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I’m a second year and honestly at least for me there is zero difference. Partners and seniors at my firm had pretty much zero availability during the day and we had to schedule meetings to get their attention anyways. I think remote environment it’s become even easier to access them for questions.
I’m a second year as well (worked in the office for my first 6 months and have been WFH ever since) and agree 100% with A1. I’m learning just as much (if not more) than I was when we were in the office
Yes. Also worried that this environment has made me completely disinterested in being social around a office. I’m fine doing my work, interacting with very few people, and going about my life. I think I’ll have zero desire to attend office events or make friends when we return to the office.
A7: exactly!! It is becoming clear how much strong and healthy relationships outside of the office can make this job so much more bearable. There’s only so many hours in a day, I would rather get more work done and then go see my friends and family.
Yep, first year feeling the same. Every day single day I feel like I’m mentally not cut out for this job. I’m having a real tough time getting acclimated, and I constantly feel like I’m in over my head and going at things completely alone.
You’d feel like this if you were in the office too
5th year here. You’re not alone, and I promise even the more experienced associates are feeling that way. Hopefully the partners take that into account when we all have weird gaps in our knowledge.
Eh. Perks of WFH outweigh the cons. I’ve just had to take more initiative myself.
Second year here. I actually think I’m getting more hands on experience during WFH because it’s easier to throw me into a client interview or depo. This isn’t the case for everyone, but as firms can cut back on other expenses that may be shifted to clients, it may be easier to delegate out substantive experiences. Some firms are also increasing their billing rates which will inherently shift more work down the ladder because the junior is the most cost effective. Your two hours of research is still cheaper than an hour of partner time.
If you are feeling bogged down in a case because it’s new, be proactive and ask for some time to chat with the senior members of the team. The key is just to be mindful of their time and you can propose certain solutions to make it look like you are thinking about the issues and not just running for help. Sometimes I lead with a “this is new to me and here are my initial impressions of the case. Do you have any guidance or recommendations for how I should think about this?” They will likely be more invested in you if they don’t have to start every detail from scratch.
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I’m not worried, I’m dead sure first years won’t develop as well as they should/if they weren’t in an office, speaking from experience with those who were first years when WFH began. You need to go above and beyond. Schedule lunch with your seniors if you’re in the city. Have weekly Teams calls with your mentor to discuss what you’ve been doing during the week.
Can you elaborate on those point about first years not developing as well as they should? Genuinely curious, haven’t gotten a chance to pick anyone’s brain on this.