Protégé: ‘We all need to back ourselves’

Right out of high school, Vicky Martin worked as an office junior in a law firm, doing all manner of tasks, including emptying ashtrays and taking the boss’ clothing to the dry cleaners. She ultimately got admitted as a practitioner at the age of 50 and was recently promoted to special counsel. Here, she reflects on her uncommon journey, including going in and out of the legal profession, and what the emerging generation can learn from her experiences. In this episode of The Protégé Podcast, host Jerome Doraisamy is joined by Thynne + Macartney special counsel Vicky Martin to discuss her earliest experiences in a law firm shortly after leaving high school, the myriad twists and turns her life and career have taken since those early days, overcoming a fear of responsibility that practitioners have, and how life maturity brings all-important perspective.

Martin also delves into life as a mature-age law student and then graduate lawyer, her insights into goal setting and achieving those goals, building up a contact base, the differences in how colleagues and clients might approach a mature-age professional, and her broader lessons and reflections on how best to climb the corporate ladder and have faith in one’s self and one’s abilities. If you like this episode, show your support by  rating us or leaving a review on Apple Podcasts (The Lawyers Weekly Show) and by following Lawyers Weekly on social media: Facebook, Twitter and LinkedIn.

If you have any questions about what you heard today, any topics of interest you have in mind, or if you'd like to lend your voice to the show, email editor@lawyersweekly.com.au for more insights!