Career management as a Bar Student

Career management as a Bar Student

As someone who has been a student for the vast majority of their life, I have constantly had to shift and adapt myself to both the changes in my surroundings, and in my own personal abilities as I grow. Keeping up with the changing tides around you is one thing, but learning to adapt, hone, and apply new skills as you pass through the different stages of your career is the unsung hero of progress.

From my own experience talking to fellow students and people in full-time employment alike, one of the biggest things that gets overlooked is the fact that you are like a sponge, always absorbing new information and different skills, abilities, and traits as you weave through the rungs of whichever career ladder you decide to climb. Ironically, I have found experience to be overlooked more the higher you climb; having experience is an essential part of any professional’s toolbelt, legal or otherwise that being said, one thing I must always remind myself of is that experience can also act as a ball and chain if you allow it, tying you down to old ways which have been ingrained in your practices for months, years, maybe even decades for some people. It is extremely easy to become reluctant to change; why would you? This formula of yours has worked for such a long time, what’s to stop it from working now? Why should you fix what doesn’t seem to be broken?

I personally have fallen into many plateaus on my journey to becoming a barrister, whether that is capped to a set grade, an inability to obtain a mini-pupillage no matter how hard I try, always choking at an interview stage, the list goes on. Each time, I’d look at my formula in bewilderment. “I don’t get it, this used to work. What changed?” And each time, the answer was always the same. “Nothing changed, that’s the problem.” It was fine for me to be reaching for new heights with a new bag of knowledge and qualifications, but I realised I was never going to reach them if I didn’t let myself grow. It’s good to have a formula, but it’s even better to have a flexible formula. One that allows you to shape it as you need and bend it to your will. A formula not just for aiming for rarer heights, but for growing enough to actually reach them too.

My method for progress is therefore broken down into several parts:

1. Step Back – Although it may seem counterintuitive, my first step for overcoming a setback, or before I delve into any new realms of my career, is to get as far away from my desk as possible for a little while. Whether it is spending time with friends, family, or my girlfriend, having someone in your life to anchor you to the real world can be vital. Particularly in a legal profession, it can be easy to be sucked out of reality without even realizing it. Acknowledging this, and allowing myself to be pulled back out of my own head, is the best way to move forward. A deep breath in the quietude and company of a familiar face can make all the difference to how you approach a big climb. Plus, it’s always nice to have a second opinion from a fresh perspective on whatever you are about to embark on.

2. Taking Stock – What am I actually currently doing? Where am I applying to? What for? What are my main methods for moving on up? What image am I trying to portray to potential assessors/employers? What do I have at my disposal? These are questions I like to ask myself if I find myself in a career ditch and I can’t find a way out. There are plenty of times where it can feel like you’re spiraling, like you’re frantically paddling in a life raft in the middle of the ocean yet going nowhere. Putting the oars down and taking a look at what you actually have with you in that life raft can oftentimes make all the difference.

3. The Good, The Bad, and The Unnecessary – Continuing with the life raft analogy, which of these tools have been useful so far, and are essential? Which ones are weighing you down, and making the life raft heavier? Which ones simply don’t belong in a life raft? In other words, what about you can you really capitalise on. Which skills and traits will be in your favour every time? the real heavy-hitters. What skill is seemingly never used? Maybe it’s a particular skill you picked up in a workshop two years ago that you rarely think about, or some technique that was taught to you but never seemed to be relevant, or was simply just not as easy as your own technique. A qualification for something that never came to fruition maybe, simply sitting on your CV collecting dust. Looking at these lesser-used tools will help you to realise one of two things: either they are dead weight, which will allow you to declutter, OR, they are hidden gems, which you can utilise in a new or updated way to help you achieve your goals.

4. First Steps – Now that you have your shiny new updated toolkit, you will be ready to assess properly how to move forward. Personally, I like to look at what in particular I am aiming to achieve in a few different ways: what is my endgame goal? What is the very first step of that goal? How far will that first step take me? Envisioning the finish line alongside the starting line can often put things into perspective for me. Performing the next step with that end goal in mind can help you tailor the outcome you aspire to achieve in that next step.

5. Fire Away – Once all plans have been made and everything has been mapped out in front of me, I like to dive head first into whatever task lies ahead, throwing everything I have in my tailormade toolkit at it. Any new skills I’ve acquired, mixed with old lessons I was taught long ago, all held together by consistent attempts to get to where I want to be.

Reforming yourself to adapt to the changing weathers of your career is essential, but it’s equally as important to remain resilient. I have found that, as long as you do your part to grow, progress will follow. Maybe not immediately, but it will with time. ■

Jeysu Akoya

Jeysu Akoya

Bar Student