Weighing opportunity versus risk | The Counsel Network

Why you should be prepared to take the risk for the right opportunity.

As a legal recruiting services provider, we are blessed with clients who are extremely intelligent, articulate individuals, who often have a very good grasp of the issues they are facing when considering a lateral move in the market.  Not surprisingly, however, it is these strengths that also lead to added challenges for clients trying to make the ‘perfect’ decision when it comes time to choose between several career paths before them.

Often, in a bid to ensure they have covered every imaginable scenario or variable, our clients get caught in “analysis paralysis”, a state of over-thinking a situation such that no decision is ever taken.  A clear indicator you may be headed in this direction is if you have multiple career spreadsheets, checklists, or a weighting/ranking system (complete with graphs) to help you assess what is the best next step in your career.

Going through this exercise may be helpful in getting you to talk through your priorities with your trusted advisors – be it with your spouse, your mentor, or your legal recruitment consultant, but ultimately, the key is to not allow your analysis to act as a crutch, preventing you from making a critical decision in advancing your career. You’ve worked too hard to let inertia be the determining factor in your future professional growth.

– Warren Smith, Managing Partner