This will stop you second-guessing yourself
"Know thyself."
These words were inscribed on the entrance to the Temple of Apollo at Delphi in ancient Greece, where people travelled from across the world to consult the oracle. The fact that this was the first thing they were asked to consider before seeking answers elsewhere feels about right to me. People have understood for a very long time that knowing yourself is one of the foundations of a well-lived life.
And yet most of us spend very little time actually doing it.
What epilepsy and 31 fractures taught one lawyer about resilience
Karen Eckstein describes herself as “nobody special.” She's a lawyer turned risk management consultant. Not an Olympian, or a Nobel Prize winner. Just someone who has broken more bones than she cares to count, nearly lost her leg, and found ways to keep going anyway.
She came to speak at a Female Lawyers' Club masterclass earlier this month. Karen had so many useful things to say, I wanted to share some of my takeaways here.
Confident or “difficult”? Depends who you ask
Last week I ran a session for Capsticks LLP on gendered leadership. 109 people attended, and around 20 of them were men. And at the end, the outgoing Managing Partner, Martin Hamilton, described it as "the best conversation on leadership we've had at Capsticks."
That’s going on the wall!
I would love to share the key messages from the session with you, because leadership in the legal profession is, in many ways, still catching up. When you find an example of it being done well, it’s worth talking about. Not just as proof of what is possible, but as a reminder to anyone working somewhere less enlightened that it does not have to be this way.
Is it you, or is it them?
If a post I shared on LinkedIn this week is anything to go by, I appear to have accidentally touched a nerve. Over 120,000 impressions and counting, on the subject of toxic high billers in law firms and why nothing ever seems to be done about them. If you haven't seen it, I'll include the link at the bottom.
It was, in no small part, inspired by a conversation with my friend and fellow Female Lawyers’ Club member Clare Chappell, whose masterclass on narcissism in the workplace we hosted within the membership last week.
Why more female lawyers are choosing portfolio careers (and what it could mean for you)
Today we’re delighted to welcome a guest blog from Rachel Brushfield, career and talent strategist and coach, author and founder of EnergiseLegal. Rachel has spent over 25 years helping lawyers think differently about their careers, and in this guest blog for FLC, she explores the rise of portfolio careers and what they could mean for you.