What if there’s no such thing as a wrong career move?

What if it’s all a matter of choosing the experiences, relationships, and opportunities for growth we want to have?

Many of the lawyers I talk to are trying to decide between partnership and going in-house. Others have decided to leave the law after a decade or more of practice but aren’t sure what they want to do next.

We gain clarity by:

– exploring our strengths, interests, and values,
– knowing what energizes and drains us, and
– trying things out.

But we can still feel stuck if we believe there is a “right choice” and a “wrong choice.”

When we are at a decision point in our career, we can adopt the following mindset:

There is no wrong choice.

Each path will present opportunities for learning and growth. Each path will allow us to develop certain skills. Each path will lead to increased knowledge.

Even if we decide a job or career is not for us, discovering why it wasn’t a fit, or why it was no longer a fit, helps us get to know ourselves better, which helps us choose a more aligned role in the future.

Discovering what we don’t want is often the first step in discovering what we do want. Knowing this, we can appreciate even the jobs we disliked.

Each path will present an opportunity to discover what matters to us at this current phase of life. And we can use that self-knowledge to guide our choices.

Each path will present opportunities to meet people, build connections, and form relationships.

Some of these may lead to job opportunities in the future.

Some of these may lead to lifelong friendships. I worked at four law firms over 15 years. One firm led to meeting my husband and three firms led to some of my closest friendships.

We can choose to use every job as an opportunity for our learning, growth, and expansion in some way.

And we can always make a new choice. We are allowed to change our minds, to grow, and to want different things.

If you’re a lawyer considering your options, how does this mindset make you feel? Hopefully lighter. Hopefully more free.

What if you choose whatever path you think would be more fun? More interesting? Or lead to the most growth? If it doesn’t work out the way you hoped, you can always choose again.

And if you’d like more guidance on navigating your law career, download my free Career Alignment Map.

If you’re a lawyer who has navigated job or career changes, I’d love to hear from you.

Did you worry, like so many of us have, about making a “wrong” choice?

Or did you trust that, no matter what you chose, you could use it for your benefit and you could always make a new choice?