This engaging program discussed how to transition from law practice to an enriching post practice life. I spoke, together with Lisa Horowitz and Karen Morris. Sponsored by the ABA-SLD Women of Excellence Committee. Watch it here. (ABA membership may be required)
Yasmin Nguyen and Kathleen Mundy, hosts of The Real Retirement Show, invited me to join them in a conversation about lawyers, law firms and retirement. You can watch that conversation here. This is the program description:
Episode 12: How to Transition from Law: Retirement Insights and Strategies
In this episode of the Real Retirement Show, hosts Yasmin and Kathleen discuss the unique challenges faced by lawyers when retiring. Joined by special guest Ida Abbott, a renowned retirement strategist, the conversation delves into the emotional and institutional hurdles of transitioning from a legal career to retirement. Ida shares her personal journey, highlights the importance of self-awareness and empathy, and emphasizes the need for early planning and open communication. Discover actionable advice and real-life stories for a smooth transition into retirement.
00:00 Understanding Lawyers’ Reluctance to Retire
00:45 Introduction to The Real Retirement Show
01:30 Meet Ida Abbott: Retirement Strategist
02:39 Ida’s Personal and Career Journey
06:47 Challenges Faced by Retiring Lawyers
07:36 Institutional Challenges in Law Firms
09:19 The Importance of Normalizing Retirement
10:50 Overcoming Personal and Professional Barriers
16:23 Success Stories and Client Breakthroughs
24:51 The Role of Design Thinking in Retirement Planning
32:43 Final Thoughts and Advice for Retirees
I was honored to speak in this program, hosted by Seyfarth and moderated by Lisa Damon. Together with Jackie Belcastro and Bill Lipsman, I offered essential insights every in-house counsel should grasp before retiring to ensure a seamless transition and a rewarding post-retirement journey. This program was sponsored by the Association of Corporate Counsel and can be viewed here. (ACC membership required)
August 22, 2024, Nancy Combs, Judith Droz Keyes and I discussed one of the fastest growing demographic groups in the US: women over 50 who are aging solo. Sponsored by the National Association of Women Lawyers (NAWL) Women Revolutionizing Retirement Affinity Group. You can watch the program here, but will need a password, which I will be happy to send you. Contact me.
We had a great discussion about many aspects of contemplating, planning, transitioning and living in retirement in a program sponsored by the Senior Lawyers Division of the ABA called “Preparing for Lift Off: Starting Your Personal Journey to Post-Practice Life .” You can watch the program here.
I spoke about succession planning with Alay Yajnik on his podcast, Lawyer Business Advantage. We discussed what retirement means in 2022, how to hand over your firm with confidence, and finding purpose and meaning in retirement. You can listen on Alay’s website or on LinkedIn.
Host Craig Williams and I discuss retirement as part of lawyers’ career life cycle on the Lawyer2Lawyer podcast. We cover many topics, including when to start thinking about retiring from law practice, steps lawyers can take to prepare for retirement, and life post-retirement.
I presented in a webinar on “Attorney Retirement and Cognitive Decline” sponsored by the West Virginia Judicial & Lawyer Assistance Program. You can watch this important program on YouTube and also on the West Virginia State Bar website. My session, on “Retirement by Design, Not Default,” starts around minute 1:02. The first presenter, Dr. Timothy Saar, spoke about The Neuropsychology of Cognitive Decline,” and the third, Shari Pearlman, spoke about “Preparing for Retirement & Addressing Cognitive Decline.”
I enjoyed being a guest on Steve Fretzin’s “Be That Lawyer” podcast. We discussed many subjects, including realigning your values and your work, developing and retaining talent, challenges lawyers face when considering and thinking about retirement, and designing your future by choice, not by default. You can listen to the podcast here.
I had a great conversation with Nicole Christina on her podcast, ZestfulAging, about how to prepare for a long, happy and purposeful life when you retire. Listen at bit.ly/zestfulagingpodcast, or go to ZestfulAging.com for other platforms.
This year’s Managing Partner Forum Fall Symposium was about “Passing the Baton: Preparing Your Firm for Succession.” I co-hosted and spoke at this 4-hour virtual conference, which was directed to managing partners and leaders of small and midsize law firms. The recorded program, survey results, handout materials, plus numerous other benefits (including a copy of Retirement by Design), are available for a fee from Managing Partner Forum.
This complimentary webinar, which I presented to a worldwide audience, was sponsored by Estrin Legal Staffing. We covered longevity, retirement transitions, and creating a dynamic plan for your post-career life You can view the entire webinar here.
I was a panelist in this webinar, hosted by the International Bar Association. The moderators and other panelists were from the UK, Australia and Argentina, and the audience was global as well. We discussed the reasons why lawyers have difficulty dealing with retirement, how to help lawyers adapt to retirement, the impact of ageism on lawyers, and other important subjects. You can watch the webinar here.
I recently spoke with Cheryl Dellecese about how retirement today is vastly different from what is was in the past. The interview covers many of the key changes, including why the term “retirement” isn’t really useful any more. It will appear in various Smith College publications; here is one of the places you can read it.
Elise Holtzman, of The Lawyer’s Edge, interviewed me for her podcast. Some of the things we talked about: how retirement is different now than it used to be, significant factors that hinders open discussions about retirement, deciding when to retire, and different factors to consider about retirement at different ages. You can listen to the podcast here.
Steve Seckler, who hosts Counsel to Counsel, interviews me in this podcast about my book Retirement by Design, and the practical considerations for lawyers who are contemplating or facing retirement. You can listen to the podcast here.
I had fun being a special guest and discussing my retirement practice on Mitchell Levy’s show, “Thought Leader Life.” You can watch the brief episode on several platforms.
In this podcast for Chapter X, a supportive online community for men, I discuss my book, Retirement by Design, as well as various retirement issues, including those that affect men in particular. You can listen to that podcast here.
On March 16, 2021, Kit Chaskin and I discussed career transitions, including job changes and retirement, in a program for the Northwestern Law School Alumni Association. You can view and listen to the webinar here.
I discuss “Planning for Retirement – Yes, it should be a plan,” in conversation with Terri Mottershead, as part of the Innovation and Legaltech Week 2021 Conference, February 8-12, 2021. The program will be available on demand beginning February 1.
In her podcast, XL Legal, Shelley Appleby-Ostroff interviewed me about mentoring and sponsorship. Listen to the podcast, Building Powerful Mentoring Relationships, here.
I had a lively discussion of Retirement by Design, and applying design thinking to create a purposeful life, with Lisa Cypers Kamen on her terrific podcast Harvesting Happiness. You can listen to it on several platforms: https://bit.ly/tn052720, https://bit.ly/GP052720, https://bit.ly/iT052720, or https://bit.ly/Sc052720.
Wendy Green interviewed me on Hey Boomer! about Retirement by Design and the many considerations that go into timing and planning your retirement. You can watch the interview here.
Lisa Horowitz interviewed me about Retirement by Design for the National Association of Women Lawyers Book Club on May 5, 2010. You can listen to the interview here.
Deborah Carr, who writes a blog called Baby Boomer Retirement, wrote a detailed and highly favorable review of Retirement by Design. Read it here.
Read this interview led by Deborah Kalb to learn about Retirement by Design.
Lisa Smith interviewed me on Big Blend Radio to discuss my book Retirement by Design. You can listen to the interview here.
Delighted to see this review of Retirement by Design written by a blogger in the UK who has been retired for several years and remarks, “Had I had a guide like this in 2010, maybe I would have done a few things differently!” He also states: “This is one of the most comprehensive books covering all aspects of retirement that I have read. Unlike many, it does not just focus on the financial side. It encourages you to look at all the myriad aspects of retirement, social, financial, practical and all shades in between.” Read the full review here.
FabafterFifty.com, a website for women over 50 or who want to be fabulous when they reach 50, interviewed me about my book. You can read it here.
I was interviewed about “Mentoring, Sponsoring, Coaching: What Do I Need and How Do I Get It?,” for a webinar hosted by the Women in the House (WITH) Network of the Association of Corporate Counsel (ACC).
In the latest installment of PD INSIDER, an interview series from Practicing Law Institute featuring the leading voices in Professional Development, Craig Miller interviews Morgan Smith, Professional Development Director of Dykema, and me about mentorship, sponsorship and coaching.
This webinar, hosted by the Smith College Alumni Association, helps viewers determine what they will do with the many potential years ahead. It provides a framework for envisioning, designing and moving toward a future doing what you want and enjoy, and living in ways that will engage you, keep you stimulated and give your life purpose. You can view the webinar here.
In this podcast for The Robert Half Legal Report, host Charles Volkert, senior district president of Robert Half Legal, and I discuss critical components of succession planning, including strategies to help senior-level lawyers transfer knowledge and client relationships to their successors, and transition smoothly into retirement or their next career post. You can download and/or listen to the podcast here.
This was the first in a 3-part webcast series hosted by Natalie Runyon, Director & Head of Talent Platform at Thomson Reuters Legal Executive Institute. Our session looked at succession planning from the standpoints of the firm, the client and the retiring partner. You can learn about our session and the others in this series here, and watch my session here.
I presented a webinar on “Mentoring & Sponsorship: The Key to Gender Diversity in Leadership” for Chronus, a mentoring software company. The recording and slides are available here.
Video recordings of the presentations from the 2018 National Legal Mentoring Consortium, including my presentation on Mentoring to Support Diversity and Inclusiveness with Kori Carew and Mark Palmer, are available to the public. You can watch our presentation here.
Ari Kaplan interviews me about mentoring in the changing legal profession for his podcast series, Reinventing Professionals. You can listen to the complete interview here.
Delighted that my discussion with Ari Kaplan about mentoring was featured in the ABA Journal.
Mentoring in the legal profession has had to adapt to a changing world
I am delighted to be featured and interviewed as an Editorial Board Member in the current issue of Modern Legal Practice, a journal published by Globe Law and Business. (Subscription required.)
I had the privilege of presenting the first webcast in a 3-part series on “Preparing your law firm for the future: Developing the next generation of rainmakers.” I presented the program with Natalie Runyon, Director & Head of Talent Platform at Thomson Reuters Legal Executive Institute, which is hosting the series. Our session looked at succession planning from the standpoints of the firm, the client and the retiring partner. You can listen and watch here.
You can listen here to my lively discussion with Lisa Horowitz about my book, The Lawyer’s Guide to Mentoring, 2nd Edition, aired by the NAWL Book Club.
It’s nice to be featured in this article about the work I’m doing to help partners with retirement transitions. The article by Mark Calvey in the San Francisco Business Times points out that professionals and firms in many fields are having a hard time dealing with partner retirements.
“Take a Little Action” was voted the Grand Prize-winning video in the 2015 #DisruptTheDefault Catalyst Video Contest. The video features my Breakfast for Champions as a “little action” that has a big impact in getting men to be part of the solution to gender inequality. Watch the video here.
ALPS, a professional liability insurance provider, interviewed me about why it is so important for lawyers to find and to be champions. The discussion, entitled “We Can All Use a Champion,” ranges from the need for more sponsorship of women in law firms to examining how solo attorneys can benefit from mentorship. You can listen to the podcast on the ALPS blog site, InBrief, on Podbean or on YouTube.
WA State Bar’s MentorLink program has also posted six brief (7-15 minute) audio recordings in which I discuss with Tim Jaasko-Fisher some specific mentoring topics, such as confidentiality, mental health and generational differences. When you reach this page, the recordings are located behind the “Fundamentals” tab at the top.
WA State Bar’s MentorLink program has posted a 90-minute video in which I discuss with Tim Jaasko-Fisher many aspects of mentoring. The information is relevant and valuable for individuals and programs. Watch the video here. (Under Mentorship Fundamentals, Legal Lunchbox™, you might have to “Click to use Flash” in order to watch.)
Transforming Women’s Leadership, an initiative of Thomson Reuters Legal and Executive Institute, interviewed me about how Breakfasts for Champions, based on my book, Sponsoring Women: What Men Need to Know, help create a safe place for men and women to discuss gender imbalance in the legal profession. You can read the interview here.
Sara Holtz, an expert who has taught and coached countless successful women rainmakers and leaders about business development, now hosts a podcast series called “Advice to My Younger Self.” Sara interviewed me for one of these podcasts. You can listen here to our discussion about “Why you need mentors and sponsors.“
This podcast was recorded in connection with my presentation at a Association of Legal Administrators’ Human Resources Conference.
In an interview with Heidi Alexander about my book, Sponsoring Women, I explain the importance and dynamics of mentorship and sponsorship, and provide advice on how to build and utilize those relationships for career success. Heidi is with the Massachusetts Law Office Management Assistance Program, which hosted the interview. You can listen to the interview here. December 2014
Don Hutcheson produces a podcast series entitled “Discover Your Talent–Do What You Love,” which features stories about how people in various fields discovered their true talents and used them to enjoy successful, happy lives. The series also includes interviews with experts who offer insights and advice to help others do the same. Don interviewed me about why women need more than mentors to get ahead. You can listen to the interview, “More Than Just a Mentor, Women Need a Champion,” at http://goo.gl/FdbcVo or on itunes here.
In “Trends and Innovations Boosting Diversity in the Law and Beyond,” published in Law Practice Today on March 14, 2016, author Caren Stacey featured Breakfast for Champions at length, as an effective way to engage white men in diversity efforts.
CPA Trendlines has been publishing excerpts from my book, Sponsoring Women: What Men Need to Know. Women’s career advancement and sponsorship are of concern to accounting and other professionals, not just lawyers. If you have friends and business contacts in accounting, send them the link to CPA Trendlines and let them know.
Feminenglish Part V: Remedies for Lousy Communication is part of a series by Pam Woldow and Doug Richardson on improving communication between women and men. They quote me in this most recent series entry, published March 29, 2016. Read this entry and the other four!
I was interviewed as a Trusted Advisor to the Professional Development Consortium in the PDC Linkletter, Fall 2014.
The Association of Legal Administrators interviewed me about why and how to engage men in advancing women. You can listen to the podcast here. September 2014.
I was quoted in “Women Notch Progress,” an article in the Wall Street Journal, December 6, 2012
I was featured in “Crossing the Gender Line: Why Mentor Men?,” by Jacey Fortin in The Glass Hammer, February 16, 2012. We discussed why it is important for women to mentor men as well as the reverse.
Melissa J. Anderson featured me in “Networking with Women,” in The Glass Hammer, June 20, 2012. We discussed the importance of women-only networks and programs, along with the importance of cross-gender networking.
I was one of the lawyers featured in A Field Guide for Mobile Attorneys, an e-guide published by AttorneyatWork that offers advice to lawyers who travel a lot on mobile technology and communications tools, favorite apps, planning tricks, avoiding travel booby-traps and much more.
In Top Law Firms for Women (for Money and Power), Vivia Chen discusses the winners of the Women in Law Empowerment Forum (WILEF) Gold Standard Awards when I was head of WILEF’s certification committee.