do some kind of an introductory read on or, like, explain something about who we are and what's the purpose of this, and. But oftentimes they don't. So then I'm left wondering, like, should I have a read on prepared and just, like, do one in the beginning, just in case? So it's kind of like, I don't know. So I thought that was really awesome that in California, at least, or maybe it seems, maybe not in the part that you're in, but at the part where she was, they were taught, the court reporters were trained to take control of the deposition and take the lead and just, like, explain everything and do this whole read on. And I thought that was awesome. So I guess that I don't. I guess it's not standard everywhere, but I wanted to create one for myself.

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Yeah, no, that would be awesome if you did something like that. I know attorneys would really appreciate that, and that would be something that's really useful, you know? So the attorney doesn't have to do that. So. Yeah, that would be awesome. If I had that all the time, I would love it.

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Really? Okay. There you go. Yeah. Because, I mean, every attorney and judge that I've talked to, they always, usually they say that they appreciate when the court reporter does kind of, like, take control and interrupt if they need to and just, like, keep it very ordered, like, really protect the record. But I know a lot of court reporters, you know, are kind of, like, maybe a little shy or maybe not sure, like, if they're supposed to do that all the time. But, of course, we know we always have to kind of coach ourselves and prepare our mindset to be confident. And even though we may not have the same degrees or we may not, like, you know, we may be comparing ourselves. Oh, we're surrounded by all these really well educated attorneys and.

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But we also have a very important role. We must uphold it.

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Mm hmm. I definitely agree with that. And that's pretty sad what you mentioned about, like, court reporters feeling like they're almost, you know, less than the attorneys, because I never saw it that way. When I have court reporters, I'm like, okay, we're all in the legal profession. You know, we're all colleagues together. So I have seen some court reporters be treated badly by attorneys, and attorneys having that more, like, superiority feeling over court reporters, which is awful. I have never been that way, and it's pretty sad to me. So I just hope that court reporters know that they are appreciated and we find so much helpful information, basically the basis of our case from the transcript that they give us.

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So they are so useful, and I hope that they don't become attorneys so that they can help us with the, with the testimony, because we need that.

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Is there a shortage of court reporters in California?

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Yeah, I heard there. I heard that there are. I haven't had an issue so far, but I have heard that there is a shortage.

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Yeah, well, actually, there's, apparently there's a nationwide or a worldwide shortage of court reporters. And so a lot of people are becoming digital court recorders, or some law firms and even some courtrooms are starting to just use, like, an audio recorder, which makes it really difficult to find things in the transcript because it's just an audio recording, and then there's a lot of inaudible parts. So I don't know if you've experienced that where you've kind of gotten a transcript result from, like, a human versus, like, a recorded device.

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No, I haven't gotten a transcript from a recorded device. It's always been human court reporters, from my experiences with these. But, yeah, they've been great. And they feel like the ones that I've worked with, they have the confidence, like, interrupt if they need something repeated or they need help with spelling. So we definitely need that because we need those transcripts. Like I said, they're just so important.

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Yeah, absolutely.

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So it seems like without court reporters, attorneys can't really do much because it's true. You can, like, miss one thing, like, one thing, and it's like, it could be chaos. But without the court reporters, they're very valuable. And that's a, and that's actually amazing because now, what do you think? Like, I'm, I like this, I like this topic that we're in. So what I want to know, it's like, why? Like, because you're an attorney. So why do you think that attorneys might look down on court reporters? Like, what do you think? Like, why is it. Because it seems like they are very important. They have to play their role.

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Without them, they really can't do their job. So, like, what is it that you might think that they might feel some type of way?

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I think, well, just being, you know, before you become an attorney, you have to start from, you know, being a legal assistant, being a paralegal, being a law clerk, which is when you're, you're in law school, you're a law clerk. So from my experience as being the person who's assisting an attorney, I have not been treated good at all. And I've been treated like people have told me, oh, you're unintelligent, you don't produce good work or you're doing malpractice. And I'm not even an attorney yet. I'm trying to learn. I'm interning, you know, trying to, trying to be like them, and they just put you down because they have that superiority. So I told myself, when I become an attorney, I'm going to treat, you know, my legal assistant, paralegal, court reporter, anyone with as much respect as we all deserve. So I think that's what it is.

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I think I've seen a lot of attorneys, and I see that superiority, you know, that they feel like they have and anyone who is not up to them, even with practice, like, I'm a first year attorney, so I'm not, you know, as experienced as a fifth, 10th, 20th year attorney. So they will have, like, less respect for people who are in a different position than them. So I think that that's what it is. It's just a superiority that attorneys feel like they have, and they don't realize that they can't even do their job without court reporters, without legal assistance, without paralegals, because paralegals, legal assistance, and court reporters are extremely essential to attorneys practicing law. Like, I cannot do all my work without my legal assistant and paralegal, the court reporter. If they're not looking at that transcript and typing it up for me, I have nothing. That's my case right there. So attorneys don't realize that they need these other people to do their job, you know, and that's the disconnect I feel like we're having.

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Yeah. So if there was any way to, I guess, improve the relationship or the communication between court reporters and attorneys, what do you think that would be?

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Well, I'm noticing now that you asked that question, I go to a lot of, you know, these attorney events, and there'll be some, like, law clerks, which are law students and things. I think maybe we need to be more inclusive as attorneys, and we should all be invited to, you know, the same events. I mean, I just went to a gala the other day, and I didn't meet anyone who was a court reporter there, so it would be nice to have them, you know, come to those attorney events so we can just all feel like colleagues, and it's not a superiority. We can just all be, you know, friends.

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Yeah, right. I've also. I've thought about, like, trying to join a bar association or trying to find networking events to just, like, just network with attorneys and just, you know, get to know them, get to understand them. Like, a lot of times, even court reporters don't really. They also don't like attorneys sometimes or kind of have negative feelings. There are a lot of groups, online networking groups for court reporters where we can kind of, like, help each other out and. But I see people venting a lot about, like, attorneys and how they act and how they don't have any, like, regard for the record and things like that. But a lot of that might come from not understanding what attorneys go through, too.

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Like, we might not understand how much stress you guys are going through and how you have to work, like, sometimes even 18 hours, days, and how much of your soul is going into this case and everything. So we might not understand each other. And just by getting to know other attorneys and just having a conversation, we all have the same goal. We want a record. We're here to produce a record, an accurate record. And that's the most important thing. So if we're kind of. If there's a disconnect, then it might not be as good of a result as it could be.

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So I think that's something I've always thought about, but for some reason, I never actually took the steps of doing it. I've been, been mini, too. It's like, on the back of my to do list. You. Totally. Now I'm going to do it.

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Yeah, I think that would be great. I think we need to, you know, have more events like that. And I feel like attorneys and stuff, they don't really include court reporters and, you know, different events and stuff. And I, I'm just realizing that now. Like, I never really thought, oh, wow. How, how come I haven't met any court reporters here?

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So.

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Right.

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It's kind of, like forgotten about because we don't really interact much. We're just there. Like, we kind of feel like a fly on the wall. But then we do have this really important role, so it's like, it would be beneficial if we were on the same page. Right?

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Yeah. And that's good, too. I think I'm actually going to start reaching out to court reporters or put, like, a post on Instagram and say, hey, let's build our legal community together.

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Courtroom. Oh, my gosh. Let's do something. We should partner up and, like, something big here.

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That would be great because you're in New York, right? Over in New York, maybe we can.

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Do kind of like a panel or, like, a forum where we just, like, can hear the perspective of the other person in this justice system and the other role and, like, how we think we can help each other. That would be really, that would be so awesome and so much fun.

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Yeah, that would be awesome. We definitely should do that because I think it's important for all of us to just connect. You know, we all help each other with our jobs. We can't do our jobs without the other. So I think it's important for us to all connect and build that relationship together.

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Yeah. And I think, like, for court reporters, like, for some reason, well, I mean, not for some reason, it's kind of obvious that we're, we're impartial. We don't care who wins the case. Like, that's our job, is to be very unbiased and very impartial, just like the judge. So it's very easy for us to kind of, like, communicate with the judge and have a relationship with the judge. But when it comes to the attorneys, somehow it just feels different. It's like, I don't know why. It's like not as easy to, but some attorneys are just really nice and really friendly.

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But oftentimes, it's mostly judges that we get to connect with.

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See, that's the thing, too. Now that you mentioned that, I feel like when I have depositions and things, I don't really even talk to the court reporter at all. So, like, you mentioned, you know, speaking to the judge, and you're building that relationship. I never really did that with court reporters. And that now that's something that I'm going to do and just, you know, ask them how they're doing and just before we start, just so that they feel, like, comfortable with me and we can get to know each other and they know that I care, you know?

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That's so good to hear because, like, sometimes we, and I myself, at depositions, I'm kind of like, I don't know if it's. If it's the right, you know, time to say something or to, like, I guess, strike up a conversation, because you hear people having small talk all the time before deposition, and. But it's like, I don't know if it's the right time for that.

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Like, and it feels like it's needed because it's not easy when, you know, when you guys are working on a case, it's very stressful. So if you guys are not, like, if they're not united, if they don't work together and there's, like, this awkwardness. Awkwardness. It's like, there's already so much stress that if you just come together and appreciate each other, and that's important to appreciate each other, because it's just so much that's going on in one case that it's. I feel like you guys will be a great team.

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Yeah, me too. Yeah.

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And that's important for people to feel appreciative, but also, like, to consider, you know, consider each other and, you know, let them feel like you're not alone, that we're in this together. You're stressed. I'm also stressed, you know, so it's like, think that's great if you guys do that.

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Yeah. And I respect court reporters so much. Like, I don't know how you guys type so fast, and there's, like, no spelling errors. Like, it's just perfect. I always wonder that there's no way I could be a court reporter. Like, that just seems, you know, I don't.

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Yeah, I look at brain sometimes when she has to do, like, if I go to her house and she's like, hey. And I go over and she's making something, and she's like, hold on, I gotta do something. And I'm like, how do you do that?

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Like, yeah, the people are like, whoa, what is that machine? Oh, you hear.

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It's.

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But you don't even really. It's, like, kind of silent. Thank God. Because I get so annoyed at, like, typing buttons and stuff. Yeah. Steno machines are like.

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And she's practiced with me, like. Like, okay, I'm talking to her, and we're just, like, talking about something, like, topic, and she's just going away, and I'm like, wow, that's talent. That is talent.

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Look, that's the thing, too. Like, I see you guys typing, and you're looking at, like, the people, and you're not.

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You.

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You can type like that and just not even look, it's. It's amazing to me.

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There aren't any letters on the keyboard or anything. It's like, yeah, it's, it's kind of.

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There's no letters on the keyboard.

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Well, like, it doesn't show. There's no, they're not labeled. And it's 20 keys. It's not 26, like, 26 letters. Because, like, on a regular keyboard, you would type every letter individually. But on a steno machine, it's like, combinations, kind of like you're playing piano chords, like, to create the sounds that translates into English.

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Oh, my God. Wow. So great. What did you say?

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I said, I'm, like, amazed. I don't know how you.

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Yeah, me too.

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I'm like, this is talent.

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Hello, people. Yes, but one of the things you said was regarding, I guess, respecting court reporters, and I noticed the other day in court, the judge was talking about how she was looking through the transcript from, I don't know, it was some case from a couple of years ago, and I wasn't, I mean, I wasn't employed at that time, so I don't know, like, who the court reporter was or anything, but. But she was basically saying that, like, she had forgotten to say something on the record because it wasn't in the transcript. So she was like, oh, my gosh. I didn't even realize that I missed that. But, like, if I were then, if it were me as the court reporter, I'd be like, wait, what if I missed that? Like, what if I just somehow didn't type that down? And. But she, the judge didn't even question or think like that the court reporter had maybe dropped or maybe not, not gotten what she said, but she just automatically assumed that it was her own mistake. So I think everyone has a little bit of, like, self doubt in themselves and is, like, kind of.

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But, like, it's. It was interesting to hear her say that and to be like, well, I would have questioned myself, and she's questioning herself.

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I think. Yeah, I think we all make mistakes, too. So, I mean, I don't know how you guys, as court reporters, are listening to every line of a conversation and able to type up every line, and you guys do, but if you miss something, you know, it's. You're human. You make mistakes. I make mistakes, too, and we all do. As attorneys, as court reporters, everyone makes mistakes. So, you know, that's.

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That's okay, too. You know, we can't be so hard on ourselves. We are. As long as it's not happening, like, every day, you know, if it's anything, once in a while, it's okay.

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Well, I mean, I don't think. I guess I can't agree, especially not on the air. I can't agree that it's okay, but thank you for saying that.

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Yeah, let's cut that whole part out.

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We're gonna make sure we edit that. I mean, I was just sharing, because it was a thought. I always share my thoughts, and I had that thought, and I was like, wow, that's really humble of her. Because if I were her, maybe I would have been like, no, I definitely said that, but. Okay, so, speaking of stress, we were talking about how stressful it is to be an attorney and to be in this industry. There's a lot of stress, and we see a lot of mental health issues, high levels of stress, and that can degrade our mental health, meaning we're not feeling peace of mind and are not able to cope with that stress. On a, like, on a national level, we can see a lot of issues. So how do you see that playing out in your life, and how do you.

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I think it's important to have find the best firm for you if you're going to be an attorney. You know, find the best workplace in general if you're in another career. I have gone to, like, five different personal injury firms because I was just too stressed. I wasn't getting the mentorship and things I needed, so I was overly stressed to the point I was bringing it home. I was bringing it with friends. When I hung out, I was bringing it to the gym. It was just, you know, awful. And I finally found the firm and the mentor.

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His name is Mike alder. He's awesome, awesome attorney. He's teaching me so much, and I'm able to ask questions. I have a bunch of other partners who are helping me answer, you know, helping me with the whole legal process, so I'm not as stressed, which is so much better, you know, because this career is so stressful. I mean, you work. I'm working the entire weekend right now just to, you know, you got to advocate for your clients because it's. Your clients come first at the end of the day. But it's important to find that firm for you, even if it means, like, going to five different firms till you find the one that you want to land at, like I did.

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I'm so happy that I left those other firms because now I'm less stressed, even though I'm still stressed, but, yeah, less stress. And you have to figure out what I tell a lot of people who are in, like, law school and losing their minds, like I did. I tell them that they have to find something that makes them feel good, you know, that can help them, like, detached from the work. So I. What I do personally every month, well, I mean, not sometimes I miss it, but every month I try to get a massage and a facial because those are, you know, those are the things that make me feel good. So I think everyone needs that one thing. Like, what's your. You guys probably have one thing you do every month that helps you with stress.

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Oh, my gosh. I had no.

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Yeah, okay.

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Yeah, okay. Big problem here, shopping. When I'm stressed, I'm like, okay. I tell in my work, I'm like, my last meeting, I'm like, guys, I have to wrap it up.

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Unfortunately.

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I have a 06:00 p.m. Meeting at the mall. My only distress, you know, just to take my mind away from so many things. And I'm like, either I need to go shopping or do my nails.

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Shopping is so stressful.

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Shopping, nails and my hair. My hair, those three things. It's like I either, you know, I.

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Need to get my nails done if I.

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If I already got it done, and I need to continue, you know, distressing, I'm like, okay, I need to go shopping. And I stay there for, like, an hour. What about you?

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Follow up on you? Are you buying? Like, what kind of shopping is this? Is this like I'm going to and Chanel or like, I'm going to Zara or like, what?

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Yes. So I like to go into the city. So in the city, there is a lot. There is long champ.

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There is, isn't it? Longchamp. Long.

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Oh, long champ.

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That's the american pronunciation. Long champ. I know. Yeah.

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But I'm mostly a shoe. I'm a shoe lover. So I either go to. I go to Macy's and I either go to Ted Baker. All those for me. I really don't need this shoe. But if I'm really stressed out, like, I need to go find myself a pink pair of shoe. I need it.

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Expensive. Expensive habit. I try not to, but I saw our facials and massages, so. Yeah, if whatever works for you, right? Well, mine is actually free. I do thought work. I like to sit down and just, like, write. I like to journal. And then I also like to spend time with the girls.

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And just, like, you know, a lot of the work is isolating, so just getting to spend time around other people, talking and socializing, relieves my stress.

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Those are really good things to do. I think maybe we should adopt that instead of shopping and, you know, doing massages and facials for $500 a month. I think that's a definitely a better thing to do. So I'm going to try that for.

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No, me, too.

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I can help you guys with thoughtwork. It's really powerful, actually.

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Okay. What about the gym? Do you like to go to the gym? I. Sometimes I need the gym.

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Yes.

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I don't go shopping. I'm like, I need the gym because it's my time to really just give time to myself. Let it all out sometimes, you know? You want to let all that out, so.

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That doesn't work for me.

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No, the gym, he said.

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Yeah, that's.

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I know. Our life coach. My stress would go from here to here if I went to the gym.

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Naturally. Skinny. Lucky.

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Well, she.

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Yeah, no, I did a metabolism program recently, so I actually just lost 15 pounds.

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Oh, no.

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If you see her body, she's just a little Marilyn Monroe, I'm telling you.

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Yeah. I have to see your hair down. I haven't seen it down yet.

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Well, because it's so short, so it's like a little bob, you know? So. Okay, so next question. Did we finish that conversation? That was. That was great. Yeah. Because we just went off on a tangent.

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It happened.

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That was, like, our favorite part of the whole conversation.

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I know. That was fun.

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And I guess in what. What ways did participating in beauty pageants. If there's any correlation between that and your ability to handle stressful situations as an attorney, how does that translate into your work as a lawyer, by the way? Do you like attorney or lawyer like? What's the difference?

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There's actually a difference. I did not know this, so. Yeah, I didn't know this until like a month ago, I want to say. So a lawyer is someone. Once you graduate from law school and you become a juris doctorate, that or you get your juris doctorate. That's when you're a lawyer, and then you're an attorney once you pass the bar, once you have your license.

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So it's better to say attorney.

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I mean, yeah, probably, but people don't know that. So it's the same thing, only, like, lawyers know that because they would tell me all the time, oh, you're a lawyer? And I'm like, no, I'm not. I didn't pass the bar yet. And they're like, exactly. So you're a lawyer, and then.

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Yeah.

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So then they call you attorney when you pass because you're licensed. It's attorney is a licensed lawyer.

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Interesting. Okay, thank you for that, because we were just talking about it yesterday.

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I'm like. I was like, it's just a synonym. Lawyer. Is it the same? I should have looked that up before I answered that question.

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It's interesting. Nobody knows that. Even law students don't know that, so.

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Well, now everyone who listens to this.

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Will know, so I don't feel bad now. I look like it's just, like, a silly question.

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I'm glad I asked you that.

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Yeah, yeah, yeah. So your main question was yes.

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Do you want me to repeat it?

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Yeah, that would be good.

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Being in beauty pageants in the past, in what ways did that enhance your ability to handle pressure and stressful situations as an attorney?

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Pageants, as you know, because you did pageants before, right?

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She.

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Yes, I did.

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Miss Dominican Republic here, sitting in fame right now.

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No, it was such a long time ago. 2009.

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That's.

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I mean, you still did it. I did.

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I did.

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That's huge. Congratulations. Are you gonna do it again, you think? Another pageant.

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So I honestly, I'm really into the whole Miss Universe. I want to do it, but it's just a whole change right now that's happening at the moment. If I want to jump back to it, I would do it. It's just because I left it for so many years. I don't see myself going back to it, but if I want to.

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You still have the passion.

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Yeah, I do. I love, every year I watch it because the most important, like, part for me is the questions. I'm very big on the question and their response, because that will tell you a lot, you know, from the participant. So with me, I had to practice a lot. Public speaking. I had to take classes for speech, you know, how to pronounce the words, how to articulate the words. It was a lot. A lot.

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But I love it so much because I feel like using that platform, as you said, you could be an ambassador, you know, just to send this message and also to somehow sort of. Some sort of way, like, to let the women know, like, no matter what, if you have a dream, do it. You know, let your voice be heard, you know, there's no way that if you have it in you and you want to do it, go for it. Don't let nothing stop you, you know? And I feel like God has brought me to a place where I feel at peace. I feel, you know, joy, and it's perfect, you know, so I don't see myself going back. If I had the opportunity, I would. It's just right now, it's just a lot of chaos of what's going on. I don't know if you follow it, but it's just.

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It's.

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It's a lot. It's a mess right now. I want to say it's a mess. The music platform is a mess right now.

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The world is.

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Yeah, I think the whole world is a mess, but, yeah, no, it is a mess right now, but there's. There's a United States. You know, that's. I've done that before. Miss United States program. There's Miss World. I think that you have such an incredible story and just, you know, being around pageant people my whole life, just like you probably have, I feel a lot of people don't have these great stories, and a lot of people aren't career woman. So you going up there and being so different and telling your story and your passions, I think that you would do awesome if you did a pageant again, and you're pretty, so that, you know, that helps.

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But, yeah, you should totally do another one. Oh, my gosh. I'm so for it. You should definitely do it.

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I'm gonna let you know, and I'm like, shall you please vote for me?

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I will.

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I got you. Yes. You have to do. Oh, my gosh.

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What about you? Are you going to do it again?

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Yeah, I think I'm actually going to do Miss California again in. When is it? June.

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Oh, wow. It's coming up.

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Yeah.

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Do you balance that?

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Is it a lot?

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Like, I mean, you can do both. Yeah.

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How do you do that? Because you're an attorney, and then now you're going into, you know, you want to go back to the beauty pageants. How are you going to balance?

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That's a great question.

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Well, I saw you know, Chesley rip to her, but she was awesome. She, you know, I would, I would message her a lot when I was going through the whole, like, law school thing and wanting to do pageants, and she was just able to do it all. And she had such a great message and everything. So I know with her, like, mentorship that she had before with me, it's just, it's awesome to be an attorney and a pageant holder because you have a purpose of your title. Like I said, being an attorney or helping the injured parties. Being a pageant holder, you are having the title of miss California and the title of being an attorney to go help people who need it most. You know, I think it's just, it's so powerful. And I'll get a lot further as just, you know, being an attorney.

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If I'm miss California and an attorney, I think I will be able to help even more people. So I know I can. I do a lot of things all the time. That's just how I am. To answer your question, because I realize I didn't do that, but yeah, so, you know, doing a lot of things, that's just how I am. I have to do a lot of things, otherwise I get bored and lazy. So I actually do better when I'm under pressure and doing so many different things at once. So I know I'll be able to handle it.

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It's just, you know, like you said, how do you do things that make you de stress as an attorney? Like, this is one of the things. Even though I get, like, really upset if I don't win, like, obviously I'm not happy and it's stressful, right?

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Of course.

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Yeah. It's an outlet. It's so much fun to do and meet all these incredible women who have stories just like you and building the friendship and going up there and being confident, even though you're showing your body, you're showing it not just like, oh, I'm in a bikini. You're showing that you're confident in who you are. So that's why I want to do it again.

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Wow. Well, we are going to full for you.

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Can you invite us if there's like, how can we come?

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Yes.

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Oh, my gosh, you guys should totally come. Yeah, definitely. I will invite you. You guys have to be there.

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We want to network and meet everyone, too.

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Yeah, you should. And then maybe I'll get Pam to run.

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Oh.

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Well, I gotta get this body ready for that.

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So last question from me. I don't know if you have any more, but last question from me is, so as a court reporter who sits in the front and center in the courtroom, I don't know how courtrooms are laid out in California, but in New York, we're literally, like, in the center of the room. And so appearing front and center in a courtroom, even for attorneys, it might be, like, high pressure to maintain a good appearance and to look like, to feel confident. And what advice can you give from your experience in beauty pageants? Being in the spotlight, being front and center, like, presenting your arguments and showing up in full confidence. Like, how do you prepare yourself for that and make sure that you look your best and feel your best?

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Well, that's the thing that I think pageants has helped me. I'm sure, Pam, it's helped you with the confidence and being confident in who you are. Because if you're confident in who you are and you know that you prepared for that hearing or that trial or that pageant, then you're going to go up there and know, like, okay, I did the best that I can to be here and be ready, and I'm just going to be myself now. So that's what people have to realize, too, because they, I feel like a lot of people go up there and they're like, oh, I need to be, like, this person or that person. Like, if you are just yourself and confident in what you prepared, then, you know, there's nothing you can do wrong. So I think that's a problem that people have. They just, you know, you have to prepare. You cannot go up there and just be like, oh, okay, let's.

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Let's see how this goes and wing it. If you prepare, you know.

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Yeah. For everything from the hair to the makeup to the outfit to the speech. Right. Everything. Oh, yeah. I mean, I know if I wake up late and I don't have time to, like, you know, look nice, it feels so uncomfortable for the whole day.

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Yeah. Your hair is, like, messed up. Oh, my gosh. Or my lashes aren't on. I'm like, this day is awful.

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It really makes a difference.

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Your day is not going to go well.

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Yeah, it's true.

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Yeah, it is. Yeah.

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Like, even at home, if I'm working remotely, I feel like if I don't put on, like, a nice outfit and put my makeup on, like, I don't know, it makes, it just makes a difference somehow.

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Totally does. I totally agree.

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And you feel like you're ready for anything. You could jump into a meeting. You could run an errand, like, you know, and you're just, like, ready for anything when you're dressed and ready to go.

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Yeah, that's why it's important. Anything to be prepared, because you'll just feel a lot better and you'll be more confident.

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Yep, it's true.

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Any last question?

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No, I think we touched all the questions.

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So what is. Okay, so anything else that you want to share? What do you want to leave the listeners with? Any. Anything? Any last words?

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Yeah, I think just the moral of this. This whole thing is that you just shouldn't treat people, no matter what degree they have or where they came from or anything. You shouldn't treat them as less than you because no one is less than anyone else, no matter what. And we all need each other to get to our goal. So it's important to treat everyone with respect. And even if people are dealing with bullying and different things like that, or people telling them they're not good enough or they're worthless, keep going and just prove everyone wrong. Like, that's my motto. Just prove them all wrong.

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They will see later. You know, you don't have to show them anything now. Just pop out and be, you know, who you are and be an attorney or be whatever they said you couldn't be. So I think that that's really important, too. Just follow your dreams and ignore all the noise and putting yourself out there.

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Like, you know, you're going to always get criticism.

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You're.

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No, you're not going to be able to please everyone, even me. Like, when I started this podcast and I started, you know, releasing videos and releasing episodes and sharing that I'm a life coach, I got a lot of people messaging me, even cursing me out and saying, like, you don't. How could you say that you're a coach? Because I don't have certain certifications that you can get as a court reporter. And I'm trying to explain to them there's a difference between a life coach and, like, it's totally not related to court report. Life coaching is a different industry. But I'm talking to court reporters because I am a court reporter. So I got cursed out. I got like.

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But that's just the way it goes. When you're doing great things and when you put yourself out there, you can't expect. We can't expect everybody to love us.

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No, exactly.

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We can't.

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She sent me a message. She was like, I want to tell you to stop doing this, but I know you're not going to stop. I was like, you're right.

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I'm not going to stop. Yeah, keep going.

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I feel like when people do that, it's because they're bored.

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They're bored? Yeah. They know what to do.

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They have no life, and instead they watch other people and they're like, hey, what do you do? No, you're doing this wrong.

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We're trying to make a difference in the world here.

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Look around.

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Look at the world. It needs help.

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Right, exactly. Exactly. That's why I'm like, ignore the noise and just let them watch.

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But where can everyone reach out to you or find you online? Like, share your Instagram handle? And I think Instagram is where your mind mostly showing up online, right?

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Yeah. So my Instagram is shaliny doll. Should I spell that?

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Yeah. Well, I'm gonna put it in the show notes, but it's Shalin. Yes. S h a l I n I d o l l. Right?

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Yes, yes.

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Yeah. So at Shaliny doll, anything else?

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I think that's pretty much it. But I'm so glad that you guys reached out to me to be a part of this, and I hope it was encouraging for other people who watch. And you guys are incredible. You have incredible stories, and just thank you so much. I really appreciate it.

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Well, thank you. Thank you. Thanks for coming on. Thank you, everyone, for listening. Please go check out Shalini doll on Inspo.

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Thank you so much for sharing with us.

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Yes, of course.

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Thank you, guys.

#36 - Shalini Quattlebaum: Attorney in the Spotlight

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