Finding FlexWork: Part III – Preparation

This is a continuation of posts aimed at helping you find a flexible work arrangement to fit your family’s needs. The focus in Part III is on how to prepare to speak with a contact person in an information-gathering meeting or an interview. Personalizing this interaction will help you make efficient use of time and maximize your results. See Part II for how this process helped me turn one interview into two summer clerkships!

Research so you can ask focused questions

When you get the chance to speak with an attorney, either one you already know or a new connection, do some research beforehand. You want to find out their background, identify common ground, and prepare focused questions based on your research. This can help you earn a valuable ally in your quest for FlexWork.

Look for biographical information on their firm website or state bar profile, or review other online resources such as LinkedIn. Check to see if you share any connections on social media. At a minimum, find out their role in their firm, type of practice, years of practice, and where they went to law school. If they have published articles or cases and those topics are of interest to you, read some of those as well.

Also, review the attorney’s firm website. Find out what type of law the firm practices and what type of clients they serve. Review other attorney profiles within the firm to see if you know anyone else or have something in common with them, like where you went to college or law school or .

I also recommend trying to identify trends in the area of law the attorney practices. Look for news or articles that help you understand if their area of practice is facing any unique circumstances. Are there current events or trends that might affect the volume of their work? Is there pending legislation that will change the landscape of their area of practice? Has there been a shift in elected officials or judges that is anticipated to impact their clients’ outcomes? Are there upcoming hearings, conferences or trials that are of interest in that field of law? And so forth.

The idea is to prepare yourself to have a productive conversation in which you can ask intelligent questions and demonstrate you’ve done your homework. I’m not saying you should dominate the conversation by peppering them with questions. Rather, your research should help you make efficient use of the meeting and focus your questions in a way that will help you get the information you seek. 

For example, if you’re meeting with a litigator who practices insurance defense, research can help you fast-forward the conversation a bit. Instead of asking, “what kind of law do you practice,” or “how long have you been practicing,” you can say:

• “I understand you’ve been practicing law for about 20 years. Has all of your experience been in insurance defense?” – This will help you understand if they have other experience you can learn from, including why or how they switched areas of law.
• “Has your firm always been medium-sized with about 10 lawyers?” – This will help you find out if the firm is growing or shrinking.
• “Are you seeing any hot topics or trends in first-party bad faith cases?” or “Are you seeing any trends in the type of legal issues being argued by plaintiffs’ attorneys in third-party cases?” or “Are you seeing an increase in cases of a certain type, such as [fill in the blank with an issue you read about, like bystander injury claims or underinsured motorist claims, etc.]” – These kinds of questions will help you identify trends or increases/decreases in volume.
• “Do you anticipate your firm will have any cases from the recent tornados?” or “I understand the state legislature is considering a bill to amend the Texas Insurance Code on uninsured/underinsured motorist claims. Do you think it will affect your practice if it passes?” – Use your research to ask relevant questions and find out if they anticipate any changes to their practice.
• “Would a litigator like you benefit from having another attorney [insert something from your own skill set such as draft motions or take depositions] on a part-time basis?” or “Do you have any thoughts about how a part-time attorney could provide support to a litigator in your area of practice?” or “What kinds of projects or tasks do you think could be assigned to another attorney to help a litigator like you make the most efficient use of time?”– These types of questions will help you figure out the type of work you could do and where your skills could be a fit, whether for the firm you’re meeting or another firm.
• “Do you know any firms that are growing or that need help?” or “Is there another attorney or firm you recommend that I contact?” – This will help you expand your search. As discussed in Part II, these questions are more important than asking outright for a job. They help expand your reach beyond the immediate person you’re speaking with, and that person is likely to consider their firm’s needs without you asking.

Taking the time to research in advance will show initiative on your part and will help you get the information you need to match your skills with a firm’s needs.

Be ready to discuss yourself succinctly

In addition to being prepared to discuss the other person’s experience, you need to be prepared to discuss your own. That may sound like a no-brainer, but if you don’t prepare, your responses might lack focus or you might forget to mention something important about your background.

I’ll never forget the interview that led to my first associate job. I was interviewed by two name partners, and I had prepared using the book Guerrilla Tactics for Getting the Legal Job of Your Dreams, by Kimm Walton. I was so grateful for the guidance in that book. I was ready with three key points about my skills that I wanted to communicate. I was able to incorporate that information in response to questions during the interview. Then, at the end of the interview when they left me with a blank piece of paper and a pen and asked me to write about why I should be hired, all I had to do was write a short paragraph about each of the three points. Boom! I got the job, too.

I recommend trying to review your own resume with fresh eyes. Look for any themes you can communicate. You want to identify a few key points about your strengths and skills that you can mention in the course of your conversation. For example, in my most recent search for part-time work, I wanted to be sure firms knew I had experience with first-party insurance defense cases, my strengths are research and writing, and I’m a resourceful person who takes initiative. I was prepared to discuss examples of each.   

Be ready with a brief explanation about your personal background, as well. Rather than launch into a 5-minute chronology of events since you graduated from law school, keep it short and sweet. The other person will be able to get a feel for your background quickly, and then they can ask for more information if it’s needed.

If someone asked an open-ended question like, “Tell me about yourself,” I would be prepared with a quick summary: I graduated from UT Law School in 1997; I was a school law attorney for 4 years; I followed my mentor to another firm, but they didn’t have the volume of school law work to keep me busy, so my practice transitioned to insurance defense, which I have done ever since 2001; I have primarily practiced in a part-time capacity since 2004. The end.

From there, they could ask more about my school law practice, what led me to insurance defense, which firms I’ve worked for, or the 1.5 year gap in my resume when I stayed home with baby #2.      

Being prepared about your own background will help you explain yourself better and make more efficient use of your meeting time.

Go with the flow

As you know, conversations rarely follow a set structure. This goes for meetings with clients and witnesses, depositions, interviews…you name it! The ideas in this post are to help you be organized with questions to ask and background information to communicate, but use it in the natural flow of a conversation. Even if you forget something, you can always tack it on to the end of the meeting or even follow up with a phone call later. Be natural and try to incorporate information into context rather than follow a set agenda.

Remember to follow up

Information from Part II is worth mentioning again briefly here:

First, if you’ve invited a person to have coffee or a meal, pay for theirs. Unless it’s a person you know well who insists on paying their own way, it’s a common courtesy and a way to thank them for their time.

Second, if a meeting or other communication generates a lead, act on it while it’s fresh and don’t let it languish. Take a little bit of time to gather your thoughts, do any needed research, such as look up an attorney’s profile and firm website, and then reach out.

Finally, follow up with a thank you that is proportionate to the type of contact you make. Time is precious to everyone, so thank people for giving you some of theirs, no matter how much.

How could you prepare to find flex?

Do you have additional ideas for how to prepare for meetings or interviews? What’s worked for you?

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