Inspired by the Tampa Bay Buccaneers’ She Is Football initiative, 8am is celebrating women leading and building exceptional law firms.
Audrey K. Chisholm has made a career of turning her own challenges into opportunities for others. When she started college at 16, she found she had a lot to navigate on her own.
“There was so much I didn’t know about paying for school, financial aid, and being a leader,” she says. Navigate she did, graduating debt-free from FSU and law school.
She also founded a nonprofit dedicated to giving future students the guidance and resources she wishes she’d had. That nonprofit has since helped more than 2,000 students with financial literacy, leadership tools, and scholarship support.
But building that solution brought new challenges. Early on, bad legal advice led to serious problems for the nonprofit. That experience was hard, but it was also clarifying.
“I decided to become an attorney that helps people start nonprofits,” she says, “so they could avoid the mistakes I ran into.”
Audrey founded Chisholm Law Firm, an Orlando-based firm specializing in nonprofit formation, nonprofit compliance, and federal trademark. To date, the firm has helped more than 12,000 clients and organizations nationwide, achieving and maintaining a 100% IRS approval rate. The firm’s goal is to help one million people start and grow organizations that leave a real legacy.
Running a firm takes more than practicing law
Ask Audrey what surprised her most while building her firm, and she doesn’t hesitate.
“Nobody warns you that practicing law is really just a small part of running a firm. You also have to learn to run a business. This means hiring, building systems, managing finances, marketing, client relations—all of it.”
Audrey tackled that challenge by building a firm that runs as well as it practices, with 8am LawPay supporting its payments for the past 10 years.
A remote team with a real culture
When a firm operates remotely, workplace community can fall by the wayside. Instead, Audrey and her team have made it a priority.
“At every meeting, company party, or event, we share our mission to remember why we do what we do,” she says. “We host events, parties, celebrations, workshops, and trainings that allow everyone to stay connected. We celebrate personal and professional milestones to keep our sense of community.”
It’s the same instinct she brings to her work with clients and students: share the bigger picture, bring people into something that matters, and connection grows.
You don’t have to choose
If there’s one thing Audrey wants the women she mentors to know, it’s this:
“You can have a great career, a great family, and prioritize your health. You don’t have to limit your vision as a leader, even if you haven’t seen other people doing what you want to do.”
It’s a claim that she’s earned the right to make. Audrey has built a nonprofit and a nationally recognized firm, all while staying clear on her higher mission: a million organizations launched well and doing work that makes a lasting difference.
She’s well on her way, and at 8am, we’re proud to be on her team.
Ready to empower your team the way Audrey empowers hers? Schedule a demo to see what 8am can do for your firm.