Millennial Manager

I'm 38, an elder millennial, and landing swiftly in my "Millennial Manager" era.

I enjoy managing--it is leading, it is teaching. It allows me to harness my time- and practice-management strengths.

I also embrace my more stereotypical millennials tendencies, like:

🦉 Flexible work hours and work locations--connecting digitally with mentors, mentees, teams, clients, and even courts, comes naturally.

🦉 Sharing openly about the struggles and how I moved through them (and continue to finesse who I get through them today). To some, this is oversharing (cringey, even). For me, it feels best to be open and honest, so I embrace it as much as I can.

🦉 Flattened org charts--hierarchies serve a purpose, but only so far. From a first-year associate to the most senior partner, I aim to create space for everyone's ideas, no matter their title or role.

🦉 Quick, consistent, and less formal check ins--I'm not perfect at this, but I aim to give feedback along the way, asking questions (and for updates), but in a less intimidating or formal way. Sometimes I wonder if this is being "too nice," but I think it is more me being what I wish others had been to me along the way.

🦉 Emojis, Gifs, and Memes, oh my--I held off on this for a long time. My first few years of practice, I would have never dropped these things into work emails (internal, not client or court facing). But, emojis and gifs are part of my communication style (for better or for worse).

🦉 AI, AI, AI--For idea generation (not sharing firm or client information), I turn to AI regularly. It is fun. It prevents writers block. It is the future.

🦉 The eternal student--learning is life. I'm upskilling, growing my professional brand, and studying every step of the way.

🦉 Being myself--this is still hard for me sometimes, but I've worked day after day over the last almost five years to find my true self and bring her to work with me each day, even if that means taking a lap around the hall with my double shot of espresso in my Nespresso clear glass espresso mug because that's what I need in the moment.

We all have had bad managers--bosses that led with toxicity, micro-managing, and selfishness.

I strive to be the opposite, even if it means being a stereotypical millennials while I do it.

🔥❤️✌🏻