Paralegal Resume Advice You Can Use

Paralegal Resume Advice You Can Use33The best advice comes from real people whove gone through the same struggles. Thats what brought us to Marwa Elkady, a Paralegal at Ebates, to discuss her career path and what made her paralegal resume successful. Lets get into the insights and takeawaysWhy did you choose to enter this career path?I chose to take this career path because I knew I wanted to attend law school, but wanted to get as much field experience as I could before committing myself to law school. With the rise in tuition costs for law school and the slight decline in attorney employment rates, I needed to be aya that this was the ultimate path I wanted to take. I knew that being a paralegal for a few years would give me the firsthand experience and skills that I needed to determine if law school was the right fit for me.What would you say are the core skills required in the industry these days?I would say that the core skills required in the industry are excellent writing skil ls, people and communication skills, and the ability to work dynamically with different groups of people in varying positions that are both attorneys and non-attorneys.How much of what you learned in college prepared you for the job, vs other things you had to do to prepare?I majored in Legal Studies in college so I was able to take a variety of courses taught by actual law school professors. College played an integral role in developing my writing, critical thinking, and communication skills. Although college didnt teach me how to do the job, it taught me the skills I needed to adapt myself and to learn as I gained hands-on experience.What are some typical interview questions you found them asking?Typical interview questions that repeatedly came up were What are your strengths and weaknesses? What is the most difficult situation you have been in, and how did you handle it? How do you handle stress, and how do you work under pressure? How do you deal with difficult personalities?Wha t things have you learnt on that are important to the job that you realized you could not have picked up in college?Hands on things such as legal research are not taught during college. Additionally, things such as issue schmierblutung (whether thats in a contract you are trying to negotiate, or a legal brief that you are trying to respond to), and learning how to explain the same concepts and ideas in both legal language and laymans terms. In the legal field, it is also important to understand the business that you are either representing, or the business that you are working for (even if you are working in the legal departement). Understanding the business gives you the right tools to ask the right questions, and ensure that youre advising the business in the ways that keep the business protected and thriving. What do you love most about your job?I love that I get to learn something new every day, and that my work is diverse and varied. I also love learning about the business sid e of things, instead of just the legal side.What are the realities of the job that you did not know until you started?Its extremely stressful, and theres a pressure to always perform your work efficiently, accurately, and sometimes that means working late hours to meet deadlines.What 3 pieces of advice would you give, based on your learnings, on someone looking to make it in this industry?Get a variety of experience in different legal settings. For me, I varied my experience spending time in the public sector, small law firm, big law firm, and now in-house at a company.Continue to force growth. If you reach a plateau in your position or a glass ceiling, dont be afraid to make a move to a different distributionspolitik to push yourself and continue to foster growth and learning. We learn by staying out of our comfort zone, and not in it. However, move sensibly, and in the right times. It would not be wise to jump around so much that you become perceived as inconsistent and unprofessi onal.Dont shy away from accepting new responsibilities. This goes hand-in-hand with forcing ourselves to grow. If you are offered a chance to participate or take lead in a challenging project, or offered additional responsibilities that may not have been part of your job description, take them.Your Next StepsArmed with these insights, youre ready to tackle the paralegal job market. Just be sure to use your informal education to the max, get a job referral if you can, and use follow up emails

7 False Narratives About Being Fired to Reject Today

7 False Narratives About Being Fired to Reject Today Ive been fired a few times in my career but I bounced back, in part because I rejected the narrative that termination from one job means an end to an entire career path.The first time it happens to you, getting fired feels like a career death sentence. Its certainly a grim experience. Human Resurces tells you, Your employment is terminated. You might be escorted from the building. You feel cursed, like youll never work in your field again. You have failed do the walk of shame Stick your head in the sand.These are all false narratives. We believe unterstellung myths and lies, passing them on without knowing the truth. We think we no longer control our careers. The fact is thatmany professionals are fired at some point in their careers. Most regain their footing andgo on to success at other organizations.Once I welches fired because a relative of mine was terminated on the same day. It had nothing to do with my work. I got home at 530 p.m., made a call to a former employer who terminated me in the past, and got a new job at my old company by 7 p.m. the same evening. This time around, I worked with him for three years. He promoted me to manage one of his stores, and even gave me references after I left. He also offered me another position, but I needed to move on.In both these cases, my dismissal wasnt based on my work or any wrongdoing. Sometimes, the job ends, and you dont fit the employers plans. I took the high road and kept the relationship intact, and it paid off later. What if I had internalized the employers decision, and brought that feeling of failure with me to my next role? Had I allowed the traditional termination narrative demons consume me, resentment and bitterness would entangle my career. Hopefully, this isnt happening to you.The trick is not to let these false narratives about being fired stifle you. I didnt. And you shouldnt either. See if you have bought into any of these narratives1. Its hard to get a job when youve been fired.Hiring managers understand that professionals get fired. Chances are, theyve dealt with this from the other side, as well. In the age of the at-will employee, employers need very little reason to terminate an employee, especially as a new hire.The best way to counter this narrative is to be honest. Be ready to explain why you were fired and dont dwell. You dont need to give every detail. Focus on showing why the company will benefit by hiring you.2. Im not good enough.Its normal to worry about long-term unemployment when you lose a job. But dont let those worries take up space in your mind. Kick them out right now.One way to handle those feelings is to identify your accomplishments, results, achievements, impact and goals. Write them down and keep them in front of you. You can use reminders from your calendars, Post-it notes on your desk, index cards on your bathroom mirror and so on.Create these new narratives to replace the ones you might h ave heard from your old boss or coworkers.3. But I did my bestIn the wrong job, your best might not be good enough. This isnt necessarily an indictment of your skills. Sometimes, youre dealing with forces beyond your control, such as a merger, layoff or toxic work environment.Look for the place where your best is extraordinary. Remember that its about fit as much as hard work and ability.4. My family is not supportive.Some of us have families who are our most significant source of encouragement, while others have families that feel like our greatest critics. Our families dont always understand what we are trying to achieve. It is up to us to help them understand.The narrative families create about us in our teens may or may not be accurate, but it shouldnt be our narrative as adults. Adjust and change the story as often as you like and be OK if everyone is not on motherboard at first. Success will provide an invitation to come on board.5. My old boss will ruin me.Martin displayed h igh integrity throughout his executive career, and during a recent interview with one company was forthcoming about his termination from his last employer. Martin told me the hiring team liked him yet, the company waited 90 days between the final interview and the next call.Why the delay? Martin found out that his old boss discovered that he was in the final stages of interviewing and went out of his way to besmirch Martinsreputation. The employer came back to Martin and told him that because of his old bosss interference, Martin was scrutinized more than any candidate in the history of the company.In the end, however, they extended an offer. The quality of Martins preparation and work as well as his honesty and integrity tipped the balance. These scenarios are rare, but if youve done the work and done it right, no one can undo it.6. My career is finished.Being fired is not a career-ending in most instances. Its important to keep calm and get as much detail as you can. You can oft en negotiate aspects of your gestaffelte anordnung to make things easier for both parties. Doing so much help you control the narrative going forward, which will ease your job search.At the Spiggle Law Firm, employment attorneyPhillis H. Rambsy wrotethis excellent article about what you should do when youre fired. Bottom line, you need to understand the language in your separation agreement, what it means to your future and how the company will respond to inquiries regarding your termination.You can negotiate terms so that a severance agreement is tailored to your specific needs, Rambsy wrote. You may negotiate for more money. Or you may want to consider other nonmonetary provisions such as a reference from your employer, a nondisparagement provision, and/or a provision that indicates that the employer will continue to cover health insurance benefits for a certain period.7. Im alone.The feeling of isolation after firing is real. Its worse when you dont see the termination coming.I k new when it was coming when I was barely treading water in my first 90 days at a new job. Once I told one of my bosses during my training, I know I am doing terrible. She responded, No Youre doing great I knew she was lying.When they let me go at the end of day 90, she escorted me to the door, with my bobbleheads and pride in a box, and leaving a 12-pack of water for my ex-coworkers to remember me.I felt enveloped in a shroud of loneliness.However, as I rode the crowded train home, my loneliness dissipated, replaced by a surge of resolve.I refused to feel or become helpless.Life after termination worked out fine. I was fortunate to land jobs quickly. I had a responsive network way before LinkedIn and Twitter always returning the favor given to them.It helps to stay engaged in a job search even while youre employed. Keepnetworking, investing in personal development and interviewing because you never know when you might find yourself out of work.I had a mentor who said she intervie wed once a year to remain sharp. If you keep the same mindset, it wont take long to land a new job, even after being fired. You dont have to be a slave to any of these narratives. You can use a termination as a stepping stone to something better. Mark Anthony Dyson--This story originally appearedon PayScale.