Build your in-house career by taking advantage of opportunities presented to you. There are a myriad that will come your way, from enhancing your soft skills, understanding the business and learning how to say “Yes”. Along the way, you will be presented with opportunities to volunteer or to take ownership of a specific project among other things. As Sterling Miller says, there are a plethora of opportunities that will come your way – and if they don’t – you can create them yourself. Building a better lawyer starts with you.
“Last month, my good friend, Jane McBride, and I presented a CLE to the Texas Bar in-house counsel section on how to “take advantage of opportunity.” I, of course, had my list of ten things and Jane (as an in-house lawyer and ace career coach) brought her usual great ideas to the table as well. The mixture of our ideas was a killer combination and made for an excellent presentation. But, in the back of my mind, I kept coming back to my original list of ten and thinking that list would make a good “Ten Things” blog. Not because there was anything wrong with the combined list, but because my original ten told the story of how I was able to advance my career as an in-house lawyer – from that first day on the job at American Airlines to my last day as general counsel of Marketo (my third time in the general counsel chair). My own personal experience is generally what I like to share with you in this blog. While this post is aimed at those new to or a few years into the in-house counsel life, I think most of the lessons below apply to pretty much anyone at any point in their in-house career. So, let’s get started.”
Read: Ten Things: Taking Advantage Of Opportunities To Build Your In-House Career at Ten Things You Need To Know As In-House Counsel®