If the word is good, work hard to spread it.

This is particularly apropos for today. I am speaking on a panel at George Mason University Law tonight. I am excited to see the new law school and to meet the other women lawyers on the panel and the women law students and alumni. Glad to add GMU Law to the schools that understand the importance of the Best Friends at the Bar project for their students.

Hopefully, you paid attention to Part I on interviewing tips.  If not, it would be a good idea to scroll back and take a look.  I covered many of the basics in my last blog, but there is still a lot of practical stuff to consider.

For instance…

Talk slowly and speak up.  If you are lucky enough to get to the top of the food chain in your interviews, you will be talking to people who may have lost part of their hearing at their advanced stages in life.  If the interviewee thinks that he or she will have to constantly be asking you to speak up or slow down if you become an associate, your chances of ever becoming an associate will diminish.  Like all things in a law firm, time is money.  It takes time to ask to have things repeated and time to listen to it repeated again and again.

This is especially important for you young women who specialize in rapid fire speech.  What works at the bar with your girlfriends does not work for the 70-year-old partner.  Trust me on this and slow down.

Always dress appropriately for an interview with a law employer.  The standard advice applies—-no cleavage and no exposed midriffs or thighs.  Style your hair in a tidy manner that does not scream “disco”, and avoid too much perfume.  A case of nerves can cause your heart to beat faster, your blood to flow more rapidly, and all of that rapid action tends to cause the scent of perfume to be enhanced.  So, a little dab will do you!  (There is a story in my book about that, and you may find it amusing.)  Since you may acquire a natural blush from all of this rapid heart activity as well, easy on the commercial blush!

And, last but not least, BE ON TIME.  A little early is OK, but not too much.  Staff people get really annoyed when you arrive too early and they have to babysit you, and staff people have more power than you think.  One roll of the eyes as the secretary announces your arrival to the interviewing lawyer, and you could be doomed from that moment forward.

Now for the teaser.  I told you that I would share a personal interview HORROR STORY.  Well, here it is. CONTINUE READING >

Sometimes success depends on failure.  Learn from your mistakes!

It is no coincidence that most law school job interviews start in October.  Halloween is in October, after all, and both the Hallowed Eve and law school job interviews have something significant in common.  They both can be pretty SCARY.

So, you know me by now, and I consider it one of my important jobs to take the scary out of some of this stuff for you.  Job interviews can be a huge pain in the neck or they can be a valuable educational experience.  The end result is up to you, and I think you can guess which result I favor.

To get the most out of interviewing, take advantage of each and every interview you get—-even if you do not want the job.  Consider each interview to be a dress rehearsal for the Big One, the job that you would die for.  Your interview skills will grow with each experience, and you will learn from both your successes and your mistakes.  More on that later because we ALL have horror stories about interviews, and I will be glad to share mine for your benefit.

First the skinny…… CONTINUE READING >