You’ve just graduated from law school.  The resumes and cover letters have been sent out and you’re finally receiving some positive feedback from potential employers.  In fact, you’ve interviewed with 2 or 3 firms and one has officially extended an offer to you.

The salary offer meets your expectations, you accept the job and go apartment hunting.  Could life be any sweeter?  You find the apartment of your dreams, make a deposit and move in.

The job starts on Monday.

How do you begin this career successfully?

Can you have a law career and a personal life?

How do you manage your staff?

Should you get involved in your local bar association?

All of the above questions (& more) will be answered in upcoming blogs, however, let’s tackle the first question:  how do you begin this career successfully?

1.  Arrive on time.  Seriously.

If your normal work day begins at 8 a.m., arrive at 7:30 a.m.  Simple as that.  You will impress the partners.  They notice.

2.  Dress the part.

Wear professional-looking clothes.  Dress conservatively.  No trendy clothes.  Save that for the weekend – on your own time.

3.  Be prepared to work.

How hard?  Whatever it takes for the first 3-5 years.   What does “whatever it takes” entail?

At a minimum, as a new associate you should expect to work 50-60 hour weeks.

No, I’m not kidding.  This is real world, now.

Perhaps it’s because you placed high in a Moot Court competition or even that you graduated near the top of your class that you feel you have something concrete, something of value to offer your new employer.  To be honest, you do not have a discernable value to the firm at this point.

Your first day at your new job is the time to prove exactly why the firm made a good decision in hiring you.

Start off on the right foot and build from there.

More to come . . .