The Former Lawyer Podcast

Narcissism is a word that is often associated with lawyers for many reasons. On today’s podcast episode, Sarah is chatting with Kelcey Baker about the fact that many lawyers have relationships with narcissists. Narcissism is a topic that more people are discussing now, and part of the reason is that there is more awareness and understanding of what it is. This episode includes a conversation about...

On today’s podcast episode, Sarah is chatting with her client, Kelcey Baker . Kelcey joined the Collab and participated in the Guided Track , so she has all kinds of wisdom and insight to share about her decision to become a lawyer and then her decision to stop practicing law.  See show notes at formerlawyer.com/216   I'm closing enrollment for my self-paced group program, the Former Lawyer C...

The theme of today’s podcast episode is the idea that just because you can doesn’t mean you should . This advice was a central point to a recent keynote talk Sarah did at The Authentic Lawyer Summit, and it’s important for anyone leaving the law, but also lawyers who want to stay in law forever. Sarah shared more about her background and how this advice applied to her life and has brought the topi...

Today’s podcast episode features Sarah’s conversation with Strawberry Nevill . After connecting through a mutual friend, Sarah invited Strawberry to come on to share their journey from working in public interest. This area of law has its own challenges and can be very hard to walk away from. Strawberry spent about 15 years in and around the legal field, including three years as a practicing lawyer...

On today’s podcast episode, Sarah is talking with a member of the Collab, Read. He shares his background story and how he decided that the Collab was the right fit for him while he was working to become a lawyer. He finished law school about two and a half years ago but was already having doubts about his future in law. Hear his story and how the Collab helped him discover other options.  See show...

Today’s podcast episode features a client, Adrian Hern. She’s a member of the Collab and has also worked with Sarah one-on-one. You’ll get some insight into working with Sarah individually and how it’s structured.  Plus, you get to hear from a client who has gone through these conversations and hear some first-hand experience and advice about navigating legal burnout. See show notes at formerlawye...

In today’s episode, Sarah is back again with Annie Little discussing the book Bullshit Jobs by David Graeber . It’s part of a series of podcast discussions diving into the miseries of a bullshit job. Today, it’s time to dive into the fourth and final misery that comes with bullshit jobs, knowing that one is doing harm as a lawyer. Go back and catch up if you missed the first three in this series ....

In today’s episode, Sarah is back again with Annie Little discussing the book Bullshit Jobs by David Graeber . It’s part of a series of podcast discussions diving into the miseries of a bullshit job, and today, it’s time to dive into the third misery that comes with bullshit jobs. The Misery of not feeling entitled to your misery as a lawyer. If you missed the first two, go back and catch up . I&a...

In today’s episode, Sarah is back again with Annie Little discussing the book Bullshit Jobs by David Graeber. It’s part of a series of podcast discussions, so  check out the others  before and after this one. Graeber gives four reasons why having a bullshit job feels so miserable. Last week’s discussion was all about the first reason— ambiguity and forced pretense —catch up on that one first.  I&a...

This podcast episode is part of the series where Sarah is chatting with Annie Little about the book Bullshit Jobs by David Graeber. If you missed the  first episode in this series, check that out first and learn the background of this series and more about Annie . This episode is about the misery of ambiguity and forced pretense, which is the first of four things Graeber identifies as an impact th...

Sarah kicks off a new series on today’s podcast with Annie Little, another lawyer career coach. Annie has been on the podcast a few times in the past, like the  episode on ADHD . She founded her company,  JD Nation , and helps lawyers find better jobs, both in and out of law.  In this series, the two of them discuss the book  Bullshit Jobs: A Theory  by David Graeber  and dive into some of the boo...

On today’s podcast episode, Sarah is chatting with Heather Davies, another former lawyer. Heather’s new career as a professional organizer is something that many listeners have messaged Sarah about, so they chat about her journey to become a lawyer and what led to her transition to a professional organizer. See show notes at formerlawyer.com/211     I'm closing enrollment for my self-paced gr...

For this Thanksgiving week podcast, Sarah is sharing the three reasons why she’s grateful she made the choice to stop practicing law. Many lawyers who are considering making a change spend so much time thinking about everything that could go wrong. It’s a big decision, but it’s also really important to think about what has led you to this moment and think about what you’ll gain.  See show notes at...

Today’s episode covers a statement that Sarah often hears from lawyers who want to do something other than legal work. People say, “I’m not just lazy,” “I’m not lazy,” or “It’s not that I don’t want to work.” Only people who decide to become lawyers have this internal narrative that they are “lazy” if they don’t continue down this path. There’s an assumption that laziness is the reason, but that’s...

Many people who listen to this podcast or reach out to work with Sarah have the question, “Does working as a lawyer give you anxiety or depression?” This podcast covers mental health and the subject of anxiety a lot, and Sarah has talked a lot about being diagnosed with generalized anxiety and a panic disorder. These mental health issues are common among lawyers, so let’s discuss that question. Th...

Today’s episode features a conversation about how law firms fail lawyers with ADHD with Annie Little. Annie has been on the podcast several times to discuss ADHD in lawyers. This conversation focused on one of the problems in the legal profession regarding how firms are accommodating lawyers with ADHD. It’s often treated like the person with ADHD is what needs to be fixed instead of the structures...

In this episode of The Former Lawyer Podcast, Sarah Cottrell and Annie Little engaged in a candid conversation about ADHD and its prevalence among lawyers. They dive into an intriguing question that came in on social media after a previous ADHD conversation : Does being a lawyer give you ADHD?    The podcast revealed some compelling insights about ADHD in the legal profession and debunked misconce...

Last week, Lauren Ascher was on the podcast to discuss accommodations for lawyers with ADHD . It’s a good segway into an important conversation about disclosing ADHD and other mental health issues to your law firm. It’s no secret that there is a high incidence rate among lawyers for anxiety, depression, panic disorders, and other issues.  In the United States, you are entitled to certain accommoda...

Today’s podcast episode is diving into the experience of being a lawyer with ADHD. There have been some episodes covering this topic in the past, but this one is with Lauren Ascher, and it’s for people who have ADHD and are wondering what kind of accommodations they can ask their workplace for.  Lauren is a former lawyer. She graduated from Columbia Law School in 2011. Making a career change coinc...

On today’s podcast of The Former Lawyer Podcast, Sarah is talking about why it sucks to make partner at a law firm. This isn’t true for everyone, but there are a ton of lawyers out there who works so hard to make partner and then ask themselves, “What have I done?” If you are one of those people or you feel like you’re on that path, this is for you. See show notes at formerlawyer.com/203   I'...

On the podcast today, Sarah is talking about lawyers feeling that they don’t fit at their law firm and feeling something is wrong with them because it seems to be working for everyone else. After years of conversations with lawyers (and former lawyers) Sarah has discovered how common this feeling is. Not fitting in is actually a good thing, and Sarah will explain why. See show notes at formerlawye...

In today’s podcast episode, Sarah is joined by Francesca Korbas. Francesca is the COO and a partner in the educational consultancy Vested Academics. Her story follows a unique path than many lawyers who decided to go to law school, and it provides a fascinating perspective on what it's like to step away from law into advocacy work. See show notes at formerlawyer.com/201   I'm closing enr...

Today’s podcast marks a special milestone. It’s the 200th episode of The Former Lawyer Podcast. To celebrate, Sarah sat down with Stacey Harris of Uncommonly More, who Sarah works with to produce the podcast, to talk about how the podcast came to be and what it created. Other Episodes Mentioned: Lawyers, Your Job Should Not Make You Cry The “No Assholes Rule” (And Why It’s A Joke) Is Being A Lawye...

On today’s podcast episode, Sarah has a conversation with Romy Frazier . Romy is a former lawyer who transitioned from practicing law into real estate investing. The conversation is extremely helpful because she shares the importance of taking action and making a plan while moving gradually through the process. There are always some good takeaways from listening to someone else’s stories. Let’s ge...

On today’s podcast, Sarah dives into a specific piece of the Guided Track that many clients have found incredibly beneficial.  The Guided Track is a small group program that is offered twice a year. This small group works together through the Former Lawyer framework while discussing questions and obstacles and celebrating wins.  The CliftonStrengths Workshop is part of the Guided Track experience....