Newbie JDs In Transition to Non-Legal Careers - More Bad News
Being young won't be as big an asset in finding a job and moving up the ladder as it has been.The Great American Jobs Machine has retooled and the retrofit is geared to buttoned-down business models in established companies. That's essentially what the Brookings Institution found, reports Jeanna Smialek in Bloomberg. Here is that article.
At those kinds of traditional companies the older generations are hanging around longer. The jobs are well-paying ones. They probably sense if they give up their slots they might not land on their feet in another good job. That dynamic clogs the pipeline for upward mobility for Millennials.
So, newbie JDs who have decided to throw in the towel on chasing a career in law might not find such a warm welcome in established businesses. However, here are some tips on how to get in, stay in, and move up.
Speak the language. Learn both the terminology of the business world and that of that particular industry. You can pick that up from reading about business in general, that industry, and the specific corporation.
Drop lawyer persona. No company wants a super careful, excessively analytic professional. They want a doer with a lot of energy and enthusiasm.
Offer to do more, from the get-go. In the cover letter, offer to create a mini marketing plan or how compliance can be conducted more cost efficiently. In the interview, say you will come in a few days at no pay to demonstrate what you can do.
Do the face time. It's stupid but necessary. Probably all the rest of the gang hanging around in the office until after-eight are studying for a course in the Executive MBA program, not working. Do the same. Keep a look of great gravitas on your face.
Look for favors to do. The boss wants his kid to attend prep school. You went there. Not only provide pointers. Pull strings.
Don't be the smartest kid in the room. That makes enemies. You don't have the power base yet to handle that.
The proven guide for a job search and career transition is the book "What Color Is Your Parachute?" Public libraries have multiple copies.
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