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Blog > Flying High - a military spouse and freelance paralegal shares her story
Flying High - a military spouse and freelance paralegal shares her story
By Melody Kramer on Monday, June 21, 2010 at 1:58:14 PM
Guest blog post by NAFLP member Kris L. Canaday
As I stare out the airplane window, my mind runs through all the things to be done. It’s a quick trip. Find a house and head back across the country to finish packing. I have so many things still to do – I haven’t even touched the kitchen and I still need to schedule the utilities. Oh yeah, I also need to finish that paternity action when we land.
I am a military spouse. I am also a freelance paralegal. Why? So I don’t have to give up my career every time we transfer. Lately, that seems to be regularly. We’re leaving Washington after less than two years and just learned that we may only be in Louisiana for one year instead of three. I don’t think I’m going to unpack much more than my kitchen and office this time around.
After working in law offices around the country, I decided to work strictly from my office and provide support to attorneys both on a regular and as-needed basis. As every military spouse knows, challenges abound in having your own career while living the military life. Employers have no interest in hiring someone who will only be around one to four years. An employer can identify a military spouse simply by looking at the spouse’s resume – two years in this state, four years in that state . . . . Few employers consider that a local could leave just as easily after six months of employment because s/he has decided to look for another job. In contrast, military spouses are more likely to stay with the employer as long as possible because they know their time is limited.
And then there’s leaving for a new place and starting all over again. Both employer and spouse have to start over. The time spouses have for working in each place they live is limited further by the duration in which it takes to obtain work as the result of their military status. It is difficult at best to have a career as a military spouse, even more difficult to move it forward.
The truth is, military spouses bring a great deal of knowledge to the table as the result of their vast experience. After struggling to find work and having back-to-back short tours, I decided to offer support to attorneys who are totally overwhelmed. With the downturn in the economy, I found many attorneys are struggling to keep their practice above water and have insufficient overhead to bring in additional employees, yet they are overwhelmed trying to do everything themselves. By working freelance from my office, I am able to help attorneys reduce their workload and stress and help them move their practice forward without increasing their overhead.
In essence, I’ve turned my lemons into lemonade and made a career I already love even more fulfilling because I know I am truly making a difference in my attorneys’ lives. I no longer have to give up my career every time we transfer to a new location; I actually enhance it as I expand my knowledge and my network. Best of all, my attorneys never worry about my leaving. I am completely mobile and available, regardless of my location, and can continue to support them wherever I may be.
Military spouses need not give up their careers or put a career on hold; it is possible to have and enhance a career. As a paralegal, I found freelancing to be the solution to continuing my career and to providing support to the attorneys who need it the most. It’s a win-win situation all the way around. I truly have found the best of both worlds.
Kris L. Canaday is a [virtual] freelance paralegal providing support to attorneys, firms, and governmental agencies nationwide. You can learn more about Kris and the services she offers at http://www.paralegalsvcs4attys.com. Kris can be reached at (888) 4Lgl-Svc [(888) 454-5782] or kris@paralegalsvcs4attys.com.
As I stare out the airplane window, my mind runs through all the things to be done. It’s a quick trip. Find a house and head back across the country to finish packing. I have so many things still to do – I haven’t even touched the kitchen and I still need to schedule the utilities. Oh yeah, I also need to finish that paternity action when we land.
I am a military spouse. I am also a freelance paralegal. Why? So I don’t have to give up my career every time we transfer. Lately, that seems to be regularly. We’re leaving Washington after less than two years and just learned that we may only be in Louisiana for one year instead of three. I don’t think I’m going to unpack much more than my kitchen and office this time around.
After working in law offices around the country, I decided to work strictly from my office and provide support to attorneys both on a regular and as-needed basis. As every military spouse knows, challenges abound in having your own career while living the military life. Employers have no interest in hiring someone who will only be around one to four years. An employer can identify a military spouse simply by looking at the spouse’s resume – two years in this state, four years in that state . . . . Few employers consider that a local could leave just as easily after six months of employment because s/he has decided to look for another job. In contrast, military spouses are more likely to stay with the employer as long as possible because they know their time is limited.
And then there’s leaving for a new place and starting all over again. Both employer and spouse have to start over. The time spouses have for working in each place they live is limited further by the duration in which it takes to obtain work as the result of their military status. It is difficult at best to have a career as a military spouse, even more difficult to move it forward.
The truth is, military spouses bring a great deal of knowledge to the table as the result of their vast experience. After struggling to find work and having back-to-back short tours, I decided to offer support to attorneys who are totally overwhelmed. With the downturn in the economy, I found many attorneys are struggling to keep their practice above water and have insufficient overhead to bring in additional employees, yet they are overwhelmed trying to do everything themselves. By working freelance from my office, I am able to help attorneys reduce their workload and stress and help them move their practice forward without increasing their overhead.
In essence, I’ve turned my lemons into lemonade and made a career I already love even more fulfilling because I know I am truly making a difference in my attorneys’ lives. I no longer have to give up my career every time we transfer to a new location; I actually enhance it as I expand my knowledge and my network. Best of all, my attorneys never worry about my leaving. I am completely mobile and available, regardless of my location, and can continue to support them wherever I may be.
Military spouses need not give up their careers or put a career on hold; it is possible to have and enhance a career. As a paralegal, I found freelancing to be the solution to continuing my career and to providing support to the attorneys who need it the most. It’s a win-win situation all the way around. I truly have found the best of both worlds.
Kris L. Canaday is a [virtual] freelance paralegal providing support to attorneys, firms, and governmental agencies nationwide. You can learn more about Kris and the services she offers at http://www.paralegalsvcs4attys.com. Kris can be reached at (888) 4Lgl-Svc [(888) 454-5782] or kris@paralegalsvcs4attys.com.
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