Hannah was fortunate to attend the Junior Solicitor’s Conference held in Wellington back in May. The conference was put on by the NZ Law Group of which Core Legal Solutions is a member of.
This conference is designed for solicitors with 0 – 36 months experience. It is a great opportunity for graduate solicitors to meet up together from all over New Zealand, to network and to attend some great workshops plus spend some time socializing with each other.
Hannah recounts her experience of attending this conference for the first time.
As a group we were fortunate enough to be able to go on a Wētā Tour and take part in a creative workshop. We were thrown head-first into the world of creative design, physical effects and got a look at some very cool props, costumes and creatures that have been created for films Wētā have worked on. Part of the tour through the workshop meant we watched a documentary on how Wētā Workshop came about and how the various entities have developed over time. It was a very cool experience.
Some of the attendees walked away potentially considering their career options after we all had the opportunity to participate in a special effects workshop. We learnt how to create prosthetic effects which lead to some gruesome wounds. It is safe to say I won’t be quitting my day job just yet to become a special effects expert!
To compliment the social events and ensure that we learnt something to take back to our firms (and show that we didn’t just spend the entire trip socializing/networking) we took part in several interesting work related workshops over the two day conference. From tackling IT and learning more about protecting ourselves and our clients from fraud and scams, understanding the importance of looking after your mind, learning about the all important professional indemnity insurance or hearing some of the ins and outs of acting for a trust, we covered some great topics.
One of the sessions that really has had a lasting impact on the way I work was the session about mindfulness. Depending on the person, the word mindfulness can bring different thoughts forward. To be mindful generally means to live in the present. Given that generally we are in an environment that is always changing and has a large element of uncertainty it is important to recognize that having a healthy mind is not only going to help us personally but is going to help clients. If we as advisors are more present and are actively working to ensure we taking time to adapt to the changing environment we are going to provide a much better service to our clients who are at the core of the work we do.
Being able to go on conferences like this is something which I will always value as not only do you learn a thing or two but you are able to build connections across the country with a bunch of likeminded individuals.
