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The Former Lawyer Podcast: Daily Summaries Delivered
by Sarah Cottrell
Do you hate working as a lawyer? Are you an unhappy lawyer who wants to leave the law, but isn't sure what to do next? Do your family and friends think you're crazy for wanting to leave the law, or are you too afraid to tell them you don't want to be a lawyer? The Former Lawyer Podcast is for you! Each week, host Sarah Cottrell interviews a different former lawyer who has left the law behind. Hear inspiring stories about how these former lawyers are thriving and found their way to careers and lives they love.
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- 2 days ago26 min
The Misery of Not Feeling Entitled to One's Misery as a Lawyer
In today’s episode, Sarah is back again with Annie Little discussing the book Bullshit Jobs by David Graeber. It’s part of a series of podcast discussions diving into the miseries of a bullshit job, and today, it’s time to dive into the third misery that comes with bullshit jobs. If you missed the first two, go back and catch up. See show notes at formerlawyer.com/189 I'm closing enrollment for my self-paced group program, the Former Lawyer Collaborative, permanently on August 31st, 2026. If ...
- 1 weeks ago41 min
The Artificial Power Structure and Feeling Helpless as a Lawyer with Annie Little
In today’s episode, Sarah is back again with Annie Little discussing the book Bullshit Jobs by David Graeber. It’s part of a series of podcast discussions, so check out the others before and after this one. Graeber gives four reasons why having a bullshit job feels so miserable. Last week’s discussion was all about the first reason—ambiguity and forced pretense—catch up on that one first. Then, let’s dive into the second reason. See show notes at formerlawyer.com/188 I'm closing enrollment fo...
- 2 weeks ago37 min
The Misery of Ambiguity and Forced Pretense in Law Firms
This episode is part 2 of the series where Sarah is chatting with Annie Little about the book Bullshit Jobs by David Graeber. If you missed the first episode in this series, check that out first and learn the background of this series and more about Annie. This episode is about the misery of ambiguity and forced pretense, which is the first of four things Graeber identifies as an impact that having a bullshit job can have on you. When it comes to ambiguity in law firms, the lack of transparen...
- 3 weeks ago26 min
Is Being A Lawyer A Bullshit Job?
Sarah revisits the Bullshit Job series on today's podcast with Annie Little, another lawyer career coach. Annie has been on the podcast a few times in the past, like the episode on ADHD. She founded her company, JD Nation, and helps lawyers find better jobs, both in and out of law. In this new series, the two of them discuss the book Bullshit Jobs: A Theory by David Graeber and dive into some of the book's observations. This first episode covers why you should care about this book and a...
- Jun 29, 202642 min
How Lawyers Can Rethink Their Skills for Business with Alex Su
In legal practice, it is easy to start measuring yourself by whether you can cover every detail, do everything perfectly, and keep grinding through whatever is in front of you. If that is not the way you are wired, it can feel like there is something wrong with you, instead of recognizing that the job is rewarding a narrow set of behaviors. Alex Su describes this as game selection. In business roles, especially sales, marketing, and business development, success often depends on trying things...
- Jun 22, 202630 min
How to Take A Mental Health Leave of Absence From Your Law Firm with Megan Nogasky
Listen, it's the summer of 2026. Everything is a dumpster fire, and there are a lot of people who have been struggling a lot with their mental health, especially in the last two years. Sarah's seen a lot of clients take mental health leave or after taking mental health leave. This episode serves as a reminder that even though it's not available to everyone, because it depends a lot on your particular employer, if it is something that your employer offers, and if you are struggling, it c...
- Jun 15, 202611 min
Leaving the Law When You’re Already Burned Out
Leaving the law when you’re already burned out can feel impossible, because the job you need energy to escape is the same job draining all of your energy. You may understand that you need to figure out what comes next, but when you are scraping by energetically, even one more task can feel like too much. That is where a lot of burned out lawyers get stuck. They assume that if they do not have hours and hours each week, whole weekends, or a huge amount of bandwidth to put toward leaving the la...
- Jun 8, 202649 min
Making a Career Change When You're Afraid of Getting It Wrong with Kelcey Baker
Going to law school felt like the right call. For some lawyers it felt like the obvious call, backed up by experience, by personality, by everything they knew about themselves at the time. So when practicing law turns out to be a bad fit, the harder part is that the decision felt so right going in. If they were wrong about something they were that sure about, how can they trust themselves to choose anything else? That fear is what keeps so many lawyers where they are, even when staying is act...
About The Former Lawyer Podcast
Do you hate working as a lawyer? Are you an unhappy lawyer who wants to leave the law, but isn't sure what to do next? Do your family and friends think you're crazy for wanting to leave the law, or are you too afraid to tell them you don't want to be a lawyer? The Former Lawyer Podcast is for you! Each week, host Sarah Cottrell interviews a different former lawyer who has left the law behind. Hear inspiring stories about how these former lawyers are thriving and found their way to careers and lives they love.
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