Mitchell Hamline School of Law

Mitchell Hamline Alumni

November 2018 Mentorship Newsletter

Posted: December 7, 2018

Greetings!

Thanks so much for your continued participation in Mitchell Hamline’s Mentorship Program. This month we focused on social etiquette. From hearing colleagues, students, and contacts across the country talk about social etiquette, we learned there are some clear rules (do use your right hand to shake) and some clearly wrong rules (don’t use the wind as an excuse for missing a meeting). We hope this newsletter helps shed even more light on social etiquette rules. If you have unspoken rules, universal rules, or horror stories, you’re welcome to pass them along for inclusion in next month’s newsletter.

With thanks,

Tessa, Allison, and Sharon

Looking Back

On November 12th, we held a social etiquette event.  We capped the event at 30 students and we had about a dozen mentors present. Mary Heath and Astrid Eglitis from Maslon presented tips and stories. You’ll find some tips from the speakers just below.

Looking forward

On the evening of January 28th, we’ll host a career exploration event at the law school where students can join their mentors and learn about different career paths. We’ll have beverages, appetizers, and good conversation. You’ll receive an invitation in the coming weeks. Attendance will be capped, so if you’re interested, please sign up as soon as you’re able.

Contact

You are always welcome to contact us with questions, sugestions, or feedback.

Tessa Boury ’05
Assistant Director, Career and Professional Development
651-290-6472
tessa.boury@mitchellhamline.edu

Allison Burke ’09
Alumni and Donor Engagement Officer
651-695-7608
allison.burke@mitchellhamline.edu

Sharon Goodyear
Program Administrator and Career Counselor
651-290-7508
sharon.goodyear@mitchellhamline.edu

November Suggested Events and Articles

Suggested Events

Trivia Mafia

Best Twin Cities Coffee Shops

Look for free online social etiquette or business etiquette courses

Suggested Articles

Oh, Behave! Business Etiquette for Lawyers and Law Students (NALP)

Top 10 Basic Etiquette Tips for Lawyers (Lawyerist)

Business Etiquette Answers for Today’s Legal Professionals (Law Practice Today)

First-Year Mentorship

Review the discussion questions below with one or more of your classmates or another person in the legal profession you know. Do you agree with their viewpoints or not? Why?

Upper-Level Mentorship

Pose any of the social etiquette questions in the discussion points section to your mentor.

Discussion Points

How has social etiquette played a role in your ability to forge relationships?

How has social etiquette played a role in your ability to gain clients?

Have you ever had a time where social etiquette had a negative impact on your career or goals? How were you able to overcome those missteps?

What social etiquette habits of others have resonated with you and which do you avoid?

Do you use business cards? Why? When do you use them?

Do you send thank you notes? Why? When do you use them?

Social Etiquette Tips

Make sure to have a firm handshake and look the person in the eye when you’re shaking their hand.

Develop your brand and stay consistently on brand through you career and interactions.

Use professional language in all your correspondence, particularly with superiors. Be sure to be more formal than the recipient or sender. That is, don’t be the person in the relationship who is more informal.

Consider everything you write in the context of how it would be perceived if it were read in front of a jury.

When you think about social media and professionalism, the first thing to do is to google yourself (this is what an employer will do).

  • Do not post anything you wouldn’t want colleagues to see or read
  • Never friend someone on Facebook who is in a higher position than you
  • Definitely have a LinkedIn account (you can always come to Career and Professional Development for a review of your account)

Do not order alcohol at events (there wasn’t any qualification here about ordering drinks if someone in a higher position orders one first).