Welcome to the latest instalment of Managing IP’s ‘Five minutes with’ series, where we learn more about practitioners on a personal and professional level.
To mark World Mental Health Day, which takes place today, October 10, we speak to Elizabeth Rimmer, chief executive at LawCare, the mental health charity for the legal sector.
Someone asks you at a party what you do for a living. What do you say?
I work for a mental health charity for the legal profession
How did you come to work in this role?
I was looking to move on from my previous role and saw the job advertised in the Guardian [UK newspaper], when I read the role description I thought this had to be the job for me, as they were seeking a qualified lawyer, who had also worked in small mental health charities.
I was intrigued by the opportunity to work in the legal sector again from a different perspective, I was so excited about it, that I sent my mum my application to read for her feedback!
Talk us through a typical working day.
I try to have a pattern, but it doesn’t always work. I start my day by checking my task list. The list is divided up into must-do, would like to do, and will do if I have time. Then I remind myself of any meetings I have that day. I also look at my overall monthly list to see what progress I have made towards key tasks.
Then I will spend up to an hour doing routine admin, replying to emails, updating our database with contact notes, deleting emails, and following up with people I am waiting to hear back from. Next, I will usually speak to Sarah, our communications manager, she is great at sending me a list of all the ongoing communication work we have and where she needs my input.
If it’s a Tuesday, I will have a catch-up with Emma, our office manager, who coordinates our events, policies, board and staff meetings, and so much more. I try to use my time before lunch to have online meetings. I am lucky that my parents live around the corner, so I meet my mum at lunchtime to walk my dog Tango.
I try to keep afternoons meeting free so that I have thinking and writing space. But that doesn’t always work, so I may work on our new strategy, prepare talking points for an upcoming event, or devote some time to our fundraising efforts. I will then wrap up my day by checking in on emails, deleting as many as possible, and reviewing my task list for the next day. Then I put some music on and start cooking which is my way of unwinding.
What are you working on at the moment?
I am working on our new strategy, we had an all-staff and board meeting in July to think big about where we are headed as an organisation and what impact we want to have on improving mental health in the legal sector, this is the key discussion item for our board meeting this month.
Does one big piece of work usually take priority or are you juggling multiple things?
I juggle a whirlwind of tasks, and with the growing interest in mental health, I would say that almost every day I get some unexpected request. It sometimes feels like I am driving on the wrong side of the motorway, trying to dodge obstacles that could easily throw my day off course. For me, as I am sure it is for others, it’s a work in progress trying to stay prioritised and say no.
What is the most exciting aspect of your role and what is the most stressful?
The most stressful is managing the expectations of others, I always know what I haven’t done or am meant to do, so when I see that email popping in chasing me for something, I think ‘yikes I need to get on to that’.
The most exciting is the inspiration I get from working with such a wide range of fascinating and committed people, the stories they tell me, and the buzz I get from being part of the growing movement for change.
I feel this is LawCare’s moment in the sun and now is the time to get that commitment to building a sector-wide responsibility to address the long-standing systemic challenges in law that can undermine mental health.
What is the most common misconception about working in the legal profession?
That working long hours is par for the course, it comes with the territory of working in the sector and you just have to suck that up.
What or who inspires you?
Difficult question – I am most inspired by people who walk the walk rather than just talk the talk.
If you weren’t in this role, what would you be doing?
Probably working in a university lab somewhere, I nearly did a PhD in molecular biology but changed tack at the last minute and went to law school.
Any advice you would give your younger self?
Be curious and given a choice take the less travelled path.
What is your motto in life?
Life is short, but the days are long.
