Advice

Careers advice for lawyers

Balancing work and parenting: what can we do?

We’ve just launched Partnerless, a new email specifically for associates. Sign up here for weekly career intelligence and market chatter. I snapped a picture last week, my little girl Sophie, decided she was now bored of me working, comes to sit on my knee and starts typing on my keyboard. She’s got her baby doll […]

moving quickly

Presentation skills for lawyers: Know your pace

The great thing about quotes is that they hang around, just waiting for the right occasion! So I’m going to lift this one which I will use to illustrate the theme of this month’s article. It comes from a certain John Martins Jr; “Life is not a race, but a journey to be savoured each […]

Navigating the complex tapestry of identity: my journey as a Black woman

Born into a Sudanese family, my parents made a significant decision that would shape my experiences as a Black woman in ways I could never have anticipated. They chose to move our family to a small town in Oxfordshire, far away from their Sudanese community. This decision, coupled with my education at a Catholic primary […]

Presentation skills for lawyers: How quiet people can still be heard

Once upon a time there was a vogue for stoic and silent types, based on characters which sizzled on the screen while rarely saying a word. Typified by Clint Eastwood and Bette Davis, who could hold an audience with a simple change of expression, more recent years the likes of Tom Hardy in Mad Max […]

Presentation skills for lawyers: Recognising the need for speed

A recent research study has suggested that we increasingly have a need for more speed in how we consume content. Does this suggest that there are lessons to be drawn about how we communicate, particularly there is a mix of generations in the workplace? According to a study by YouGov, there is a cultural shift […]

Presentation skills for lawyers: Perfecting ‘the look’

There is much to be said for communicating one’s annoyance or disapproval with a ‘look’. Paddington Bear was an expert in such a look, in the form of his trademark hard stare, which often caused the receiver to become flushed and embarrassed. I have a look which I bring out when, mid-way through a conversation, […]

Pick me, pick me! How to get on an in-house panel in 2023

Panels. “They are excruciating, but necessary,” one partner says. “You can get over 200 questionnaires to fill in every year for mid-panel or full panel reviews, it’s a full time job,” another exclaims. “There can be a bit of a disconnect as to what is actually expected of you, and what a company wants from […]

Presentation skills for lawyers: What to know before starting a podcast

Politicians do it, footballers do it, even the Red Hot Chilli Peppers’ Flea does it… And if you were attracted to the title of this article, it’s highly likely that you have considered making a podcast too! And why not? The podcast has been one of the biggest break out channels of communication in recent […]