You got the job!  Now what?

Once you’ve decided that you want to be a paralegal, get your training, set out on your job search and land that first job, it can be the most thrilling period in your life.  But you do want to make sure that you are prepared for that first job. 

Listed below are a few tips to facilitate your days as the new kid on the block. 

1. Dress for Success.  It’s an office. 

More often than not, it’s a law firm.  You are a professional. Dress like one.  During your first month or two on the job, even if you see a colleague come in with flip flops, don’t follow him or her. If your office has a “dress down Friday” policy, this does not mean shorts, a wife beater, a denim mini skirt, tattoos exposed, jeans hanging below your rear-end, a sheer white blouse with a dark bra, your nose ring or four earrings or green hair streaks; it usually mean dressy casual – slacks, a nice pullover sweater, a button-down shirt, quiet spring dress, etc. It simply means, you don’t have to wear a suit today, but it doesn’t mean dress like you’re clubbing. 

2. Create systems for remembering administrative things. 

Purchase a binder and dividers or create a categorized place in an Outlook-type program on your computer.  If you use the computer, always remember to back it up.  Use it to hold administrative information that you can refer to later when you need it. This includes:  in-house office conference room extensions, frequently called phone numbers, the building’s garage schedule, instructions on how to fill out the Federal Express label or steps on how the postage scale works, the company’s wireless password, your boss’s birthday, etc. 

3. Create a personal library for your law-related stuff.

You will not remember everything you need to know to perform your paralegal duties. It’s simply impossible. Lawyers can’t either; that’s why they have secretaries and paralegals. But you will be expected to have a system whereby you can facilitate your ability to avail yourself of these answers.  So, it is a good idea to have a personal legal library or reference source.  This will be the tool you can consult for things like: judge’s rules, agency phone numbers, a list of important legal and business websites, real estate brokers’ requirements, where to find “hard to find” IRS forms, court rules, citation instructions, your expert witness’s CV’s, “how to” articles and notes, instructions on how to prepare certain legal documents, samples of certain legal documents, samples of correspondence so you don’t have to reinvent the wheel every time you need to draft a legal document or write a letter. In addition, it’s a good idea to categorize your letters by the purpose it serves. If you learn something new while you are in the field, when you get back to the office, type it up and properly file it with this reference stuff.

Part II to follow. . .