5 Survival Tips for New Associates
You have your JD, you’ve been admitted to the bar, and you’ve clinched the associate position you wanted. To family and friends, you’ve made It. But every day, it takes everything you have to shake off that feeling of being overwhelmed.
As a mentor and coach, I’ve seen how quickly new associates can feel like they’re scrambling to find their footing. Here are my five survival tips to help you get through your first year.
1. Take it one day at a time
“Happy the man, and happy he alone,
He, who can call to-day his own:
He who, secure within, can say:
To-morrow, do thy worst, for I have liv’d to-day.”
— Horace
More often than not, new lawyers aren’t just worried about being new lawyers. This is Life As an Adult: A new home, a new social circle, and a new life that—maybe for the first time—doesn’t revolve around school.
It’s a lot to figure out at once. So don’t add to your stress by worrying excessively about what may or may not be coming around the corner. That trial in six months that’s very close to your sister’s wedding may settle or get postponed. Prepare for that big brief that’s due in one month, but put most of your concentration on doing a great job with whatever is on your desk today.
2. Focus on becoming a good lawyer
Great lawyers are strong writers and critical thinkers. They take ownership over projects and manage people well. They continuously learn and improve, so they can serve their clients with practical business-minded legal advice.
From the firm you join to the partners you want to work for, the decisions you make in your first few years are certainly important. Many young associates, however, spend too much time fixated on firm prestige, salaries, and bonuses. It’s not that those things don’t matter—they do—but your priority should be honing your skills by taking on good work opportunities and finding mentors and sponsors who can help you become the best lawyer possible.
3. Learn to differentiate between projection and advice
One of your biggest challenges is the enemy between your ears: We all create hurdles between ourselves and success by giving other people’s opinions undue influence over our own.
There’s substantial value in other people’s experience; be willing to ask and listen. But, before you let anecdotes from colleagues influence your decisions and behavior, take time to filter those opinions through the lens of their personalities and circumstances. Try to approach every situation with your own fresh perspective. Your interpersonal skills, energy, and experience can bring about a different outcome.
4. Embrace constructive criticism
Criticism can be hard to hear—especially for anyone who strived for straight As in law school. As an associate facing a mountain of new things to learn, it is inevitable you’ll receive constructive criticism. It can be hard to remember that constructive criticism isn’t a comment on your work ethic or intelligence.
First, listen to feedback but don’t take it personally. Internalizing criticism can make your working relationships more difficult and hinder your development. Even worse, though, is ignoring that feedback. Instead, learn from it so you don’t get the same comments over and over again. In other words, make only new mistakes!
Second, ask for feedback. Getting feedback right after an assignment is much more valuable for your professional development than annual or bi-annual reviews.
Third, when receiving constructive criticism, ask for details on how you can improve. For example, if your formal or informal feedback says your writing is weak, ask whether there are books or seminars the supervising attorney can recommend.
5. Learn to be kind to yourself
De minimis non curat lex: The law does not concern itself with trifles. Neither should you.
In the day-to-day life of being a new lawyer, tuning your perspective takes conscious effort. So as Ice Cube wisely said: “Check yo self before you wreck yo self.” I like to give things the 5-50 test: Will what’s weighing me down today matter in five years? What about in 50 years?
Self-care takes effort, and more than that, it often takes a reality check. Think of any volunteer or pro bono work you’ve done: You’ve likely met people whose most basic human needs weren’t being met. You should also remind yourself of all your accomplishments to date: You thrived in college, applied to law school, got through that storm, and now you have a new ceiling to strive towards. Your past performance is a good indication that you will be just fine.
So be kind to yourself along this steep learning curve. Schedule time every week – even if it’s just one hour – to do something meaningful or fun for you. A year from now, you’ll have your own survival tips to dole out to your incoming peers!
Originally published on Above the Law, April 21, 2017