On the eve of the 2026 new year, we crossed a milestone that will forever be etched into the story of BridgehouseLaw: we hit our multi-million-dollar goal. That achievement places us within reach of eligibility for the Inc. 5,000 Fastest-Growing Companies in America, a recognition that celebrates not just revenue, but disciplined growth, resilience, and execution. But this moment did not arrive easily. It did not happen overnight. And it certainly did not happen without challenge. To understand why this milestone matters so deeply to me, I have to take you back to a winter afternoon almost one year ago.

An Annual Review and a Quiet Turning Point

It was last year’s annual review. Reinhard von Hennigs and I sat in the conference room at BridgehouseLaw at around 4:30 p.m., a meeting scheduled for 4:00 but delayed by a call that ran long. Outside, winter sunlight reflected off neighboring skyscrapers, casting that soft, amber glow that only appears shortly before sunset. I sat on one side of the table. Reinhard sat at the head. As he does every year, he opened the conversation with a familiar question:

“So, we had an amazing year, right? How do you feel working here at Bridgehouse?”

I knew the year had been a trying one. We had experienced highs and lows, staff transitions and vacancies, inflation pressures, political uncertainty, and the emotional weight of supporting a friend and colleague through a cancer battle. But his question wasn’t about numbers or challenges. It was personal. And I answered honestly:

“Yes. Yes, it was.”

Because 2024 was the year I truly came into my own at BridgehouseLaw.

The Book That Changed Everything…Twice

Something profound had already shifted for me later that year, during our first-ever EOS/L-10 meeting, offsite in October 2024, facilitated by Sam Wazan, who I now consider more than a facilitator, but a friend of us all at the firm. When you join BridgehouseLaw, you’re given a copy of the book Traction: Get a Grip on Your Business by Gino Wickman. But having the book and living the book are two very different things. I had read it years earlier, during my first year at the firm, while lying on the beach in Sabaudia, Italy. I remember being captivated. It was clear, actionable, and powerful. I believed in it. But belief without full implementation only takes you so far. By 2024, I realized I had built and applied only a fraction of Traction’s principles. Enough to move the myself and firm forward, but not at the pace we were capable of achieving. And here’s the tea (truth) – if only a few people in an organization can see the future while others remain content with the status quo, growth stagnates. Progress becomes incremental instead of transformational. Before the October meeting, Reinhard asked everyone, new and existing employees, to read a section of Traction. I decided to reread the entire book. Cover to cover. Again.

The Question That Changed My Path

We gathered offsite at 8:30 am, unsure where to sit, chatting over breakfast, not fully knowing what the day would bring. Sam opened by sharing his own journey, from childhood in Lebanon to the path that led him to where he is today. The room fell quiet. There was admiration, grounding, and perspective. Midway through the day, Sam posed a question straight from Traction:

“If you could take any two people at this firm, people you know would contribute most to the success of BridgehouseLaw, who would they be, and why?”

The room went silent. Some people were visibly uncomfortable. Others tried to reframe the question. Sam gently reminded us, this exercise has a purpose. We wrote our answers down on paper. Then he asked who wanted to go first. Silence again. I finally stood up and said, “I’ll go.” I wrote three names on the board:

• DD (Dathan D’Agostino)
• RvH (Reinhard von Hennigs)
• HIM (Henirette Morton)

Then Reinhard went next. He wrote DD. Then Thomas Joa went – DD. Then another colleague – my initials again. And another. And another. Until my name covered the board. My heart raced. The room felt unbearably warm. And before I could stop myself, tears fell. I had no idea my colleagues saw me this way, as someone central to the firm’s success. When it was my turn to explain, I said:

“Reinhard is the rainmaker. And Reinhard can’t make it rain without Henriette keeping him organized, because someone has to.”

We laughed. But what followed, hearing everyone else explain why they chose me, confirmed something I had never felt so clearly before – I was exactly where I belonged.

From Belief to Ownership

In earlier years, that certainty didn’t always exist. There were times when non-attorneys were undervalued at BridgehouseLaw, our experience, education, and contributions discounted simply because we didn’t hold law degrees. Those individuals are no longer with us. They weren’t the right people in the right seats. That meeting lit a fire in me. I felt responsible, not just for my own goals, but for ensuring the firm’s success as a whole. So when Reinhard asked during my annual review:

“Do you think we can hit the multi-million-dollar mark by December 31, 2025?”

I paused. I ran numbers in my head. I accounted for risk. For complacency. For reality. Then I said:

“We can do it. I truly believe we can.”

Execution Is Everything

From that moment on, everything became intentional. New marketing campaigns launched, practice area pages were rewritten from scratch and fully SEO-optimized, SOPs and policies were built and refined, automations implemented, quarterly goals tracked, owned, and completed, billable metrics monitored with clarity and accountability, new firm-wide measurables developed so leadership could instantly assess the firm’s health. We held weekly L-10 meetings. We IDS’d issues and turned them into action. As December approached, it became all hands-on deck. We followed up on open balances, offered early-payment incentives, locked in 2025 rates ahead of 2026 increases, cross-sold services, bundled offerings, closed estate matters ready for disbursement, waived fees strategically, issued invoices early. It was focused. Coordinated. Intentional.

The Finish Line

On Tuesday evening, January 30th, I shut down my computer after days of working from home, sick, voiceless, but determined. Before logging off, I messaged Reinhard and Henriette:

“We’re $263.22 away!”

At 7:00 a.m. on Wednesday, January 31, 2025, I jumped out of bed, opened my laptop, and saw three payments that pushed us over the line. Good morning!!!!  We hit the goal!!!!!!!!! Reinhard replied:

“For me, this shows the power of intentional planning and execution. Thank you for making this possible.”

We Did This…Together

This milestone wasn’t luck. It wasn’t chance. It was people, the right people, in the right seats, doing the right work with purpose. To my BridgehouseLaw team:

Thank you. We did it!