Clara Rose
Looking at the latest Lexis Nexis report on associates and senior associates has got me thinking about the 3 areas which come up time and time again in terms of importance for people working at that level within law firms.
Top reasons for moving
71% most important factor is work life balance, 69% wanting higher salary/ better package, 36% career development.
The same three reasons are the reasons that people would stay, in a different order, increased money first (71%), then joint second (36%) Better work life balance; better career progression.
Over the next few months I will look at each of these in turn.
This month: Focus on Work/Life balance
Work life balance is a personal choice. How do you approach it to be sure that individuals are not taking advantage of a firm, or on the other end of the spectrum to ensure that firms are not grinding their fee earners into mental health problems.
The fact is that everyone is different, everyone has a different level of tolerance, resilience and approaches things differently. A quick task for someone who likes to fly through drafting a document, might take someone who is overly cautious with meticulous attention to detail a long time, even if they are told not to take too long. The key is to think about each person in a team and help them to perform to their strengths. Within a team you need people with different strengths to ensure all angles of a task are met. I employ some fantastic attention to detail administrator to ensure that my systems are run smoothly and routinely without having to remember everything as I jump from task to task. This provides balance within the team.
Looking at one person and the balance in their life is again very much a personal thing. Whereas one person will appear to glide over difficulties in life, another person might seem to stumble on the smallest hurdle. That is the uniqueness of people and the experiences they bring to a role come from their whole life, not just their working world. Again there needs to be the ability to look at each individual and see how they work best, without changing all the rules or systems to suit them, they need to be supported within the structure that is there.
It can be a really political part of running a firm, but open and honest discussion and appreciation of others is the starting point to ensure that everyone is happy and performing well, in roles they enjoy, with the balance that they need for their life.
Finding your own work life balance within a team, role and firm is a keen consideration in your legal career and one that can change dramatically from firm to firm.
Drop me a line if you feel that the balance is wrong in your life and we can talk about the variety and options out there for you.