Junior Lawyers Division: Why is telling your story important?

Junior Lawyers Division

Why is telling your story important?

My mentors shared their stories which was invaluable to my career

I have been lucky enough to have had mentors from my first paralegal job all the way to my current position as Associate. Mentorship helped me learn and understand the area of law I work in and what it takes to succeed in it. It has also helped me find my way through to the right job that will give me the progression I want.

My first paralegal position was in a large firm, in a department I had no previous experience working in. Completely new to working in a large team, having previously worked one to one with a partner in a high street practice, was a baptism of fire. Lots more people requesting my assistance, more questions to answer and more work than I could cope with. An associate and managing associate mentored me during this time. They helped by sharing example documents, sharing stories, and having regular catch-ups. By explaining the situations, they had been in before and of mistakes they made, I had inside knowledge in what to look for, how to prepare and how avoid it in the future. I had a thought process born from years of experience (my mentors) before completing each piece of work. Not only did it help me produce great work, it meant that I gained their trust and confidence to carry out tasks that weren’t usually given to my level of post qualification. I learnt that mistakes do happen and most of the time there is a simple solution, which is invaluable when you are starting out in your legal career.

When I moved firms on qualification, I knew what I wanted from my career and knew the benefits that a mentor in a senior role would give me as I start out in this firm. I wanted the knowledge and experience of someone in the firm in the same department who had been through the process of promotion that would be able to help with understanding the requirements for progression, be able to give an insight into internal dynamics and an insight into the individual characters of the lawyers I would be working for. I spoke to our equal opportunities partner about getting a mentor who was separate from my immediate local team. They arranged a senior associate in another office who had been in the firm for a few years. I now have regular catch-ups with my mentor where we discuss my current workload, any queries I have in relation to the work I am doing and my intentions for promotion. In between my regular catch-ups I can talk to them whenever I feel I am struggling with workload or if I need to ask a technical question. I can utilise that experience, so I am prepared going forwards.

My mentors have always been lawyers within the firm that I have been working in at the time. Whilst they may have worked in the same firm the advice and support, they have given me has never been restricted to that firm. Honest conversations with my mentors have always been beneficial, from sharing their experience that related to mine through to putting me in contact with lawyers, they know in other firms, who have then offered me jobs and opportunity to get the role that I want.

What I have learnt is that there is a place at every stage of your career for a mentor, someone to share their experiences of when they were in your position, how they dealt with adversity that you may be facing, and what is required when going for promotion (i.e. what are the partners really looking for and who is going to making those decisions). As junior lawyers we can often feel the need to be perfect at everything that we are asked to do and so forget that we are learning as we go. Whilst supervisors are there to check that what you are doing is correct, there is a place for mentors at all stages, to provide that unfiltered open conversation that will ultimately help with your career goals. ■

Emma Wilson

Emma Wilson

Associate at Mills & Reeve LLP and Executive Committee Member of Junior Lawyers Division of The Law Society