The best part of my job is the people I get work with every day. From clients to colleagues, everyone comes from different walks of life and I enjoy learning about their experiences. As an engagement manager, no two days are the same, which means I’m always learning new things and exploring new opportunities.
Through the joys, fears and messiness of life, achieving work-life balance can be really challenging. There are times when I feel like everything in my life is in order and then there are times when I feel everything is out of balance, but I’ve learned to accept that this is okay! Like most things in life, achieving balance is about our decisions we make and priorities we choose.
I lead a very active lifestyle, which helps me to keep focused, disciplined and motivated. I’m very selective with how I spend my time and how I prioritise tasks. Working flexibly allows me time to invest in my mental and physical wellbeing, which for me means more time playing tennis (when the courts open again!) and taking my camera out.
My motto in life is, “If someone doesn’t know which port they are sailing to, no amount of wind will help”. I’ve learned that developing defined goals helps to keep me heading in the direction I chose for myself and driven to accomplish what I’ve set out to do.
My short and long-term goals focus on growing my skills and moving into more of a leadership position. After learning about the firm’s coaching program, I also hope to become an accredited coach one day.
My personal goals are just as important to me as workplace goals. As a photographer and artist outside of work, the goals I’ve set are challenging, but realistic, and will involve travelling and taking part in exhibitions in the coming years.
My advice for women who want to progress their careers is, as Angela Ahrendts says, “just listen, just learn, just feel”. From my experience, quick wins boost confidence and advance career goals.
I’d also encourage other women to make the most of opportunities that exist within our firm, like the Elevate programme and coaching, networking and mentoring initiatives, which can provide women the skills and confidence they need to realise their potential.
If I had to describe my Elevate experience in three words, they would be… encouraging, positive and insightful.
The coach
Karen Robb, Tax Partner
I have a coaching role within the Elevate programme and facilitate peer group coaching within our action learning set. I help to co-ordinate the Elevate team to work together to ensure it flows, people gain rapport and we have insightful and open discussions in a safe space.
As a partner at the firm, this role is very much part of my job and something that I really enjoy being a part of. The team meet every six weeks during the nine-month programme. We’ve built a relationship with one another in just a couple of sessions of the programme starting, so that we can coach better and share our ideas, experiences and feedback openly with each other.
The Elevate programme aims to develop our future leaders and support them in their ambitions and progression. It offers them opportunities to collaborate, share experiences, receive coaching and create a support network with like-minded women in the firm.
I think it’s really important that we continue to create an environment where women can thrive, especially where the outcome is that we have more female leaders and role models in the firm.