Vicki Voisin is a woman who made decisions not because she was unhappy at any stage of her career, but rather, because she was happy with her choices and wanted to continue expanding her role as a paralegal. She joined the National Association of Legal Assistants early on, and eventually, came to work closely with NALA in many different roles, including the role as President of the association. She has worked with thousands of paralegals and provided career-changing advice that allowed each of them to flourish as well. Perhaps it was her role as a mentor she’s most enjoyed over the years. Determination, experience and fearless approach were her guiding lights in her quest.
The Richard Dawson Effect
One of Voisin’s favorite stories - and defining moments in her career - was due to a question she’d seen on the television show ''Family Feud''. Richard Dawson, the host of the popular game show, asked the competing teams which professions were most unethical? Voisin says she was horrified to discover ''Lawyers'' was the number one answer. Needless to say, she vehemently disagreed. From that moment on, she worked to ensure those staff members that reported to her were aware not only of the job they were expected to perform, but also, it was important for her to ensure they knew the ethics involved with the legal profession. Mistakes, as Voisin says, are all too often chalked up to unethical practices. She wanted no part of that - nor did she want her staff to be responsible for the unfair label. The rest, as they say, is legal history.
This epiphany was the foundation from which she built her paralegal mentoring career. She is most happy when she’s able to guide a new paralegal and watch as he or she grows into the career choice. Acknowledging the demands that any mentor experiences, it was important to her that she balance her own life so that can effectively teach others that they too can flourish in their careers while maintaining balance in their personal and family lives.
Vicki Voisin travels the country these days. She gives presentations in law firm conference rooms, coliseums and countless other settings. She’s now a writer and maintains a twice-monthly e-zine, maintains her blog and is published in many publications that target paralegals, attorneys and legal educators. Her goal is to ensure every paralegal and other legal professional she crosses paths with is enjoying a fulfilling career that offers balance and satisfaction. She wants to teach others how to manage what is often an unbearable workload in the legal field and finally, she seeks to encourage lawyers to support their paralegals and legal support staff as they attempt to move forward with their own continuing education efforts. Make no mistake: Vicki Voisin is the one to make it happen.
The future for Vicki Voisin looks fantastic! She’s focusing on her long term goals these days that include everything from a series of teleseminars to an e-book and hopefully, if those in the legal field are lucky, we will see her name on the next book list for her number one selling manual for legal secretaries and paralegals. Vicki Voisin is definitely on a mission and from her track record, this is one woman that won’t rest until she sees it come full circle.
|
