Do you hate working as a lawyer? Are you an unhappy lawyer who wants to leave the law, but isn’t sure what to do next? Do your family and friends think you’re crazy for wanting to leave the law, or are you too afraid to tell them you don’t want to be a lawyer? The Former Lawyer Podcast is for you! Each week, host Sarah Cottrell interviews a different former lawyer who has left the law behind. Hear inspiring stories about how these former lawyers are thriving and found their way to careers and lives they love.
The first year after leaving the law is a strange mix of freedom and fatigue. There is relief in stepping away from billable hours, but the exhaustion runs deeper than expected. Sarah Cottrell hears it constantly from clients. They imagined a clean break. Instead, it feels like living in a body still bracing for impact. At first there’s quiet. The…
Lawyers often find themselves in a familiar loop. Work is unbearable and the thought is, I need to get out. Then things calm down. The urgency fades. It suddenly feels manageable. Until the next impossible deadline, the next abusive comment, or the next late night at the office. The whole cycle starts again. Annie Little, who has been a guest…
Caring about what other people think doesn’t mean you’re shallow or weak. It means you’re human. For lawyers especially, this shows up again and again. Sarah Cottrell sees it with almost every client who joins the Collab. One of the first reflection exercises she gives them is to look back at why they decided to go to law school in…
You’ve been in therapy. You’ve talked through your career. You understand, logically, that your boss’s mood isn’t your responsibility, that your worth isn’t measured by productivity, and that burnout doesn’t mean you’re broken. And yet… you’re still panicking every time Outlook pings. You’re still second-guessing every boundary. You’re still bracing for impact. For many lawyers, this is the point where…
2025 is more than halfway through, and if you told yourself this was the year you’d leave practice, this is your check-in. September is basically here, which means four months left in the year. That’s still plenty of time to make progress. And honestly, the start of fall always feels like a reset — school year vibes, even for those…
The question comes up constantly – in podcast interviews, on Collab group calls, and in emails from listeners. “What if the grass isn’t greener on the other side?” It’s tied to this idea that maybe being miserable at work is just what it means to be an adult with a job. Maybe every workplace is toxic. Maybe no one really…
