2020 hasn’t turned out to be the year we all thought it would be. It’s been unpredictable in many ways and in some cases it has thrown off our routines, delayed our progress and stalled business objectives. It’s not been without its challenges and as we continue to navigate our way through the COVID-19 pandemic in both our personal and professional lives, now is a good time to re-evaluate. We’re encouraging our firms and delegates to re-think their goals, what they want to achieve and how they want to get there. So, we wanted to talk to you today about setting summer goals and our question to you is – what do you want to achieve?
Prepare for office reintegration
Like many, our team has been working remotely for a number of months and our courses are now fully available online. But as government announcements continue to be updated, those in the legal sector are preparing for their reintegration into the workplace post COVID-19 and what that might look like. A goal for many firms this summer may be the safe return of their team members to the office environment and we’re positive that HR and health and safety experts will be a part of that conversation. However, this will not come without its stresses, particularly as expectations have changed. Two thirds of UK employees would like to work from home two to three times a week once lockdown has lifted so we predict that there will be time spent negotiating new working practices.
Get organised
According to Fast Company, summer is actually the best time to focus on career development. It’s a good opportunity to slow down the pace of your daily operations and focus on professional transformation whether you want to learn a new skill, focus on improving your existing ones or further your knowledge within a practice area. However, you can’t do everything at once so get organised – set realistic, measurable objectives and start to consider how you might make them a reality.
Enhance your service offering
At a time where competition levels are likely to be higher than ever, it’s crucial that legal professionals do what they can to set themselves apart. For this reason, we’re seeing many opt to sign up for our Higher Rights of Audience (HRA)course which allows lawyers to practice in the Higher Courts in England and Wales. With the exam now available online for the very first time, this qualification is more accessible than ever.
Focus on wellbeing
Lockdown has had a negative impact on the mental wellbeing of those across the UK with levels worsening by 8.1% as a direct result of the pandemic. We’ve recently talked about the importance of focusing on wellbeing during this time, but we appreciate that other global factors may also now be having an impact on how you’re feeling. Remember to practice self-care and be kind to yourself. However, if your mental wellbeing is being ffected by work stresses in particular and new ways of working, you may benefit from ongoing training including our ‘Time and Stress Management’ module which encourages you to challenge your current working practices to allow you to perform at higher levels of productivity. Yet, regardless of what’s causing your stress, please remember that if you need help, ask for it.
Summer is a great time to regain focus and approach your daily practices with a new attitude. We appreciate that this might not be the most motivating time as we continue to experience lockdown amid a global pandemic. However, there are many options and online resources available to you which might help you to reach your goals, whatever they may be, even if you’ve been furloughed. Plus, training can be an effective tool when looking to reintegrate the workforce back into the office environment by keeping morale and knowledge levels up.
If you’d like our support or if you’d like more information about our upcoming courses, contact infoaltior@barbri.com