“I don’t want to be a lawyer anymore—what can I do?” This is the question that most unhappy lawyers find themselves asking when they realize that they want to leave the law.

The two types of “What can I do?”

In today’s episode, I’m talking about some of the answers to this question.

First, I think it’s important to note that lawyers can have two different things in mind when they’re asking, “What can I do?”

The first type of question is: “What other types of jobs and careers can I do if I don’t want to be a lawyer anymore?”

The second type of question is: “What are the practical things that I can do to move myself forward towards a career that I actually want?”

Alternative careers for people with a J.D.

I find that the biggest challenge lawyers face when considering what types of non-legal jobs and careers they can do is believing that they truly are not qualified to do anything else.

The reality is that anyone who has gone to law school, passed the bar, and practiced law is able to do any number of things! But most lawyers approach the question of what they can do next with a scarcity mindset, assuming there’s only a very small number of things they can do.

The first step is letting go of the false belief that you don’t have a lot of options. As I discuss in the podcast, it’s one of the most important parts of the process!

(And if you’re looking for tons of real-life examples, check out this post about alternative careers for lawyers, with 50+ real-life examples!)

Some steps to take when you don’t want to be a lawyer anymore.

There are a few nonnegotiables that I think need to happen if you know legal practice isn’t for you:

• Assess your personality, goals, and values
• Go to therapy
• Find a community that gets it

I share more about why each of these is so important in the episode.

In today’s episode, I share about:

• Why lawyers tend to ask themselves the fundamentally wrong question.
• Whether transferable skills are an important factor to consider.
• The way lawyers tend to self-sabotage when it comes to figuring out what’s next—and what to do about it.
• Why it’s probably so much simpler than you think.

Connect with Sarah:

• https://instagram.com/formerlawyer
• https://facebook.com/formerlawyerpod
• https://linkedin.com/in/sarahjcottrell
• https://linkedin.com/company/former-lawyer

Mentioned in this episode:

• The Former Lawyer Collaborative
• Free guide, First Steps To Leaving The Law
• What’s Next Intensive

Listen to this episode on:

Apple | Spotify | Stitcher | Overcast | RSS