Depression. Insecurity. Seven-figure verdicts that didn't feel like enough. Michael Cowen — national trucking lawyer, trial veteran with 130+ cases, and host of his own podcast — had achieved the kind of success most lawyers dream about, and it still wasn't working for him psychologically. The turning point came when he stopped chasing a specific result and started trusting the process. In this conversation with guest host Przemek Lubecki, recorded live at TLU Huntington Beach 2026, Michael opens up about the mindset overhaul that unlocked eight-figure verdicts, the mantra he still repeats while waiting for a judge to take the bench, and the firm-wide case review system he uses to prevent his lawyers from undersettling cases.
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Episode Snapshot
★ Michael graduated from law school, clerked on the Fifth Circuit, and joined a big law firm in New York City.
★ After moving back to Brownsville, Texas for his future wife, Michael joined a plaintiff firm under mentor Ed Stapleton, tried four cases in his first year, and inherited his own law firm just four years out of law school.
★ Michael describes a prolonged period of cyclical depression, weight gain, and insecurity — driven by taking too much personal responsibility for case outcomes.
★ His mindset transformation came through intensive coaching with Sari De La Motte, daily use of "The Miracle Morning" routine, and a mantra about trusting judges and juries that he still repeats silently in the courtroom.
★ Michael explains that truly earning courtroom confidence requires two experiences: winning a case to prove it's possible, and losing a big one to prove you survive it.
★ At Michael's firm, no commercial-policy case is allowed to proceed to a demand or mediation until the attorney has first presented it to the full firm at their weekly Tuesday lunch — a structured review designed to prevent undersettling.
★ Michael's Big Rig Bootcamp (July 9) will feature live cross-examination demonstrations, medical testimony training, and a deep dive on why facet joint injuries treated with radiofrequency ablation are million-dollar cases.
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