Transcript
"Your website and articles have been like a favorite movie over the years. I don't watch them every day, but when I do, they always seem to reveal something new and worthwhile. I'm a legislative and regulatory specialist and became known as a national expert in my niche of law. The problem is that my niche is so highly specialized, and it may be difficult for recruiters and potential employers to see what value I can offer them. Recently, I started taking steps towards an extra strategy. The first one came in October when I made a lateral move to acquire a better title, chief deputy counsel, and some management experience. Now I've been nominated for a senior leadership position, which is the Holy grail in the government, senior executive pay, and status without the normal problems that accompany the senior executive status label. There will only be three to five in our very large office, but even it is a promotion with a jump in pay and where they're worried, it could further isolate me in the private sector. I wonder if you would be willing to weigh in with your advice."
Anytime you go into a more prestigious role in the government, I don't think there's anything wrong with that. And I do think that having a position, to begin with, is a very good thing. And the promotion is a very good thing. Being very specialized is problematic. Typically people in government will always be looking for an exit strategy in the private sector. You need to watch very closely what other people that have been in your department have been doing, and where they've been going after they're done. And then those are the tea leaves about what you can do as well. And then you also need to be very aware of the companies and so forth that you may be encountering in your work.
I would recommend being in touch with various recruiters and being on their roadmap in case things come up, which can always be helpful. Some of the best attorneys I know will have very good relationships with outside recruiters, and they'll use that because they want to be aware of things come up. That's always a good thing. I can think of one guy, in particular, that's a finance attorney. I hear from him every couple of months, just checking in, being very nice, saying thank you. Even though I'm not working with him, he's just always asking me if I know of any opportunities. Of all the thousands of people that I hear from every month, this is the only person I remember that ever contacted me, asking if I can give him an advice, if I can keep my eye out for him, which is really nice. It makes me feel more worthwhile, and doing that with recruiters and other people in the market can be very useful. If you do have this position, I would recommend checking and watching what is happening to your peers and being very close to them. Then also, researching the firms, anybody that may have any connection to whatever you're doing with the government will be important as well.