Career Tips

What Separates Successful Job Seekers from Unsuccessful Ones?

  • On November 19, 2023
As an in-house recruiter, I talk to both hiring managers and job seekers for a living. I’ve been doing this for well over a decade and have seen multiple boom and bust cycles. What separates successful job seekers from unsuccessful ones, no matter the market? A track record that hiring managers understand. They can see […]
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Resume

Advice That Doesn’t Apply to Legal Resumes

  • On November 5, 2023
I just read this post featuring a recruiter at Deloitte who says the thing she looks for on a resume that “will give you ‘the edge’” is an interesting factoid about yourself. She says you should “put the nugget at the top of the resume,” presumably to inject personality into the document. No. Do not do […]
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LinkedIn

If You Have 5 Minutes for LinkedIn

  • On October 29, 2023
All lawyers must be on Linkedin. Employers look you up if they are considering you for a job, and recruiters use the platform to find on-point candidates. When I conduct attorney searches for clients, I am reviewing LinkedIn profiles for the level and area of practice and who/where are the employers. To achieve that low […]
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Job Search

If You Are Stuck on What Kind of Job to Go For

  • On October 22, 2023
Sometimes lawyers aren’t sure what kind of job they should be going for, e.g., public or private, big company or small? Here are some gating questions that will help guide your decision: What is your location, e.g., San Francisco, Peninsula, Silicon Valley? Do you want in-person/hybrid or fully remote? Your answer will weed out many […]
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Interview

Decoding Interview Questions

  • On October 15, 2023
Here’s a decoder for what the interviewers are actually thinking when they ask these questions or make these comments: “Tell me about yourself.” Why do they ask this when they have your resume in front of them? They are checking that you can summarize succinctly, have done relevant work, and are easy to work with. […]
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Resume

5 Minutes to Update Your Resume

  • On October 8, 2023
My 5 minute series covers easy things you can do that’s a good return on your time. We covered interview prep  and networking. Now let’s talk about resumes! As with interview prep and networking, you may feel like you can spend an unlimited time on your resume (hello decreasing marginal returns!). But if you only have […]
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Networking

Networking if You Have 5 Minutes

  • On October 1, 2023
Lawyers hate networking, maybe because it’s so amorphous or maybe because lawyers generally don’t like selling themselves. Here are 4 easy things to do, each taking 5 minutes or less but paying big dividends: Ask friends who have great jobs (and are happy there) to think of you when they get cold called for a […]
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Interview

If You Have Only 5 Minutes Before an Interview

  • On September 24, 2023
Yes, lawyers are all about planning, but sometimes we are just out of time! What happens if you have an interview coming up and only have 5 minutes to prepare? Pick at least one of these things to do! Reread the job description, and think up an example showing you understand the space and can […]
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Job Search, LinkedIn, Resume

6 Job Search Tips that Do Not Apply to Lawyers 

  • On September 17, 2023
Working in-house is a specialized space, so general advice for job seekers may not work for lawyers. Here are 6 pieces of advice I’ve seen that do NOT work for getting a legal job: Always message the hiring manager and CEO when applying for a job? No. This is not a good use of your time. If […]
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