I joined Simmons & Simmons as a trainee in September 2019, spending only six months in the office before diving into the digital world of working from home. In a new work environment, the feeling of having to come out to colleagues is nerve-wracking at the best of times, and swapping to working remotely certainly added to my concerns. I worried about how I could replicate the natural conversations I’d had over a coffee between meetings, or at a lunch with my team.
Even as someone who is largely open about my sexuality, I sometimes struggle to articulate my bisexuality with colleagues and I found that this struggle increased as we left the office. This is largely because people will often assume that I am either a lesbian or straight depending on the gender of my partner at the time. I believe a large issue with bi-visibility is still the stigma around the term, even in the LGBT+ community, where the use of binaries of gay or straight can restrict discussions of other sexual orientations.
As we transitioned to remote working, it was harder to have the informal chats with colleagues and peers that I was used to, so I had to invest extra effort in bringing my whole self to work. In practice this meant pushing myself beyond my comfort zone and being open, even in virtual settings. Although challenging, this has been made easier by my membership of Simmons’ LGBT+ network.
As a fourth seat trainee, I have been an active member of the LGBT+ network for the last two years and most of my interactions with the network have occurred virtually and have been shaped by the pandemic. The network has been a brilliant support system for me to lean on and lean into and has helped me combat the invisibility I sometimes encounter regarding my sexuality. Being an active member of the network is a great talking point to introduce sexuality into work conversations, especially in allowing me to challenge the common assumption that I am a lesbian.
Through discussions within the network, I was invited to join a client panel in November 2020 for the firm’s Breakthrough series, speaking about my experiences entering law through the training contract as an openly bisexual woman. At this panel, I spoke honestly to university students at the start of their legal careers about my own experiences, highlighting times when my sexuality had been assumed incorrectly – both in and outside of the workplace, and both that I was straight and gay. I also shared the ways that working at Simmons had encouraged me to combat this with greater confidence. I was also fortunate enough to be a speaker on a client’s bi-visibility panel in January 2021, speaking externally to hundreds on my personal experiences of bi-visibility in a professional environment.
Thanks to these experiences, I have gained the confidence to bring my whole self to work, advocating for and educating others on my bisexuality. Throughout my time at Simmons, I have been encouraged to engage honestly in challenging and inspiring conversations and, as we move back to the office, I hope we continue to build on our inclusive, open environment and have more conversations to increase visibility for all sexualities and gender identities, so that everyone can bring their whole selves to the workplace.
Nancy Heath is a trainee at Simmons & Simmons
