Tips on How to Stay Positive and Find a New Paralegal Job
As my time as a paralegal continues to grow, I’ve become more and more accustomed to seeing that e-mail stating that so and so is “no longer with the firm”. Getting fired usually comes a shock. We tend to believe that we can see these kinds of things coming, but really, we don’t.
I consider myself a hard-working employee who makes sacrifices for the greater good. What I’ve come to learn is that you can be all that and still be let go because you were simply the “last one in.” The reason ultimately becomes a useless bit of information in the grand scheme of things.
As terrible as it seems, being let go or getting fired is actually a crucial point in your paralegal career because it forces you to take a step back and analyze where you are in your career and what you want to accomplish going forward.
Of all the things I felt that day, the worst was embarrassment. It was truly embarrassing, and my soul felt crushed. I did everything I could to not let tears fall from my eyes as some woman I had never met before told me I was now unemployed. Pack up, go home. I felt completely defeated.
I tend to think of things from a glass-half-full perspective, so when things have gone wrong in my life, I always feel like I’m being re-directed to something bigger and better. But I have to say in those moments I couldn’t see the bigger and better picture.
I was able to keep my composure until it was over, but as soon as I got in my truck my eyes couldn’t fight back the tears any longer. I was scared. Now what? In this blog, I’ll share tips on how to stay positive and find a new paralegal job.
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1. Take a Big, Deep Breath
What a cliché thing to say in a blog, but oh how much weight and truth come with this one. So, you got fired, now what? You can start by taking a big, deep breath, and then just like Elsa did in Frozen – let it go.
I haven’t found one thing that benefits you by sitting around in the pit of shame and beating yourself up over what you could have done differently or better. There is, however, hope. They say mistakes are our best experience. Take what you have learned and use it as a stepping stool, not a crutch.
Those should-a, would-a, could-a’s will get you if you let them. I felt so many emotions, but fear and shame were the hardest to battle. I felt like a failure to my family, and that I wasn’t any good at anything. Those thoughts kept me small, and for a few days I stayed there, wallowing in my self-pity. But when the smoke cleared, I saw growth instead of defeat.
2. Adapt or Die
I spent several years as a personal injury paralegal before I made the jump to try something different. After a year at the new firm, they had to close an office and let go of people. It was the first time I heard the saying “last one in, first one out.”
You must be willing to see through the noise of self-criticism and reflect on the experience as a whole. My mom said, “Well at least you didn’t get fired.” But to me, that didn’t matter because whether I got laid off or got fired it still felt the same.
What difference did the reasoning make, I had a family to take care of and bills to pay. After a while, I did realize the difference but honestly, it hurt that much more. My social position in the firm outweighed by a landslide my performance and qualities as a paralegal.
There were surely others I had noticed that didn’t put forth half the effort I was making. Again, thoughts kept me small. I knew I had to adapt to the situation, or it would consume me. There were days I felt like I would never stop feeling regret about the choices I had made, specifically why I ever left the firm I was at in the first place.
I didn’t need to keep beating that dead horse, so I changed my thoughts and began to feel strength and courage I didn’t know I had. The decision was made to adapt or die. I could let the situation control me or I could adapt to it by:
- Practicing self-compassion and self-care.
- Talking about it with supportive friends and family.
- Journaling the experience.
- Releasing the negative and embracing the positive.
Here’s how to reduce stress by practicing mindfulness.
3. The Resume
It was now time to dust off the ol’ resume and give it a well-deserved makeover. I thought this was going to be a daunting task, but it ended up being filled with excitement and pride. I have stuff to write about now. It was heartwarming the moment I realized how far I had actually come in my career.
My resume looked professional and filled with all of these things I knew how to do that I didn’t know how to do a few years ago. It’s definitely worth doing some research on how to build a good resume. There are tons of websites out there to help guide you. I wanted to keep mine short and sweet.
The goal for me was to create a resume that got straight to the point and wasn’t filled with fluff. I didn’t want the important details to get lost. So, I found a template that would highlight my skills/abilities and experience vs. my objectives or education.
The strength of your resume is what will stand out among employers. They see hundreds of resumes all the time, and most of them are generic and just copied and pasted. Your resume should be a direct reflection of who you are as a person from the colors to the fonts and format.
Learn about pursuing a career in compliance and privacy.
4. Time for Yourself After Getting Fired
I knew that unless I knew a guy who knew a guy, it would probably be a couple of months after getting fired before I could find a new job. I tried not to think about the bills and things that could go wrong during that time. I was fine when everyone was home, but once my husband left for work and the kids for school/daycare, it was just me, my thoughts, and I.
The panic would slowly creep in, and I would have to actively push it back out. Looking back, I can honestly say that while not having a job really sucks, I saw just how much of my time and efforts were always redirected elsewhere other than my home. My new routine consisted of checking for new job postings, and then sending my resume out.
After that, I had some “downtime” where I could read a book, re-organize the pots and pans that so desperately needed cleaning out, or even take a nap. I found myself making a to-do list of things around the house that weren’t necessarily “important” but tasks that needed to be done, nonetheless.
I cleaned out closets, went through old clothes, and caught up on a lot of tedious cleaning tasks which in return made me feel better. I went for walks; I watched a tv show that I had been wanting to see (but that my husband absolutely dreaded); and got to enjoy having dinner made when everyone got home. Taking time for myself after getting fired was the reset I never knew I desperately needed.
Here are some paralegal professional development tips for you.
5. Apply Everywhere
I applied for every legal assistant or receptionist position I could find, even if it wasn’t my first choice. If you’ve been at this law firm thing long enough, you know the value of getting a foot in the door.
I really wanted to find a position where I could come in as a paralegal, but as the weeks started to go by, my optimism slowly turned to a dreadful realization that I was probably going to have to start at the bottom of the barrel again after getting fired.
I didn’t want to make less money or take on front desk duties, but eventually, my ego settled because there are some positives to accepting those kinds of positions (more experience).
Sometimes, all we need is the opportunity to show others our abilities and what we can do. It’s a struggle to set the ego down especially after getting fired but worth it if you’re at a firm where there is room to grow. Not only did I apply everywhere, but I also reached out to my network of paralegals who I had become familiar with over the years. Even old professors.
6. Prepare for Rejection
Out of the 30+ places I sent my resume to, I probably heard back from maybe ten? I went through lengthy interview processes, some with personality tests, and still didn’t hear back from them. I went to a couple in person interviews and still didn’t hear back from them. I really wasn’t prepared for more rejection; on top of the rejection that I had just felt after being let go.
I was angry at these places for not hiring me. I was angry at the last firm for closing an office. In this process, there’s no space for anger even after getting fired, and I forced myself to see it as a humbling experience. I’m not what they are looking for and that’s OKAY! My time would come.
I couldn’t keep getting attached to the idea of what I could or would be doing at a new law firm. Creating scenarios in my head about what it would be like to work there only did more damage. I stopped forming any kind of attachment to the places I was sending my resume to and decided to just wait and see what would happen.
If it really came down to it, I know I could get a temporary job in some other industry or field (I’d flip burgers if I had to) until I could find a paralegal position, and having this mindset really helped me prepare for rejection.
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Conclusion
You know from your own experience just how hard being a paralegal can be. We have to bob and weave through the punches, and still somehow manage to produce our best work for each and every case. Take the things you have learned as a paralegal and apply them to this process.
We are able to speak life to our clients and can give them hope and guidance. We can do the same for ourselves. We are able to manage busy schedules and arrange last-minute deadlines. We can certainly put ourselves first for a bit. I know that being let go or getting fired is an extremely uncomfortable place to be in, but it can help you grow as a paralegal and as a person.
As a rockstar paralegal, you are already an excellent swimmer, so you just have to doggy paddle to the next opportunity.
Meet the Author
Christina West is a paralegal at Parkowski, Guerke & Swayze, P.A. After practicing in personal injury for six years, she decided to expand her knowledge of the law and transitioned into a real estate paralegal role. After a year of learning all things real estate, her journey led her to her current firm where she handles estate planning and business corporation matters. She is a Delaware native and graduated from the University of Delaware with a bachelor’s degree in criminal justice. She continued her education at Delaware Technical Community College earning her Paralegal Certificate in 2017. She lives at the beach with her family and enjoys reading, movies, and being outdoors.
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