LegalTechTalk Uncovered Ep 4 – Helen Pamely  

Transcript

Robert Hanna: Welcome to the Legally Speaking Podcast, LegalTechTalk Uncovered mini-series powered by Clio. Please introduce yourself.

Helen Pamely: Hi, so I’m Helen Pamely, former law firm partner, former Magic Circle lawyer. I’m now a coach. I coach lawyers to reach the top without burning out.That means making partnership, beyond partnership, and also building their personal brands.

Robert Hanna: Yeah, and you do a tremendous job, it has to be said. How are you finding the conference and how did you find your speaker session?

Helen Pamely: I’m absolutely loving it. It’s amazing, because I feel like there’s so many people who I already know through LinkedIn, through various different networks, and everyone is here in one place, and that’s just so exciting. And on my panel, I was so lucky, because I had Liz Rimmer, CEO of LawCare, I had Jodie Hill, who’s Managing Partner of her law firm, absolutely incredible panel. And it’s just incredible, the energy here, and I think the movement for change in the sector.

Robert Hanna: Yeah, and you’re absolutely at the forefront of that. And I really enjoyed your talk. And I think it was really practical, tactical advice you were all giving. Loved it. Can you describe what you’re briefly focusing on at the moment?

Helen Pamely: I think the main thing that I’m really focusing on, it’s almost come up by accident, really, in what I do. And it’s helping lawyers reach their potential. But that means going for partnership, it means beyond partnership. It could be even doing something different. It could be that they want to build their own sort of consultancy or something like that. And within that, it’s building their brand. Because these days, I think what we’re seeing is it’s the era of the personal brand. It wasn’t that long ago that you went to a big firm and you relied on your firm’s brand to be able to bring in business, to be successful. These days, it’s your personal brand. It makes you so much more foolproof for your career. Because what it means is that even when there are downturns, if there are layoffs, it doesn’t matter. Because people buy into you, you have your own client base, you have your own network, and that’s just so empowering.

Robert Hanna: And I’m all about empowering lawyers to reach their potential, but also do it in a way that works for them. And I think that’s what’s so powerful about the personal brand. Yeah, and obviously you’ve got a phenomenal personal brand. And like you were saying there, I say it’s your biggest asset, and it’s also your biggest insurance policy, whatever the weather. And yeah, I think it’s just undoubtedly the best thing you could be investing in on free platforms as well, where you can get your messaging out. And yeah, as I say, I think you’re doing a great job. What are the key challenges you’ve found in the legal sector, and how are you going about addressing them?

Helen Pamely: I mean, gosh, we have so many challenges, and I feel like I work in a few different camps on this one. I think on a sort of broader level, as you well know, Rob, I’m really passionate about mental health, wellbeing, and changing the sector from sort of a grassroots level, so that we can be a better place for lawyers long-term, you know, leading fulfilling, happier careers, not burning out, not suffering from mental health issues. And that’s something I talk about very widely. That’s kind of, you know, the bigger picture of what I do and where I’m coming from, from a values perspective. From a sort of work perspective or more pure work, I’m really looking to, what the problems I see is that lawyers want to be successful, they want to be big, whatever that looks like for them, but they don’t know how. Maybe they’re afraid to put themselves out there. They’re afraid to speak up. They’re afraid to find their own voice, to start posting, to start engaging. And they don’t know how to even start talking to people at networking events. You know, it’s that whole thing of actually, how do I move from an employee mindset to an entrepreneur mindset? You know, how can I shift into this space where I’m taking control of everything and building what I want to create? It takes confidence. It takes strategy. It takes intention. And I think that’s the sort of shift which people struggle with. It’s totally doable, but they’re just not knowing quite how to do it.

Robert Hanna: Yeah, and obviously that’s where you come in. And I always say, everyone has a value. Everyone has a story to tell. And so don’t be sort of, you know, put off by just starting. I think a large part of this is getting out of that mental block in terms of, oh, I’m not sure. Actually, just starting and getting better is so important because it’s not perfect brand, it’s personal brand. And so again, as you evolve, your personal brand can evolve. Okay, what’s been a standout moment for you at the conference?

Helen Pamely: Oh my gosh, do you know, there’s been so many standout moments. I think honestly for me, coming back to this point of networks is community. It’s the fact that I can’t walk 10 meters here without bumping into someone else who I know or who knows me. Maybe we already know each other quite well. Maybe we’ve just seen each other on LinkedIn. And that’s amazing. I think there is this incredible legal community and it’s just about putting yourself out there, as you just said, becoming part of it. And it is amazing the opportunities that come out of it, the friends and just the incredible career and time you can have.

Robert Hanna: Yeah, honestly, community is so, so powerful. I think people are starting to see the value of that. And today is a great testament of that. I’ve really enjoyed the energy throughout the day. I’m gonna enjoy following your journey and supporting your journey. So where can people find out more about you? What have you been getting up to in the future in terms of future plans? Feel free to shout out on your social media handles, any website links as well. We’ll share them in this episode for you too.

Helen Pamely: Yeah, thanks so much. I mean, there’s my website, which is helenpamely.com. I’m Helen Pamely on LinkedIn, on Instagram, but I take the main places LinkedIn. I really do speak my mind. I speak up about all sorts of industry issues and it’s a wonderful community. And it’s probably because everything with me is moving so quickly. The best pace to sort of stay with me on my journey as well and hopefully I can stay with you as well, and Rob, I love all the stuff you do as well. I think we’re just so aligned on the mental health stuff. So it’s great to be here and thanks for this conversation.

Robert Hanna: It’s been great to have you finally, Helen. We managed to make it happen and in person.

Helen Pamely: Amazing.

Robert Hanna: For now, from all of us on the Legally Speaking Podcast, wishing you lots of continued success. But for now, over and out.

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Over and out!