How to Get You Started On Attorney Job Search

Whether you are in a job search voluntarily or involuntarily, you are no doubt asking yourself questions like:

• Is there some way to combine my practice with my other, equally important interests?
• Are there jobs available at my level and salary expectations or will I have to settle for less?
• Should I give up the practice of law altogether, and if so, what else can I do?

These questions can be overwhelming because there are no immediate answers. People get stymied and either opt to stay stuck in an unhappy situation or simply avoid the questions altogether. Playing it safe and staying in a position you have outgrown can actually damage your career. Most people end up happier after a transition but do not pursue it until they are forced to do so. Even knowing that there is light at the end of the tunnel, many job seekers are stymied by the darkness that must be endured to get there.


Assess Where You Are Going

Take a minute or two to read the exercise below. Place a check next to the statements that apply to you. (If you are employed, base your answers on your current job; if you are not employed, base your responses on your last job or on the types of positions for which you are applying.)

Your Job:

• Energizes rather than exhausts you.
  
  
• Engross you to the extent that you lose track of time.
  
  
• Involves skills that have always come naturally to you (for instance, writing and researching, public speaking, organization, attention to detail).
  
  
• Is situated in a setting that you find comfortable (do you prefer a large urban environment over a small town? a formal setting in an office building over a casual setting where the lawyers wear jeans to work?)
  
  
• Capitalizes on your natural strengths, not your weaknesses.
  
  
• Involves the degree of human interaction that you find most comfortable (do you want a job where you are on the phone for most of the day? in court? do you prefer a job where you primarily research cases in the law library?)
  
  
• Is something that you settled for rather than something you secretly hoped for.
  
  
• Is something that you feel you should do, or something you feel you should like.
  
  
• Forces you to act in a way that is highly unnatural to you (for instance, do not take a job that calls for hours of library research if you are the type of person who hates to sit still).
  
  
• Fulfills your parents' or spouse's expectations, not your own.
  
  
• Makes you somewhat depressed at the thought of working there before you even start the job.
  
  
• Is something you accepted hastily without thinking about it.

If you checked off three or more from A through F, you are on the right track. If you checked three or more from G through L, re-evaluate your career goals.

Many times job seekers start each morning declaring "Today I will find a new job!" This is a sure fire way to set yourself up for failure. You have to be willing to do your due diligence (or discovery for you litigators). By breaking the job search process down into small, manageable steps, you will avoid feeling overwhelmed and subsequently paralyzed.

How to Sabotage Your Job Search

• Think of yourself as average, unable to offer anything unique.
• Assume the rest of the world knows you are talented.
• Complain about past employers, present circumstances or the job search process.
• Neglect overwhelming emotional concerns.
• Let self-defeating behaviors (like being late for interviews, not following up with employers, sending carelessly prepared documents) characterize your job search.
• Neglect your personal appearance.
• Ignore personality traits (like talking too much or too little; a strong regional accent, poor posture, etc.) which may distract potential employers from identifying you as a strong candidate.
• Blindly accept preconceived notions as true.

The legal hiring process seems to be based on these myopic preconceptions which may or may not be valid. Employers feel safer relying on "tried and true" methods to acquire the "best and brightest." Therefore, the burden falls on the job seeker to challenge these time honored preconceptions. Consider using your job search campaign to showcase your skills to recruiters. For example, a candidate who can articulate a keen understanding of the nature of a prospective employer's business via a well crafted cover letter can illustrate writing ability, research capabilities, and an ability to help an organization better service its clients. Analogize how those same skills could be used to represent clients creatively, to disarm opposing counsel effectively and to represent the organization proudly. Through

Overcoming the "Grade" Obstacle

Grades are an important measure of one's intellectual ability. However, recent graduates would be wise to remind recruiters that a G.P.A. alone does not provide the whole story. It is extremely useful to underscore "patterns." For example, a transcript containing all A's and one D may show the same G.P.A. as one filled with all B's. It is probably worthwhile to note that distinction as well as grades that markedly improved during the second and third years of Law School. Similarly, you may have done extremely well in courses where the grade was based on a paper but not as well on timed exams. Could that distinction be important? These subtleties will be lost on recruiters who are rigid in their G.P.A. cutoffs and only look to the bottom line unless the job seeker does an adequate job of calling attention to them.

Most hiring officials agree, successful lawyers must be able to pull apart a legal problem, break it down to its logical components and analyze it. By highlighting courses taken as well as grades and honors received, job seekers illustrate their acumen in this area.

There are other intangible qualities lawyers need to possess in order to be successful. Things like maturity, stability, fortitude, congeniality, the ability to remain unruffled under pressure and to meet deadlines are keys to a flourishing legal career. These are things not easily measured by grades nor are they easily uncovered during the interview process.
Job seekers would do well to provide employers with insights into these areas by highlighting things like:

• clinical or pro bono experiences demonstrating practical lawyering skills;
• prior work experience indicating "special knowledge" a candidate might possess;
• extracurricular activities illustrating leadership abilities;
• family responsibilities exemplifying the ability to balance many pressures successfully;
• community involvement indicating potential business development opportunities.

Similarly, job seekers who can spot a market need, articulate their ability to fill it and challenge employers to test their preconceptions about "successful" candidates will have demonstrated the intangible qualities so often sought by employers.