What do I need to consider as a solicitor in making a career move?
Making a career move is one of the most important (and stressful) decisions you will make in your life, so it’s important to get it right. Too many job seekers we see make a decision to change their career based on what they don’t want to do anymore (i.e. moving out of litigation because they don’t like conflict) without really considering what they do want to do. These job seekers can find themselves in the same career slump further down the track of their new career path for this very reason.
It can help to get out a pen and some paper and write down what you enjoy about your current job (or what you enjoyed about a previous job you held). Then write down what you don’t/ didn’t enjoy about your current/ previous jobs. The purpose of this exercise is to bring out your strengths and weaknesses so that you can use this information to understand and develop a plan to play to your strengths and improve your career motivation and, if necessary, change your career direction.
If you're happy at your job, your odds of being successful at it are high. So, if you need some help figuring out what it is you really want from your career we are happy to help talk it through with you.
Some of the issues as a solicitor you need to consider in making a career move are:
Location
It sounds obvious but you need to think about how far you are prepared to travel each day to work, whether you can use public transport to get there. This will make a big impact on your overall job satisfaction – there’s nothing worse than getting to work stressed and tired after battling rush hour traffic and returning home in the same spirit!
Also, junior solicitors in particular need to think outside the square a bit in terms of locations in which they can up skill faster. For example, there are plenty of options outside of the main centres and getting out to the regions will generally expose you to a wide range of work quickly and will allow you to deal with clients earlier than in the city firms.
Culture/ personality/ communication style
This is key to enjoying your job – if you are an outgoing, dynamic, communicative type, it would be a big mistake to work in an environment where staff work in closed offices with very little interaction. On the other hand, if you are a reserved person, you might find working with a team of extroverts distracting and even a little overwhelming! We can provide you with information about the communication style and culture of the various firms to help you understand the environment you would be working in.
Size of firm
This is a similar consideration to the culture/ personality/ communication style of the firm. You need to understand which sized firm will meet your needs. The benefits of working in a big firm are obvious such as the prestige, resources, training and support and the smaller firms also have benefits such as a broader range of work and exposure to court work/ clients from an earlier stage in your career.
Area of law
This is a hard one – if you’ve started your legal career in the wrong area of law it’s not too late to change but you will really need to ascertain where your transferable skills lie i.e. how can a firm utilise your skills in the area of law you want to move into. We can help you work through this and assist you to present your CV in a way that clearly identifies the relevant skills and experience.
These are just some of the things you need to think about on a move – make a time to come in and see us; we will point you in the right direction.
If you are looking to head overseas, considering contract work or you are an overseas qualified solicitor wanting to practice in NZ click here.
