Today we’d like to introduce you to Keyanna Gartin, Esq.
Keyanna, please share your story with us. How did you get to where you are today?
Well, honestly, I come from an adverse background. I wouldn’t call it a humble beginning but it was distinctive for sure. Honestly, sad or stressful circumstances always motivated me to get to where I am today. My mother had me at just the tender age of 15 and my father was 17. I’m the oldest of seven, raised in a single parent household. My father spent much of my childhood battling his own demons: drug addiction, incarceration & the pressures of street life; therefore, so he wasn’t able to be present in my early years as much either of us would have liked. Being the oldest of seven gave me far more responsibility compared to my teenage peers. I feel like I learned how to be a mom, before I could even conceive the thought of having kids. I’ve always had to balance multiple things at once in my life: helping with my younger siblings, extracurricular activities, school and work. So setting high goals and achieving them under extreme circumstances became the norm for me pretty early on in my life. My mother was the first person in my family to obtain a college degree and I am the second. I am the first person in my family to become an Attorney. In fact, I am the first to earn a professional degree. I went to The Tennessee State University and obtained a BA in English. After college, I spent a year working at Meharry Medical College, I applied and was accepted to Indiana University Robert Mckinney School of Law, where I later I earned my Juris Doctorate. After law school, I worked as an Adjunct Professor and in the field of compliance, I also spent time earning a Master Certificate in Public Management from Indiana University School of Public and Environmental Affairs. After a while, I began to feel stagnant and like I needed a change in environment, so I moved from Indy to Houston, to challenge myself. After spending four years in Houston, I relocated to GA for a career opportunity and have been here for the last two years.
Great, so let’s dig a little deeper into the story – has it been an easy path overall and if not, what were the challenges you’ve had to overcome?
Not at all. I’m literally the rose that grew through the concrete. As I previously mentioned, I’m the first to do this in my family. Unfortunately, because I’m the first to take this path, I didn’t have much neither guidance nor assistance getting to this point. Establishing a business was even more challenging because I was attempting to balance working full-time and being a full-time single mom. Everything that I have accomplished in the last three years has been with me juggling single mom life and working full-time. I’ve spent countless days working 10 plus hours and many sleepless nights. I remember studying for the bar exam with a toddler crawling all over my back. I have no family in Georgia, so I’ve had to overcome some pretty steep obstacles. However, I never fret, because like my dad always tells me, “Winners do what they have to do, not what they want to do.” That’s the motto I live by. I do whatever is necessary to achieve the best results no matter the task, whether in my personal or professional life.
Please tell us about your practice.
I review and draft contracts for small businesses and I practice family law. The bulk of my contract work is advising clients on how to protect themselves from litigation and educating them on what to include in their contracts to avoid monetary loss in the future. However, the bulk of my practice is Family Law. I handle mostly custody matters, child support, modifications, adoption and guardianships. My practice areas aren’t necessarily unique; however, how I run my practice is innovative. I truly pride myself on having a modern practice. I take full advantage of alternative communication methods, such as video-conferences, means of communication offered by social media platforms, and texting. Honestly, the millennial and single mom in me prefers working smart and efficient. The bulk of my practice is conducted virtually. Offering video conferencing and phone conferencing, saves time and money, for me and my clients. Let’s be honest, Atlanta’s traffic is horrible, I would much rather provide remote and convenient services that require them to miss work to come in my office for a 20 minute conversation.
Is there a characteristic or quality that you feel is essential to success?
I’ve certainly had my fair share of failures, before having any success. So, saying that, I think the one quality that is essential to success is to be resilient. You have to be determined and stop at no cost, no matter the score. While experiencing my own challenges, I have to admit I had doubts or wanted to quit, but being determined and resilient pushed me through. I have a friend that has called me “a mean operation” for over a decade. I never quite understood what they meant by that, but I later learned it was a polite way of saying I was a bad MF. No matter what negative energy or circumstances have been thrown my way, I’ve always ate that crap up and turned it into my advantage. I’m a winner. I’m a survivor. I’m always going to be the last one standing. Period.
Pricing:
- Free 20 minute initial phone consultations
- $100 in person 1 hr initial consultations
Contact Info:
- Website: www.KRGartinLaw.com
- Phone: 470-485-3708
- Email: kgartin@krgartinlaw.com
- Instagram: @KRGartinLaw
- Facebook: @KRGartinLaw
Image Credit:
@shotsbypriiincesss
@atlforevermedia (headshot )
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