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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Career Management, Career Tips, Offer

5 Career Lessons, Crowd-Sourced by WSJ

  • On September 3, 2023
WSJ listed some great crowd-sourced tips learned from big career mistakes. These 5 lessons especially apply to lawyers. Build soft skills, which are as important as hard skills. From day one, lawyers need to not only learn the substance of the law, but also how to work with others and communicate effectively. As counsel get […]
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Resume

Resume Refresh Part III: Tailoring Your Resume

  • On August 27, 2023
You may see this career tip all the time, that you should “tailor your resume” to the job. How exactly do you do that? It means highlighting relevant experience and reframing the other work you’ve done to match the target profile the company wants. Here are 5 ways to tailor your resume to the job: […]
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Resume

Resume Refresh Part II: Make Your Resume Easy to Skim!

  • On August 20, 2023
Last week I discussed which resume words to use and which words to avoid. This week I wanted to cover another very important feature of your resume, readability! Here is the bright line test on whether your resume is effective: in a 5 second skim of your resume, can the reader figure out the top […]
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Inhouse, Resume

Resume Refresh Part 1: Resume Words to Avoid vs Words to Use 

  • On August 13, 2023
I read with interest this post on CNBC by a career coach on the two words to avoid on your resume “at all costs.” What are they? “Responsible for.” OK those words are not ideal, but worse in my book are “handled,” “participated,” or “involved.” (Talk about vague and weak!) The point is you should […]
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Market

How’s the Legal Market Doing: Summer Edition

  • On July 30, 2023
WSJ reported yesterday that the US economy “is sticking the soft landing,” i.e., the economy, which is sending “repeated mixed signals,” is “averting the long-anticipated recession” while still steadily cooling as the Fed fights inflation. In this environment, what do leading firms with top tech clients say about the economy, tech, clients, and the legal […]
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Market, Move, Startup

Will the Bay Area Stay Relevant in Tech? Yes Because of AI

  • On July 23, 2023
Good news for those of us still in Silicon Valley. The New York Times reports that the locus of AI currently sits in the Bay Area, which “has ruled the technology industry for decades, from early days of personal computers to the social media boom.” Researchers from the Brookings Institute predict that AI (like other […]
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Change, Departure, Market, Timing

The “Great Resignation” Is Over. What Does That Mean?

  • On July 16, 2023
The NYT reported the Great Resignation is over — the rate workers quit their jobs has fallen almost to pre-pandemic levels. Will workers keep gains made (flexibility on in-office, high pay, etc.), or will employers regain leverage (especially as the economy remains unstable)? NYT thinks the “pendulum may be swinging back toward employers,” and I agree. […]
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