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Please guide us on-
1. Clothes (formal or semi formal- do's and don'ts)
2. Shoes (brand recommendations, how many pairs)
3. Is a suit required?
4. Technical requirements
5. Intellectual requirements
5. Accessories etc
6. Mental preparedness ( things other than "get ready to work 11-12 hours a day")
(These may make me sound trivial and may attract comments like why I'm asking about accessories and stuff which may make me look less serious about my work but i understand that it's important to fit into the law firm environment, and a lot of these contribute to it)
And anything else you wished someone told you while joining in. There's enough law firm bashing in other LI threads so no sarcastic comments or trolls here please.
1.Cothes: Western formals- For men it's usually straight forward: Formal pants and full sleeve formal shirts. Ties and suits overall are not mandatory but of course this varies firm to firm. For the first day if you're in doubt either ask the HR before joining or just put on a tie, better to be over dressed than under dressed. Women have more options when it comes to clothing but this also varies firm to firm, some allow formal Indian wear as well. As long as it's not flashy it should do, you'll see a lot of blues, Greys, whites etc. It would be wise to own a couple of suits as your firm may require you to wear them for certain things: physical client meetings, events etc.
Shoes: Anything considered formal wear.
Technical and intellectual requirements and mental preparedness:
Going to bundle these together. Barring mental preparation, these depend entirely on your practice area.
The general advice I can offer is that if you're fortunate to have access to seniors ask them about the day to day of an A0 and what kind of documents and forms they have to review. If you don't have seniors to reach out to then I recommend that you try to gauge what is important from a practical perspective in your area. So if you're in GC don't go through the entire act, just focus on things like private placement, ESOPs, issue of securities, share capital and debenture rules and the forms that come along with day-to-day practice: PAS3 PAS4 MGT14 etc. Read a standard template SHA or whatever standard document your practice sees a lot of and see what purpose each clause serves.
Knowing compliance requirements helps as well payment of gratuity ESIC, POSH etc.
Intellectually your first few months in all probability will not be "exciting". A lot of doc reviews, proof reading etc. It's tough work in terms staying focused to not make silly errors so just try to be zoned in while working. This of course gets harder the longer your hours are but it is what it is.
As far as mental preparation goes, you need to have a system in place eventually. The hours are probably going to be long so you need things that keep you sane and supported. Talk to other A0s when you can, it will make your experience less isolating and if you mess up at least you'll know the other people are having a rough time too, it's just the nature of the job. Your peers can also help you out for small things that they might have come across and you haven't. Try finding friendly seniors whether A1 or SA or Partner doesn't matter, everyone has more experience than you so all of then would be able to help you. Don't bother them but maybe occasionally you can approach them with a trivial question (this is hard to do in a fully wfh set up) and they'd be able to guide you.
Aside from this know that your job isn't just about doing the job, a lot comes with it. You'll have to manage work load so as to not over commit but also not push away work. You'll have to manage yourself in stressful situations i.e. manage your reactions, don't beat yourself up over small things if you get yelled at take the criticism you can use to improve, give yourself some time to feel sorry for yourself and then move on. These are all soft skills you'll need to survive which are probably as important as technical prowess, you don't want to burnout too quickly.
This is all I can offer
Good luck!
Appearance - you look like the job that you want. Not the one that you have. In the first few days, wear full-on formals. This means a shirt and trousers. Tie optional but preferred (maybe coz I like ties). If you look at yourself in the mirror and ask, is this ok to wear to work, it probably isn't.
Use this time to analyse what others are wearing, particularly SAs. Adjust accordingly. One pair of comfortable formal shoes should be enough. Just make sure it's something that lasts and that you can wear for hours every day.
Face-time - justice must not only be done, it must also seen to be done. Same with A0s in T1s. Come in before anyone else, leave after your team has left. People will be divided on this, some will claim that a work life balance is important. I agree. Make yourself invaluable at work, life will follow.
Attitude - there's no such thing as too much work. Even if you're drowning in it. You've got multiple seniors giving you random stuff to do, get it done. Dont complain, atleast not to colleagues. I've been of the firm view that no matter how toxic a work environment is, the one thing that firms value in the long run is well, value itself. Partners and MAs and PAs will get a sense of how much value a person brings to the team. As an A0, you wont be bringing much value to begin with. How about learning all you possibly can on the job, to get to be valuable as soon as possible?
Lastly, the work environment at law firms can be unbelievably toxic. You will probably get picked on. It's not going to be easy to navigate, but a sense of self-deprecatory humor and a little bit of humility will go a long way.
To use a certain Rudyard Kipling's words.
If you can fill the unforgiving minute
With sixty seconds’ worth of distance run,
Yours is the Earth and everything that’s in it,
etc etc.
But of course, this is my book. Feel free to write yours.
This question has been asked before and answered (in great detail too, I might add) by many people. Let's try and not crowd this platform with more noise than it already manages to attract?
R - consider not approving threads on topics that have already been addressed (and/or beaten to death and then some)?
1. Clothes (formal or semi formal- do's and don'ts)
- evergreen basics > fast fashion for both formal and casual
- match belt with shoes
- shirts light solids > dark solids (naturally go with dark solids)
- Fit > unfit (fit check = sleeves not extra long, pockets on shirt not too big (don't buy with pockets actually),collar not too loose, trousers be fit too)
- Some brands are just ideal - you want simple shirts without complication in multiple shades - just walk in to a Westside if nothing works.
(You will have to budget some amount to do all this)
For casuals - you can sport evergreen basics again - Chinese collars, polos, with light shade trousers, etc.
Keep it simple, ultimately your neighbourhood Trends, H&M, Westside, etc. are idle quick stop shopping that you can do and not waste a lot of time. Start off with a minimum of 6 pairs (definitely own 2 whites, and off-white shades in grey, blue, green, pink, (or) light stripes of these colours for shirts - trousers can be repeated but do get 2 blacks, 1 dark navy, 1 dark grey). Add on a pair every month.
2. Shoes (brand recommendations, how many pairs)
Minimum: (i) one black formal; (i) one brown formal; (i) one white casual; (i) one sports; (i) one non-white casual.
Brands are irrelevant - they should look clean AND fresh, go for the evergreen choice. Own a belt of the shade of formal shoes. Get the socks that look clean.
Brands are relevant only if you are choosing something exotic to my mind - nobody expects an associate to spend a bomb.
3. Is a suit required?
and a tie as well. You should have a black colour, navy blue (and if possible - dark grey). a light grey and blue tie helps as well. These are specifically for client meetings only usually, but they can happen at a moments notice. For an A0 - even one might be enough.
4. Technical requirements
Get the basics required in your practice area polished. Become well read - but at the same time, explore and have some personality. There are no technical requirements and nobody expects you to be Einstein, but every product delivered should be (i) on time; (ii) diligently done; (iii) ready to handover to client (styling, proofreading and grammar wise). This really helps set up trust in you, but if you can't do this, nm.
5. Intellectual requirements
See above.
5. Accessories etc
None - can show character by wearing a ring, watch.
6. Mental preparedness ( things other than "get ready to work 11-12 hours a day")
Its not as bad as they make it sound, but you'll have to eat well, live well, exercise well (and this often gets missed in a law firm lifestyle). So please get these things sorted, move in the city in advance and ensure you can focus on work - when it starts (please enjoy yourself during orientation).
So before joining - please (i) get your place sorted and furnished - make a house, you are a professional now, get proper wardrobe/bed/table chairs - and setup ready; (ii) if possible - check the traffic to office and avoid anything more than 30 mins (though people survive working all over the place); (iii) good food, lunch box, cook, maids, laundry; (iv) gym; (v) access to eateries.
If possible, don't be single.
Cheers!
2. Shoes (brand recommendations, how many pairs) - buy one nice shoe. buy more if you can. but buy one good shoe. a 3-4k amazon bought Carlton London lasted me some good 3+ years without much wear and tear. Cheap ones look ugly and get uglier by the minute. you wouldn't want a shoe emergency in the middle of a meeting now, would you?
3. Is a suit required? - have one nice black suit at least. if you can, buy more. Suits look good. Make you look better. Follow Barney's advice from HIMYM.
4. Technical requirements - get a signal booster in your house if you have network issues. Get a wifi. If you are financially constrained, ignore.
5. Intellectual requirements - have an open mind. read a few books. Fiction / Non Fiction. Read about deals that happened recently where your team was invovled.
5. Accessories etc. - have a nice tie or two. Get these from a small boutique. No need to buy 5k ties as A0s. Rs. 250 ties are more than enough.
6. Mental preparedness ( things other than "get ready to work 11-12 hours a day") - have an open mind. You might be right, but mostly you wouldn't be. There will be a pattern - follow it and stick to it. If you can see a pattern, don't change it. Question it. understand why it is there. If you can identify 10 wrong things, take it up with the person who has been in the team for the longest. An SA might have served more time in that team than the partner themselves (funny, but true).
Don't judge. Don't repeat mistakes. Be kind. Don't talk.
Good luck!
dont wear suit besides risking looking like a ticket collector it is hot and it looks naive.
noone does unless it is a very formal outside meeting.
if in doubt and even for meetings simply ask : should i wear a suit?
then look around. the good SAs what are they wearing? are they wearing ties or just smart shirts?replicate.
fashion is all about looking at the street.
women and men too : dress well but ask yourself if you are dressing for positive professional impressions or looking attractive. no trolling am noy going to engage there- only you know the answer and implement it.
Shoes: clean shoes. Keep black and brown both.
Both of above - try not to have flashy brands. Helps to keep it simple and professional.
Suit - most law firms are chill about it on a daily basis (best to check with the firm). However you will need them on and off for certain meetings. Ensure you have a couple of them clean and ironed to be worn whenever required. Try to spend on a nice suit - it speaks for itself.
Technical requirements - talking to someone in the practice area you want to work may be best
Intellectual requirements - you've bagged the job. You probably have this. Other than that - usual preachy stuff - be hungry for knowledge etc.
Accessories - nothing required as such. A good noise cancelling headphones may prove very very helpful - keeps hands free to take notes on calls and the office chatter out to help focus at work. Apart from that - try a decent laptop bag (not backpack). Looks better in meetings. I use backpacks but have a laptop bag for meetings. Also please wear a belt on a daily basis- irrespective of whether the trousers are lose or not.
Mental preparedness - read up as much as possible on "imposter syndrome". Please keep in mind almost everyone you will work with during your career goes through it. You also will everyday. Don't worry about it.
Your ability to cope with issues will make you a fine professional and not whether you create the issues. The good folks deal with issues that you create. So learn from them on how handle an issue.
Just my two cents.
One more thing - everyone in a law firm is looking to dole out free advice (quite ironical of me i admit). Be smart to know what to take seriously :-)