The LegalAuthority.com founder says it’s important to listen to what your own instincts are telling you.  You may have family members and friends encouraging you to accept the less than perfect position; their intentions are good, but you have to remember you’re the one who has to live with the decision.  Ultimately, it rests on what you believe is best for you and your career.  Of course, there are likely financial considerations, too.  Unless you’re independently wealthy, odds are, the bank account will be a strong factor.  Don’t let that become your primary consideration, warns Barnes.  “If you’re a good lawyer, the money will come”, he says.

It might be that you can gain a lot from the firm that’s not your first choice.  For instance, in a smaller practice, you might be able to get closer to the goings-on, which will be good for gaining important experience.  “Smaller law firms can sometimes equate to more personal working relationships”, says A. Harrison Barnes.  And that personal touch will serve you well throughout your career.  You’ll likely be afforded a slower pace and even if you know it’s not going to keep you satisfied in the long run, it’s also a great way to get your legal career kicked off.

Bottom line, before making the decision, you owe it to yourself to consider all of the factors and not focus on just one or two.  The money’s important, but it’s not your only consideration, especially if you’re a recent grad and looking for experience.

Regardless of what you decide, don’t forget the thousands of career opportunities from law firms of all sizes and specialties and located throughout the country that are available right now on LegalAuthorty.com.  Pick up some career advice, browse the available positions and even get help with your resume.

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Employee empowerment sounds like a great concept when you first think about it. Of course, it’s good to give employees the ability to control their own work from day to day. Managers will have an easier time, and employees will be a lot happier. That’s why it’s such a surprise to many people when employee empowerment programs fail. In fact, they can actually make the situation worse!

This is all because of the way they’re handled. You see, in many cases, the managers don’t really understand what employee empowerment means. They don’t really want to give the employees the power to take care of their own work. Whether it’s because the manager doesn’t trust the employee to be truly empowered, or doesn’t know how to manage except for very closely, this kind of behavior is incredibly destructive. It leaves employees feeling as though they’ve been tricked, and they’re a lot more likely to head to the career counselor for some career advice, or start looking for a career change.

Managers who pay lip service to the effectiveness of their employees, but don’t believe in really letting go of the reins, are sabotaging their own efforts. You see, managers define the decision making authority of the staff, and they set the boundaries. There’s nothing wrong with this, as long as they stick to those boundaries. But when a staff member is told they have total control over the project (for good or for bad) they’re likely to feel resentful and undermined when their manager comes by and tries to micromanage.

Employees in empowered situations have the ability and responsibility to make their own decision. If the manager is going to truly allow the employee to be empowered, he or she has to let go of the accountability and responsibility for that decision. Looking over an employee’s shoulder is the most effective way to encourage them to make a career chance. If you don’t want to be sending your employees out for career advice, you need to avoid getting in their way.

Empowered employees can be a huge benefit to an organization. They have the authority and the ability to make their own decisions, and they usually do it right. This allows the company to avoid spending time and effort watching employee actions, and use that energy to improve operations. However, when managers aren’t willing to trust those employees with their power, empowerment programs are sure to fail. Don’t fall into the micromanaging trap. Let your employees have the authority to make their own decisions.

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When it comes to an organization that works well together, you will find that they have different teams that every employee can become a member of. While management may lead the teams, the most effective organizations are those that divide it into teams, which are able to lead, motivate, communicate and ensure or protect the health, safety and work environment of all employees. The best career advice you will ever get about teamwork involves having teams in place to take care of each one of these tasks, if you are the CEO or owner of the company.

If you aren’t in upper management, then a career counselor will advise you that the way to get there can be through discovering which team you are interested in and becoming an active member. Many people decide a career change is in order when they have looked at the ultimate goals of the teams that every organization needs. You can see the difference in the goals and tasks of each individual team and finding the one that suits your personality and gives you the most satisfaction.

Leadership Team:
Takes care of work projects and looks at the ultimate goal of the company, while thinking of the needs of employees. This is the team that might include those responsible for the financial success of the company, which provides job security for the employees. Those in upper management, accounting, collections and product development are included in this team and they are responsible to lead by example and implement new ideas to meet the goals. Career Advice would be that leaders need followers, in order to be successful.

Motivation Team:
Takes care that employees are motivated and looking out for the same goals of profitability of the company and the job security of co-workers, but provides a work environment that employees want to be a part of. This can include implementing new ideas that workers have to be more productive, or coming up with incentive plans to motivate them. Often, human resource and sales departments are the cheerleaders of the motivation team, with the support of upper management and the ideas of line supervisors. A Career Counselor will tell you that it is hard for the leadership team to succeed if employees aren’t motivated enough to follow them or meet expected goals.

Safety And Environmental Team And Employee Wellness Teams:
Most employees will tell you that they want a safe and happy workplace that cares about the well-being of the employee and their families. Since an employee’s personal life and accomplishments are the most important things to the employee, it is easier to motivate them if they think leadership cares about them. This is a two-way street that many leaders might ignore, but it is crucial that employees have safety committees, and that supervisors are responsible enough to protect their health and safety, while they are at work.

Culture and communication team:
These are teams that evolve on their own with everybody as a participant. A company’s culture is the beliefs, goals and work environment. Communication is important if a company is to operate with a teamwork philosophy to be financially successful. Without these teams, many in leadership may find themselves facing a career change they are unprepared for.

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