Podcast Summary:

Next On Scene: The Human Behind The Brand
Episode: "From Trauma to Tenacity: Andrew Delory's Journey Back to Life and Law"
Host: Jaclyn Zukerman Delory
Guest: Andrew Delory
Release Date: November 19, 2025

Episode Overview

This episode features a candid and heartfelt conversation between host Jaclyn Zukerman Delory and her husband, Andrew Delory—an accomplished real estate attorney, brokerage owner, father, and trauma survivor. The discussion delves into the real, often messy journey behind Andrew's professional and personal legacy, exploring how traumatic events, mindset shifts, and raw self-reflection shaped his values, career, and approach to fatherhood. Listeners are offered inspiration and practical wisdom on building a lasting impact—rooted in authenticity, vulnerability, and the willingness to grow.

Key Discussion Points & Insights

1. Entry into Real Estate Law

• Background & Unexpected Path
  Andrew shares that he never intended to join his father’s real estate law practice, but the 2009 recession shifted his trajectory:
  • “When I graduated from college, it was the recession, 2009, and I couldn't get a job. So I got a job working as a paralegal in a law firm and very quickly realized that I really wanted to be a lawyer and not a paralegal.” (00:35)
  • He describes balancing night law school with working days, ultimately joining and remaining in the family business:
    • “15 years later, here we are together.” (01:08)

2. Life-Altering Trauma and Its Impact

• Surviving a Traumatic Brain Injury
  Andrew opens up about suffering a traumatic brain injury and the subsequent period of reflection and realignment:
  • “You have to do, like, an inventory about your life just in general. Like, what am I doing? What choices am I making? Who am I spending my time with?” (01:42)
  • The experience forced him to reconsider his purpose and priorities, leading him to focus on building “something that was helping me accomplish my goals rather than just kind of going through the motions of life.” (02:03)
• Gratitude and Second Chances
  Andrew reflects on survivor’s guilt and the opportunity to change:
  • “When you get a second chance… sometimes I feel like you don't even deserve it… but I just feel like I owed it to myself. I owed the people in my life to change my decisions for the better.” (02:50)

3. Redefining Success and Family Priorities

• Parenthood & Balancing Roles
  Andrew, now also a father and soccer coach, speaks candidly about the challenge of balancing professional ambitions with being present for his family:
  • “There's just never enough time in the day to give like a hundred percent to either of those things.” (03:48)
  • On prioritizing time with his son: “You can't hang out with your kids at midnight. Like, and I don't want them to go through the whole day without seeing their dad.” (04:21)
  • He embraces “late nights and stressful and hard work” to ensure he’s there for the key family moments:
    • “I'm not willing to miss those, those windows of time.” (05:10)
• Continuous Reflection and Growth
  Andrew shares that life’s challenges evolve, but the lesson remains:
  • “You just get kicked… down in life all the time and you have to pick yourselves back up… That's a never-ending battle.” (05:36)
  • His daily metric for fulfillment: “You're giving your time and your energy to the things that are important and valuable to you and that bring you fulfillment.” (06:13)

4. Self-Care and Personal Development

• Recognizing Self-Neglect
  Andrew admits neglecting his own wellbeing:
  • “My bucket is so full of giving to you and giving to the kids and dog and to work. Like, I put myself on the back burner.” (06:28)
  • His next chapter is about “growth and in care and positive thinking and gratefulness and gratitude, like for myself and my own health as well.” (06:47)

5. Overcoming Mental Blocks and Showing Up Authentically

• Getting Comfortable on Video & Social Media
  • On pushing through discomfort:
    • “You're going to look like an idiot the first two times you do it. You're going to say the wrong thing. You're going to watch it 10 million times and criticize yourself.” (07:23)
  • Practical tip for building confidence:
    • “I like Instagram stories because they're short. I do them in one take and they're gone in 24 hours… That was a good way to really help me get the confidence.” (07:40)
  • Social media is where Andrew finds his clients:
    • “That's where I get to be the most authentic. That's what my clients like... they come in and it feels like we already know each other and I've never even shaken their hand before.” (08:09)
• Advice for Others
  • On starting out: “Put the selfie camera on and do an Instagram story for 20 seconds when you look like crap. And, like, just be confident to post it up. And then, you know, the next day it's easier to... do it again.” (08:50)

Notable Quotes & Memorable Moments

• "You have to do, like, an inventory about your life just in general. Like, what am I doing? What choices am I making? Who am I spending my time with?"
  — Andrew Delory, reflecting on his injury and realignment of priorities (01:42)

• "You can't hang out with your kids at midnight… I'm not willing to miss those, those windows of time."
  — Andrew Delory, on dad-life and presence (04:21, 05:10)

• "My clients gravitate to [my authenticity]. Like, he's like me, he's married, he has kids, he's struggling through things. Like, that's what my life looks like too now."
  — Andrew Delory, on connecting through social media (08:09)

• “Take me or leave me. Like, this is—no matter what, you're going to get me and you're going to get me unfiltered, authentically myself every day. And I'm not everybody's speed. And … that's okay.”
  — Andrew Delory, on radical authenticity (09:54)

Timestamps for Key Segments

• 00:35 — Andrew’s entry into real estate law
• 01:42 — How surviving trauma led to life and priority shifts
• 03:45 — Fatherhood, work-life balance, and being present
• 05:32 — Pivotal moment for life change
• 06:28 — Realizations about self-care
• 07:20 — Overcoming mental blocks to “show up” on video
• 08:44 — Tips for building confidence with social media

Connect with Andrew Delory

• Instagram/Facebook/Twitter/X/TikTok: [@DeloryLaw]
  (“Delory Law. D E L O R Y Law.”) (09:34)
• DMs are best for contact; Andrew personally manages his accounts.

Tone and Takeaways

The conversation is open, relatable, and peppered with humor and honesty. Both Jaclyn and Andrew show the human side of brand-building: it’s messy, introspective, and sometimes painful, but it’s also marked by resilience, vulnerability, and a deep commitment to authenticity and legacy. Andrew’s candidness about trauma, personal growth, and the imperfect juggle of life and career delivers both inspiration and actionable advice—reminding listeners that our stories, even the hard ones, are our greatest assets.