I come from a strong corporate background and never imagined becoming a lawyer. I had done an apprenticeship at a global company before beginning my studies and planned to go back afterwards – you know, make it up to the board someday. At school, I was torn between engineering and the law, but decided to go with what made me happy. The law classes were much more fun and interactive.

I stayed with the company part-time and, after graduation, asked to be relocated to London. They said they would do it after another year in Germany. That wasn’t fast enough, so I asked my brother, who was studying law at Oxford, to recommend a firm that had offices in London and Germany. Clifford Chance had been recruiting there the night before, so that was his suggestion. I interviewed a week later and got an offer the same day. The deal was: three months in Germany, then two years in London.

I started on the M&A team but, after moving to London, discovered that finance law is more transportable. The documents are more commercial and, therefore, less affected by local governing law, so I switched to acquisition finance. I’m definitely in the right field. My practice is connected to living companies, and I enjoy working with high-profile clients and making things happen. I also love the independence of being a partner, aligning my own strategy with the firm’s and figuring out how to be successful.

One thing I’ve learned is that you will never get there alone. No one does everything well, but as a team, you can do it all. I find it easy to develop client relationships and run complex deal meetings. But ask me to give a public speech, and I will go straight to a particular colleague and say, “let’s do this together.” That’s her strength, and she loves doing it. Then I make sure I am super prepared for my part.

I encourage everyone on my team to be entrepreneurial. For junior lawyers, my advice is to get close to a few key clients. Work on repeat assignments, give speeches at closing dinners and find ways to connect at a plain level. Then balance that with other projects for broader exposure. It’s never too soon to build relationships and help sell your firm.

My first child was born right after I was made a partner. I took my full leave but worried about being out of the market for six months. I had great support, so it was all in my head. When I returned, people said things like, “Oh! You’re back after only two weeks?” After that, taking leave for my other three kids was much easier.

Childcare is not the place to count pennies. Get the help you need, and then learn to let go and trust what you’ve done. My own feelings of success thrive when I manage to balance, and find compromise in an enjoyable way, the competing demands of family and my personal passions – downhill skiing, the opera and my two greater Swiss mountain dogs – and being a partner at an elite global firm.

The key milestones in my career have all involved taking some risk and not necessarily following the traditional path – trusting my instincts. The first of those moments was deciding not to be afraid to experiment, and even fail, for the sake of getting the right exposure. During law school, I explored different practices and environments, such as clerking for a federal tax prosecutor, an internship at a litigation firm and working in-house at a tech start-up. There was no mortgage to worry about, so I just went for it! These experiences have been extremely valuable not only because they broaden my perspective of what it meant to be a lawyer, but also helped me make a more informed decision about which path to take following graduation. After doing a little bit of everything, I realized that I was better suited to transactional work, which focuses on consensus building and a shared goal of getting the deal done.

Next was a move to Spain for my LLM, which led to a job offer in my firm’s Madrid office. As a Brazilian law-qualified attorney, the safer path would have been to join a local firm back home, but I had a gut feeling that working at an international firm and learning an entirely new legal system would be too interesting to pass up. I remember having a discussion with my parents about whether to take an offer in Spain or in Brazil, and they said something that I will never forget: “Opportunities come and go, and there is no such thing as perfect timing. Don’t miss out on the good ones as they might not be there tomorrow.” When I was later considering a move to New York, Spain had then become the safe choice. I remembered my parent’s words of wisdom and didn’t think twice about relocating to the US to help strengthen our Latin America practice. The key lesson I learned from these experiences, when I look back at the choices I’ve made, is that my most rewarding experiences always involved some risk and trusting my gut.

Regrets are equally part of the process. I don’t have many, but the ones I can think of involve choosing inaction over action, particularly not taking a stand. As a junior lawyer, I participated in a deal negotiation, during which a senior person on the other side spoke disrespectfully to me. I wanted to say something, politely, but completely shut down and later regretted not having the courage to stand up for my principles. Thankfully, my colleague, a senior partner, saw my discomfort. He stopped the meeting and demanded a more respectful tone as a condition of moving forward. Afterwards, he said to me, “I just won’t tolerate that kind of behavior.” He is a good friend and mentor to me to this day.

For those starting out, my advice is to trust your instincts, stand up for what you believe is right and take some risk every now and then, no matter how junior you are. Also, always seek out role models and mentors. It is key to have a good support network and people that you know will be there for you when you need them the most.

Self identity: a social construct

I wanted to be an adviser – I enjoyed talking to people and giving them advice – so it was no coincidence that I ended up as a lawyer who gives regulatory advice.

When I started in this career, I didn’t appreciate the importance of networking and spending not just time in the office, but social time with clients, industry representatives, journalists, and the whole ecosystem that comes with the profession.

That changed when I realized the importance of building a market profile. The area of law that I’m in is closely connected to political events, which made it even more important to be out there, and to be seen to be out there. When you are in the business of giving advice, people want to know the market view − not just your view.

You don’t have to meet everybody, but take the right opportunities such as speaking engagements or participation on panels. And if you make the effort to go along, make sure you say something.

A physical and mental workout

The primary skill that I’ve had to develop is resilience, and by that I mean both physical and mental resilience. You learn to operate when you’re feeling less than 100 percent well – things have to be done, and no one else is going to do them for you. It’s partly being a team player and not wanting to let others down.

In terms of mental resilience, you have to make tough decisions and deal with the consequences.

Know your “USPs”

Working on business and management skills as early as possible is really important; being a lawyer is not dissimilar to any other sales role. Ultimately, what we sell is legal advice. You can be the best technical lawyer in the world, but if you can’t sell your skills – your Unique Selling Points – you’re not going to attract clients. People find it hard to talk to clients about charges and ways to structure them so as to be cost-effective, but that’s a good skill to have.

Personal assistance

I was very lucky in that I had a great mentor. My advice to younger lawyers would be to identify somebody who can provide independent advice about your career. This is absolutely invaluable. It doesn’t have to be a lawyer, but someone prepared to give up a bit of time to chat through different challenges or issues when you’re at a turning point.

When building your career, your personal choices are as significant as the professional choices, because if your home life isn’t right, your work life is going to be challenging as well. Building a good and realistic support network is very important.

Believe in yourself

My overall advice is to have confidence in your own abilities, even when you go through stages – and we all do – when you have doubts about whether you’re able to meet a particular challenge. Believe in yourself, because if you don’t, no one else will.

Where you start is not where you finish

To be honest, when I was 18, I didn’t know what I wanted to do. I loved reading and writing, and thought law might be a good option as training in analytical thinking as much as anything. Little did I expect it to turn into a career − one that I enjoy every day, not just for my love for words, but for all the other facets of the job that I never expected.

One thing I would say to my younger self is that the job you think you are going into is often not the same job you end up doing. You need to grow and evolve with your career. There are things that you start out being unsure about, but with practice and experience these challenges become fulfilling.

Pushing your boundaries

The only way to really succeed is to push through your comfort zone. If you’re not just a little bit uncomfortable, then you are not learning and achieving. Often, the best way to conquer fear is to face it. In my experience, when new tasks actually become part of your day-to-day job, fear is no longer an issue.

I’m not sure if some areas of discomfort ever go away − a bit like actors with stage fright. If you get too comfortable, you can disengage and miss things. I don’t ever want to be in that position.

Putting people first

When I was approaching partnership, I really had to focus more on the softer skills, such as networking and engagement. Networking can seem like a daunting concept at first – entering a room full of strangers and getting to know them. But that’s a narrow definition of networking. It’s really about understanding that opportunities for business development are all around you, ranging from classmates to former co-workers. A lot of it is about talking to people and making them feel comfortable; not just senior people, but peers as well. Start building your networks early – you never know where people might
end up.

Everyone has a different style of getting to know people. I like talking to clients about their families or holidays, and I remember things about people, such as their children’s names. For me, it’s not about holding court, but about having meaningful one-to-one conversations. People want to do business with those they know, like and trust. Clients are people first, and they are often looking to appoint someone they will enjoy working long hours with.

The business development aspects of a partner role include two key components. First, you must ask the right questions of your clients so you can address their concerns. And second, check your ego at the door. It’s not enough to impress them with your legal acumen; you really need to listen carefully to their issues and concerns. That’s a skill that will take you far.

I always loved the thought of becoming a technical expert in whatever choice of career I made – although I wasn’t sure what form that would take. It sounds a bit cliché, but I enjoyed debating, discussion and problem solving, so a career in law seemed a natural fit for me. I viewed it as a career track with prestige and an opportunity to achieve at the highest levels.

My first exposure to employment law was at university. It was a subject area I enjoyed, though I had always wanted to be a corporate lawyer. When I was on my training contract, I started in the finance practice before looking for my next step – something less transactional and more advisory-based. That led me into employment law, which was not at all what I expected. Because I work at a global firm, employment law affords me the opportunity to work very holistically – one moment it’s deals, the next litigation, the next advisory.

Coming out of law school, I would never have expected there to be such diversity of work and opportunity in employment law. That was a learning point for me: you need to really research what law firms do and understand that there are a lot of different roles. You aren’t limited to doing corporate or finance work – you can be specialist at the same time.

Confidence is something I had to work on in my career as a junior lawyer. I was confident socially, but it didn’t show at work, and the partners were worried that I was too shy. Somebody mentioned it to me, and I thought, “I need to do something about this.” I was very proactive, and at every opportunity for public speaking or presentations, I was the first to raise my hand. I did this for several years, and now it’s easier.

Another theme that stands out for me is the value of building relationships. Empathy is one of the most important strengths you can bring to relationships with clients and colleagues. As an employment lawyer, I deal with sensitive and personal issues, such as compensation and benefits, for some of our most strategically important clients. They want someone who can empathize with their needs and understand what’s keeping them awake at night. It’s also important to try to empathize with your junior colleagues and appreciate the pressures on partners.

My advice is to find something you are passionate about, and use that to inspire your career.

I am passionate about diversity. It’s important to all law firms and their clients, so it also just makes business sense. I joined the steering committee of our London Women’s Network, which has given me internal and external networking opportunities, developed my leadership skills and enabled me to influence firm policy. Last year, I co-founded our London BME (Black and Minority Ethnic) network. It’s been a great way of building my professional network while doing something really important.

Like many people, my original inspiration for going into law was probably the result of watching too many legal dramas on TV. Suffice to say, that meant I did not go to law school dreaming of being a project finance lawyer. I also never intended to come to the US, never mind spend nearly 20 years over here. Life can take you to interesting places if you are open to the challenge.

When I started out, I assumed that there must be one “right way” to be a lawyer. Fast forward more than 20 years and it’s clear to me that there are many ways to be a good lawyer. Different people have different styles and strengths. Some lawyers are most effective in a more adversarial arena, while others are strong consensus builders. My advice for those starting out is: find your own style, and find the practice and the clients your style is best suited to. Your style will appeal to some clients and not to others. That is true for all of us.

I would tell any young lawyer: don’t talk yourself out of challenges because they seem daunting. Many lawyers experience some form of “imposter syndrome” when they become partners – I certainly did. It’s easy to think you are not up to the job because you don’t know it all. I now know that no one knows everything. I am confronted with new issues every day. Often those who seem to know everything have just mastered the art of bluffing better than the rest of us.

Opportunity is the best gift a mentor can give. My first mentor was an old-school male partner who had no time for political correctness. Substantively, however, he was very progressive on women’s issues. He arranged for two senior women to share a job and was willing to assign difficult work equally to men and women. Talk can be cheap, and sometimes the best mentors are not the ones you would first expect.

It’s important to push yourself out of your comfort zone. For many, public speaking is nerve-wracking – but it’s a hurdle you have to get over. Carve out opportunities to handle just ten minutes of a meeting or an internal training session. Start small and then build your way up.

Many of the best women candidates for partnership self-select out of the process. They worry it is hard to have a balanced life as a partner and don’t give it a go. In some ways, it was easier to have children after I became a partner because I had more control over my schedule and could afford a good nanny. If you have a high-pressure job, you absolutely need help, and there is nothing to feel guilty about. It doesn’t matter who folds the laundry. 

Don’t look 20 years down the road and worry that it all looks too hard. Take it a year or two at a time and just give it a go. I have been doing that for 22 years now!