Have you ever felt dissatisfied in your law career but you’re not sure why?

You know something’s not working, but you’re not sure what it is?

Maybe you feel anxious, frustrated, or drained, but you don’t know the cause.

When we make career decisions from a place of confusion, we may make choices we regret.

To identify the remedy, we need an accurate diagnosis.

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Meet Kelly (not her real name).

When we started working together two months ago, she wasn’t sure if she wanted to keep practicing law.

Having clerked and worked in Big Law,  government, and at a mid-sized firm, she has over a decade of diverse legal experience.

But something wasn’t working. She wasn’t burned out, but she felt anxious and dissatisfied.

She wondered if it might be time to leave law and pivot to a new career.

Through our work together, she discovered aspects of practicing law that energize her.

We diagnosed the problem as a clash of values and a need for autonomy.

She lit up talking about how much she enjoys putting together the puzzle pieces of a complex case.

When she’s given freedom to run with a project, she enjoys her work and exceeds expectations.

When she’s micromanaged, she feels stifled.

She also realized that she no longer values prestige or being productive for productivity’s sake like she did in her 20s and early 30s.

There are various reasons she feels her current firm is not a great long-term fit.

Now that she sees she actually enjoys much of her legal work, she can focus on moving into a role that aligns with her values and allows her to use her superpower of being a highly creative legal strategist.

This is what’s possible when we clarify the cause of our career discontent.

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While some of my clients are 100% sure they want to leave law, others are not.

And when I hear a glimmer of excitement about legal work, I know there’s still a spark there for the law.

With the right conditions, that spark can be fanned into the flame of a satisfying career.

Leaving the law is the right move for some, but it may not be for every dissatisfied lawyer.

The question is: What’s behind the discontent?

Is it:

• the practice area or type of legal work?
• all legal work?
• the firm or corporate culture?
• the billable hour model?
• the way you’ve been taught to practice law (always available, being a “team player” who says yes to every request, or holding yourself to a standard of perfection)?

For more guidance on how to align your career with your authentic self and thrive, download my free Career Alignment Map.

You can have a fulfilling career that aligns with your values and allows you to contribute to the world through using your gifts and strengths.

You can get paid to do work you love.