Avoiding Professional Pitfalls

As a junior lawyer, I learned that nearly every mistake is fixable (even if some are harder than others). So it's extra important to avoid the ones that can't be fixed. 1️⃣ Breach of ethics / professional conduct We know what they are - lying, breaking confidentiality, conflicts of interest etc. But it can feel different when we're in our first job and a senior lawyer tells us “it’s fine” or “just do what you’re told”. If you're in this situation: - Confirm the instruction in writing. Hopefully, it's a misunderstanding and not an ethics breach. - Raise the issue with somebody else. Either another senior lawyer, or the General Counsel / risk partner that most firms have. - Don't risk your practising certificate. Maybe the job doesn't work out (good riddance!), but more will come. 2️⃣ Missing limitation periods and time bars This includes statutory deadlines (e.g. limitation periods), contractual time bars (e.g. notice requirements under construction contracts), and missing registrations or protections (e.g. failing to register security interests on time). To avoid these mistakes: - List out all relevant timeframes / dates when you receive instructions. - Clarify which deadlines are "hard stops" vs where extensions are possible (e.g. certain court dates). Check with a senior lawyer if you're not sure. - Diarise key deadlines in your calendar (and share with your team). I've made plenty of mistakes in my career. But I continue to practise because I'm able to fix them - and I'm extra cautious about these 2 types. 💬 What else would you add to the "unfixable" list? Anything else junior lawyers can do to steer clear of these? -------- Btw, if you're a junior lawyer looking for practical career advice - check out the free how-to guides on my website. You can also stay updated by sending a connection / follow. #lawyers #legalprofession #lawfirms #lawstudents

Women in the Workplace: The Subtle Gender Bias (Ever caught yourself expecting a female colleague to “take the notes”?) Studies reveal that many offices practice subtle forms of gender bias—even unconsciously. What does it look like? • Asking only women to plan office parties and celebrations • Delegating extra “unimportant” tasks exclusively to female employees • Overlooking women for challenging projects and tasks • Judging women’s communication styles more harshly than men’s Why does this matter? → Women are often skipped for high-visibility projects. → This directly impacts career advancement. → Fewer women make it to leadership positions. Why does this happen? • Cultural conditioning: Women are viewed as nurturers from a young age. • Reinforcement of the bias: Well-meaning colleagues might unknowingly assign tasks based on gender. • Denial: Because these biases are subtle, workplaces may not even acknowledge them. How can we fix this? For Teams: • Provide equal opportunities to prove themselves • Rotate duties—everyone should take turns writing meeting notes, answering calls, etc. For Leaders: • Hold training sessions to recognize and correct biases. • Monitor task distribution; if there’s an imbalance, address it. • If bias is suspected, investigate—ask questions, demand answers. For Organizations: • Address pay gaps for the same role • Encourage open feedback channels so concerns can be heard. While paying women less for the same work is an obvious form of discrimination, these subtler practices can be just as damaging over time. Taking small steps now can create an environment where all employees thrive. What do you think? Have you witnessed or experienced these subtle biases? P.S. Sometimes it’s the little changes in task distribution that leave the biggest impact. #GenderBiasAtWork #BreakTheBias #WomenInLeadership

I did everything you’re told to do to get promoted. I worked hard. Delivered stellar results. Said “yes” to extra work. Stayed “professional” and low-drama. And I was still overlooked. It was one of the most frustrating lessons of my corporate career in a big organisation. Now, after coaching hundreds of women managers in science and tech, here’s what I know for sure: It’s not always about how much effort you put in. It’s about the invisible habits that quietly cancel out your impact. The ones no one teaches you. The ones polite corporate culture tells women are “good behaviour”. Here are 7 invisible mistakes I wish I’d known earlier, and what to do instead: 1️⃣ Being too easy to work with ↪ Over-accommodating doesn’t make you a dream teammate. It makes you forgettable. Boundaries signal that your time has value. 2️⃣ Saying yes too quickly ↪ Instant agreement looks reactive, not strategic. Leaders respect people who pause, prioritise and then commit. 3️⃣ Making progress without telling anyone ↪ In male-dominated spaces, invisible effort gets ignored. Strategic updates are not bragging. They’re how leaders track impact. 4️⃣ Overthinking feedback instead of asking for clarity ↪ Spinning for hours on “what did they mean?” drains your energy. Ask for specifics so you can course-correct like a leader. 5️⃣ Trying to be liked by everyone ↪ Avoiding conflict to stay “neutral” makes you look weak. Senior leaders are paid to handle tension, not escape it. 6️⃣ Delivering “perfect” work too late ↪ Endless polishing delays decisions. In reality, progress beats perfection every single time. 7️⃣ Saying sorry too much ↪ Over-apologising shrinks your presence. It trains people to see you as less confident than you are. Bonus – the biggest trap of all: 8️⃣ Waiting for recognition ↪ Hoping your work will “speak for itself” keeps you stuck in the shadows. Self-advocacy isn’t arrogance; it’s part of the job. In today’s corporate world, visibility beats effort every time. Which of these habits hit home for you? And which one are you ready to ditch first? If this hits a nerve and you’re ready to be visible (not just busy): 🔹 Elevate – my leadership accelerator for promotion-ready women managers – opens in January. Comment ELEVATE if you want details. ♻️ Repost to help others see their blindspots. ➕ Follow Nadira Artyk for more on leadership, career and mindset.

Consider this: Being TOO easy to work with can actually backfire as you desire to advance to more senior ranks. Why? My clients who over-rotate on being too easy to work with hesitate to advocate for themselves and the ideas they have for their department, worried others would perceive them as difficult, going against the agenda or not a team player. In all of their GOOD skills of being the kind, easy-going, cool-as-a-cucumber co-worker, leaders assumed they didn't need help. Leaders assumed they were happy in their role. Leaders assumed they were well-supported. Being too good at being easy to work with can keep you stuck in an advancement trap. In my own experience, my fear of being called too direct kept me over-rotating on politeness—fearful that advocating for what I needed directly would turn people off. However, it kept my ideas from ever being heard, initiatives being advanced or career desires being realized. There is a time and a place for appropriate assertiveness, and a time when being “easygoing” is not an effective approach in the long term. They key is to be flexible and use the RIGHT approach at the right time. 🔥 Are too good at being easy to work with? How could this be hindering your career satisfaction and potential?

Too many careers die in silence. Not because someone lacked talent But because they were too polite to be taken seriously. I once worked with someone who was liked by everyone. Helpful. Reliable. Always said yes. Never caused waves. Never said “I disagree.” They were the definition of “easy to work with.” But when a stretch role came up? They were passed over. Again. Why? Because while they were agreeable… they were also invisible. Here’s the hard truth: Being easy to work with should never mean being easy to walk over. Let’s talk numbers: 🔹 61% of professionals admit they’ve taken on more work without more pay just to seem like team players. 🔹 But research shows that high performers who don’t speak up for themselves are 46% more likely to be overlooked for promotion. So no...it’s not your talent that’s the issue. It’s that you’ve been told to shrink it to keep the peace. my point is: We were taught to be helpful. To make life easier for others. To not “be difficult.” But here’s what I’ve learned: 🚫 Quiet loyalty doesn’t get rewarded. 🚫 Agreeability isn’t a promotion strategy. 🚫 And if you never challenge the room, no one will ever see you as a leader. So what do you do instead? ✅ Speak up...especially when it’s uncomfortable ✅ Set boundaries without apologizing ✅ Bring ideas, not just answers ✅ Stop managing others’ comfort and start owning your value Because the person who’s the easiest to work with… is often the easiest to forget. Follow Feras Asakrieh  for more bold truths and real strategies about how careers actually grow. #CareerAdvice #Leadership #Boundaries #Visibility #Promotion #MindsetShift

Being "easy to work with" made me invisible. Here's how I fixed it: For years, I thought being calm, flexible, and agreeable made me a great teammate. It did... until it didn't. I wasn't just being "easy to work with". I was being overly accommodating. And it was costing me credit, confidence, and opportunities. 5 simple shifts that changed everything ⚡️ 1) I paused before saying yes ↳ That tiny silence signaled thoughtfulness, not hesitation ↳ It showed I was weighing the request, not rushing to please 2) I stopped apologizing for boundaries ↳ Instead of "Sorry, I'm swamped," I said: "I can start this Tuesday, does that work?" ↳ Ownership sounds stronger than apology 3) I gave updates before being asked ↳ Visibility builds trust ↳ Proactive communication = dependable and competent 4) I shared input instead of just agreement ↳ "That could work. Another option might be X, what do you think?" ↳ It turned me from agreeable to valuable 5) I kept kindness, but added clarity ↳ "Yes, I can help, but I'll need to wrap up two things first" ↳ Calm boundaries earn more respect than charm ever will Now people still describe me as easy to work with. But it means reliable, respected, and clear. Being kind doesn't mean being a pushover. It means being steady enough to speak with clarity. Which one of these would make the biggest difference in your week? -- ♻️ Repost to help someone reclaim their confidence at work 🔔 Follow me Dr. Carolyn Frost for more tools on EQ, boundaries, and sustainable success.

Damned if you do, damned if you don't! Let me explain. Yesterday, while working on one of my favorite modules, Communication & Presence, as part of a leadership training for middle managers of an FMCG company, something powerful happened. One of the teams -who happened to be all women- brought to light an issue that many women experience at work but often struggle to name. And it's none other than the double bind dilemma. Speak up too much, and you’re seen as aggressive. Hold back, and you’re overlooked. It’s a lose-lose situation. In other words, we hold women to different standards than men and they are penalized no matter how they choose to communicate. This isn't just based on personal experiences, it's widely researched. • Women who are assertive are 30% more likely to be labeled as "abrasive" in performance reviews compared to men • In group discussions, men interrupt women 33% more often than they interrupt other men If you think it's not the case, think again. This is actually how unconscious biases work. They are...unconscious! ⮑ If you're a woman, reflect on how many times you had to rephrase or reconsider your tone or even your expectations from your team, for fear of being judged as "too bossy". ⮑ If you're a man, reflect on how many times you've heard a woman assert herself in the workplace and thought, "she's too tough" or "she complains too much", when the same behavior from a male colleague wouldn’t have raised an eyebrow. This isn’t just about confidence, but about deeply ingrained biases that penalize women for the same behaviors that are rewarded in men. And it has real consequences: fewer women in leadership, fewer diverse perspectives in decision-making, and an ongoing cycle that keeps workplaces inequitable. So, what can we do? ⮑ If you’re a leader, watch for biases in performance feedback and promotions. Are women in your team held to different standards than men? ⮑ If you’re in a meeting, actively invite women’s perspectives and call out interruptions when they happen. ⮑ If you’re a woman, know that it’s not about you, it’s about systems. Build a support network, advocate for yourself, and push for change. Given that International Women’s Day is just around the corner, let’s move beyond celebration and into action. It’s time to change the conversation and the structures that hold women back. What are your thoughts? Have you experienced or witnessed the double bind in action? Let’s talk in the comments. 👇 #IWD #Leadership #Communication #GenderEquality

If you’re a new lawyer and another lawyer tells you how a law works, make sure you go and look it up for yourself afterwards. Get in the habit of constantly looking up what other lawyers tell you about the law. Don’t rely on other lawyers as a substitute for doing your own research. Other lawyers are great to bounce ideas off of, but it is not the same as doing your own research and learning the law. The law is super dense, complicated and not always easy to interpret (this is why we have jobs). For example, in the criminal defense context, somebody tells you what “operation” means for driving cases. They tell you, hey the prosecution can prove “operation” in your set of facts. Go and look up the law on operation, read it. Find the cases about it. Find the jury instructions. The issues we tackle are never as straight forward as people make it out to be. Just get in the habit of looking up every statute, law, case law, definition, whatever it is. No matter how busy you get, don’t trust what other people are telling you even if you think they are good lawyers. Some of the best lawyers I know are always going back to the law. 40 years in, re-reading the same laws they have been dealing with their whole career. They tell you something and will look up the law right in front of you. Get in the habit of looking everything up. 

Still judging women leaders differently? 🌐 A fascinating study by Movchan Agency analyzed the top search inquiries about 250 male and 250 female CEOs from Forbes and Fortune rankings to find out how society perceives women in leadership positions — and the results are telling. When users search for male CEOs, they often focus on their achievements, leadership styles, and business strategies. But when it comes to female CEOs, the top searches shift toward personal life, appearance, and relationships. ☝️ Same leadership level but completely different lens! This isn’t just a small bias — it’s a clear reflection of how society still underestimates women at the top! 💡 This study is a reminder that while progress has been made, we still have work to do in how we view and value women leaders. If we want true gender equity in leadership, it’s not just about giving women the seat at the table — it’s about changing the way we talk about them! 🔗 Read the full study >> https://lnkd.in/eexGJTg6 #BreakTheBias #WomenInLeadership #DiversityMatters #FemaleCEOs

She’s just… unlikeable. Ever heard that in a performance review? A 2024 study analyzing 23,000 reviews just exposed the ugly truth: High-performing women aren’t just judged. They’re judged differently. -“Unlikeable” – 4x more likely to describe women -Emotional” – 7x more likely -Abrasive” – 3x more likely -Bossy” – Almost always used for women And the kicker? Men with the same traits? They’re called leaders. So today, on International Women’s Day, let’s get real: -Women are told to be more confident—then called “too aggressive.” -Women are told to lead—then labeled “difficult.” -Women are told to speak up, then told they’re “too much.” This isn’t just unfair. It’s bad for business. -Women leave quietly. -Companies lose top talent. -Bias kills innovation. So, what’s the fix? 🛑 Stop blaming women for how they show up. Fix the system that’s pushing them out. 5 Data-Backed Fixes: -Ban Biased Feedback – No more personality critiques. -Use AI for Screening – Catch bias before it spreads. -Structured Reviews – Focus on metrics, not opinions. -Train Leaders Differently – Assess behaviors, not personalities. -Audit Everything – What gets measured gets changed. -Better feedback = Stronger teams = Higher performance. -International Women’s Day isn’t just about celebration. It’s about change. If you’ve ever been on the receiving end of this, drop a 🔥 in the comments. ♻️ Share because it can help others ➕ Follow me for more unfiltered truths about building something that matters. Olga Alcaraz Source: Textio Performance Review Language Study (2024)