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Advancement, Mentorship, and Career-Life Balance: How to "Have It All" and Still Retain Your Sanity

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  6. Advancement, Mentorship, and Career-Life Balance: How to "Have It All" and Still Retain Your Sanity

published August 13, 2007

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These slightly sardonic comments are familiar to every aspiring attorney. Dorothy "Dottie" Burch of Ragsdale Liggett, PLLC, in Raleigh, NC, heard them early in her career, yet she has managed to become a partner in her firm, a mentor to her peers, an active member of her community, a wife, and a mother of two children—all in just 15 years of practicing law.

Burch practices in her firm's corporate and real estate law departments, has earned a BV Peer Review Rating from LexisNexis Martindale-Hubbell, and is listed in the Bar Register of Preeminent Lawyers. She has been recognized as one of the top 25 business professionals currently working the Triangle and has received the Meredith College Career Achievement Award for her notable accomplishments.


Burch agreed to share some of her insights about how junior associates can successfully advance their careers without losing that all-important balance between their professional and private lives.

The Importance of a Mentor

Though Burch performed well academically in law school at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, she credits her swift rise to partner largely to having a strong mentor at Ragsdale Liggett.

"I came to the firm right out of law school and was fortunate enough to work closely with our managing partner, Frank Liggett, from the start," she said. "Frank is a fantastic mentor who helped me to cultivate my judgment and skills to a point where partnership was an option for me. So I would say that a good deal of luck, my adaptability, and my willingness to learn on the fly were the key factors."

Now herself a mentor of others, Burch said her advice to new associates varies according to the individual's personality. However, there are some general overall approaches she uses with both lawyers and paralegals. Named to the advisory board for the Meredith College Paralegal Program, Burch does not restrict her mentorship role to lawyers.

"I take a very literal, specific approach with young lawyers or paralegals," she said, "and I make no assumptions that they completely understand the subtleties of every situation. Often they just do not have the experience to understand all the layers of concern, whether they are legal, business, or personal."

"With lawyers, I focus on the intangible side of practicing law, which involves finely tuned professional and personal judgment, such as knowing how to behave in difficult situations, when to speak and when to be quiet, not talking 'past the close,' and so on. The 'black letter' law is usually a young person's strength, as they have recently been in an academic environment. Typically the skills they need to develop as young lawyers are much more intangible."

Traits of Successful Attorneys

Burch manages the interview process for prospective candidates at Ragsdale Liggett. Basically she watches to see if they exhibit the critical traits any successful attorney needs to make a favorable impression on a client, a judge, and a jury.

"When we interview someone, I look for a positive attitude, clever wit, excellent personal grooming, high level of maturity and professionalism, evidence of whether the candidate possesses sound personal judgment, impeccable manners, and superior ability to be articulate when speaking in a high-pressure situation—which, for most people, likely includes a job interview," she said.

Along those lines, Burch has noticed a definite decline over the years in candidates' interviewing and speaking skills. This decline has struck her especially because effectiveness in public speaking is a key attribute required for success in the profession.

To remedy the problem at her own firm, Burch herself joined and led her fellow lawyers to join Toastmasters International in 2005 in an effort to practice and polish their speaking and presentation skills. Ragsdale Liggett now requires all new associates to achieve their "Competent Communicator" designations from Toastmasters. Burch recommends that other young lawyers take similar action.

"Since joining Toastmasters, our group's collective improvement in public speaking abilities has been astounding," Burch said. "Toastmasters training is a requirement we are likely to keep intact for all our younger lawyers for the foreseeable future."

Career-Life Balance

For those who worry about the difficulty of balancing a career as an attorney with a private life—particularly a common concern for women—Burch has solid advice based on her own experience. Besides her workload at the firm and rearing two children at home, she has a full plate. In addition to her role on the advisory board for Meredith College's paralegal program, she serves as an officer and director for Triangle Commercial Real Estate Women, assists with elementary-age Sunday school, and serves on several critical committees at her church.

As a frequent guest speaker at educational and business venues, Burch often addresses the topic of keeping one's business and personal lives in perspective. After admitting it is tough for her to summarize her views on this weighty subject, she revealed, "My parents told me I could 'have it all'—career, family, church, community—but I was shocked by the obstacles I faced trying to be a professional, a wife, and a mother with some modicum of success and preservation of sanity. Finally, I reached a realization—in order to 'have it all,' I had to redefine exactly what it 'all' was for me."

"The definition of 'all' is very personal and unique for every human being, with no two 'alls' being alike. Once I reached that realization and stopped trying to be everything I thought I was supposed to be—instead focusing on what my own personal 'all' was—I found life much easier to live and enjoy. Now that I feel I have some real, practical advice to offer, I am on a mission to help young women avoid some of the pitfalls that I suffered and learn how to be more compassionate towards themselves in the process so they can live a happy, productive life on multiple levels."

Burch recommends that all young associates pursue full, multifaceted lives—but on their own terms, not someone else's. While it is important to succeed in the courtroom and meet the needs of your clients, it will do you little good if you have nothing else in your life to provide a solid foundation.
  1. Legal Jobs
  2. Legal Articles
  3. Attorney
  4. Attorney Career Advice
  5. Achieving Success as an Attorney
  6. Advancement, Mentorship, and Career-Life Balance: How to "Have It All" and Still Retain Your Sanity

published August 13, 2007

( 3 votes, average: 4.1 out of 5)
What do you think about this article? Rate it using the stars above and let us know what you think in the comments below.

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