- Many people are reconsidering life and career choices after changes to workplace environments.
- The importance of pausing, reflecting, and thinking about your options before moving on.
- Advice to employers on retaining valuable members of staff.
We are living in time of seismic global change. The world around us seems to be changing rapidly by the day—economically, politically, socially, environmentally, technologically. This in turn is leading us to look inward and think about our own lives—what we do for a day job, what makes us happy, if this is what we want to be doing. Many lawyers, especially juniors, are leaving the legal profession, turning their back on years of education and training for a different career path—it’s not been dubbed the Great Resignation for nothing. Most areas of law are facing a crisis in attracting and retaining talent.
Time for law to rediscover its roots
‘I just don’t know if I’m cut out for law’ or ‘I actually don’t much like law, but what else could I do?’ is something we hear time and time again at LawCare from legal professionals questioning not only their careers but also themselves. A report published earlier this year by the International Bar Association (IBA) revealed that one in five young lawyers were thinking about leaving the profession completely. Our Life in the Law research found legal professionals are at high risk of burnout, worn down by constant pressure, client demands and workload. Juniors and NQ’s are fed up with being left to get on with it without supervision, answering emails at weekends and on holiday. Who is really cut out for or wants the life of the typical lawyer? How long can people work like this? Law is a profession that is here to serve the needs of society but are we in danger of losing sight of this, as the drive for meeting targets and making league tables increasingly predominates. It’s time for the Law to rediscover its roots, its purpose, but in the meantime, many think leaving the profession entirely is their only option.
To those people we say, pause, reflect and think about your options. Law can be a fantastically rewarding career in the right place. A negative experience at one particular firm or with one particular supervisor doesn’t mean everywhere will be like that. There are a wide range of firms out there, who are trying innovative ways of working and with great clients and managers to work for. You can find support and a collegiate atmosphere. You can find places that value their people. You are not alone to want a life outside of work.
Take time to think
Before you make the decision to change career, ask yourself some questions:
- When did you last take time off? Do you need a good holiday?
- Would you feel differently if you could find a way to reduce the stress?
- Are you bored? Would a change in specialism or area of practice help?
- Do you feel your work aligns with your values and purpose in life?
- Do you need additional training or support to help you do your job better?
- If a particular person were to leave your workplace, would you feel differently?
- Does your organisation know that you are unhappy? Might they be willing to make changes to keep you?
- Do your skills align with your current career path, and where will that path lead?
- What would a career change require? Could your education and expertise transfer to a new career?
Answering these may help you work out whether you need a job change, a career alteration or a career transition. A job change might look like doing the same type of work in a different setting, such as a more flexible organisation or even just changing to a different department or specialism. A career alteration could see you using your legal skills in a different setting, teaching at a law school, or working as an employed barrister, for example. Career transition could mean moving to a new career entirely which may involve retraining.
The grass isn’t always greener elsewhere and starting somewhere new can be difficult. Your confidence may have taken a battering at your current workplace so try to remember that you are a well-educated and highly trained professional, who is worth employing. If you choose to leave the law altogether, don’t feel that the time you spent training has been wasted: your skills will be valuable elsewhere, and they don’t obligate you to remain in a job you don’t enjoy.
A note to employers
To employers we say: don’t get left behind. In time the profession will need to change in order to attract and retain talent, and simply upping salaries and perks will not work. We cannot hang on to old ways of doing things and let a generation of hugely talented lawyers leave the profession because they want to do things differently or simply because they have just been worn down. We need to build people up, let them be themselves at work and give them the proper support and management they deserve. A revolution could happen in the legal profession, wouldn’t it be great to be a part of it?
Elizabeth Rimmer, Chief executive, LawCare.
About LawCare
If you’re thinking of leaving law you can contact LawCare to discuss your options on 0800 279 6888, email support@lawcare.org.uk or access online chat and other resources at www.lawcare.org.uk
If you’d like to hear more about ways to combat the Great Resignation attend our online conference ‘Building a Better Life in the Law’ on 28 September. Visit www.lawcare.org.uk/conference
Join our Tell Ten campaign for World Mental Health Day (10 October) and tag ten colleagues or friends on social or send an email or text and let them know about the free, confidential service LawCare offers everyone working in the law. You never know when someone might need us.
