Though I try to bring my own lunch in when possible, I often forget but when i remember I usually end up staying at my desk throughout my break. So like most office workers I like to make my way to one of the numerous sandwich shops that ply their trade in the city centres. My current favourite is Take 5 just off Fountain Street near the corner of Sainsbury's on Mosley Street, Manchester. Though not too familiar with the ownership structure it looks & feels family owned & run. There are regulars, the Otis Lift Engineer team are in there for breakfast & lunch. There are  fresh hot & cold options, with daily roasts such as beef, pork & turkey. Most importantly there is efficiency with a smile. There are a few sandwich shops  / cafes in towns cities where customers are treated as an inconvenience. I cannot understand why any serious business would employ surly, miserable staff when the market is so competitive. That is not the case at Take 5, they have my vote when it comes to sandwich shops in Manchester. They have recently announced price rises due to current economic pressures but that has not put me off, it has in fact made me more determined to spend there when I can: good, local, small businesses are what it is all about.

Let me know about any other local indeoendents that get your vote.

Good Luck 

Suzie Qwerty. 

                         

There isn't  a day goes by without newspapers  &  television piling on the misery regarding the credit crunch. They would not be doing their job if they weren't scaring us all into locking our doors & waiting for the sun to rise again. On the serious side of things I know a lot of Residential Conveyancers who have been made redundant due to the housing market grinding to a halt, I feel for them & hope there is light at the end of the tunnel very soon.

So how can Legal Secretaries avoid being out of work? Well the problem a lot of Conveyancers are experiencing is that they are a victim of specialisation. Years back a lot of law firms were general practices & employed general practitioners. When things went quiet on property, they were kept busy with personal injury or wills & probate. Support staff were also multi-skilled, dealing with all sorts of contentious & non-contentious stuff. As the demand for specialists grew so fee earners & support staff poured into these roles  & found themselves with strong skills limited to their area of expertise. When the market was good they benefitted from increasing salaries & opportunities, now the market has contracted they are vulnerable.

The outlook for Fee Earners is not good at the moment, they may need to re-train & that will involve a salary drop. Legal Secretaries have a lot more transferable skills; they type from dictation , they draft, they arrange diaries & they manage clients amongst other things. Anyone able to produce  accurate documentation to deadlines, should find opportunities. Revisit your cv & promote any other experience outside of property law. Get working on your typing, get your speed & accuracy up.  Call Douglas Scott & speak to one of the consultants working on the legal support desk, tell them about your work experience in other legal areas such as litigation. If you are pure property then speak with Natasha on Douglas Scott's Professional Support desk, there is life outside legal & salaries are just as good as SME's compete for the best available talent. Prepare to take a salary drop, perhaps take a role where there is a salary review in 3 months. Even if you are in a job ask your consultant to consider you for roles so you can choose whether to accept a role from a position of strength. Stay positive & do not take anything personally, the current set of circumstances have been brought about by anabuse of powers greater than what we can have any influence on.

Good Luck

Suzie Q 

Hello there.

I am going to start with a bit about me. My name is Suzie Qwerty, Suzie Q or even Q to my friends. By day I am Legal Secretary extraordinaire, 80 WPM, 100% accuracy, high attendance, always positive. Hows about that then? Please feel free to point out any deliberate mistakes in my blog but there are currently no plans to give out any prizes. Please however keep your eyes open for regular promotions on the site, I am looking to work with local businesses to bring their wares to your attention by dangling a few carrots (usually in the form of giveaways & discounts).

I am retained by the best lot of recruitment consultants out there: Douglas Scott Limited, Legal Recruitment Specialists & Specialists In Your Field. They are a great bunch, a blend of recruitment savvy & legal experience. I have worked on a number of fantastic, long term legal assignments in all the regions Douglas Scott operate, North East, Yorkshire, North West, Midlands & South West. Manchester is my home though, right here in the city centre which is great fun.

Anyway straight to buisness. I need to keep myself smart & business like but want to be comfy in work & travelling to & from the office. My colleague put me on to T M Lewin, based on King St in Manchester & with shops all over the country & online. Just what I wanted, so good I have sent my other half down there today to get stocked up too! It's a traditional tailor experience with choice & great customer service. T M Lewin have kindly produced a Douglas Scott voucher for the first ever Suzie Qwerty promotion . You can obtain a massive discount on purchases from any branch or online, just go to the candidate downloads' section of our site & follow the instructions. Happy spending & many thanks to everyone at T M Lewin.

Hello there.

I am going to start with a bit about me. My name is Suzie Qwerty, Suzie Q or even Q to my friends. By day I am Legal Secretary extraordinaire, 80 WPM, 100% accuracy, high attendance, always positive. Hows about that then? Please feel free to point out any deliberate mistakes in my blog but there are currently no plans to give out any prizes. Please however keep your eyes open for regular promotions on the site, I am looking to work with local businesses to bring their wares to your attention by dangling a few carrots (usually in the form of giveaways & discounts).

I am retained by the best lot of recruitment consultants out there: Douglas Scott Limited, Legal Recruitment Specialists & Specialists In Your Field. They are a great bunch, a blend of recruitment savvy & legal experience. I have worked on a number of fantastic, long term legal assignments in all the regions Douglas Scott operate, North East, Yorkshire, North West, Midlands & South West. Manchester is my home though, right here in the city centre which is great fun.

The Industry section is for everyone who likes to keep their eye on developments within their industry, for example if they invent RoboPA you will hopefully hear it first, certainly before you get to work & find RPA in your seat. I will also try to keep you informed on moves & shakes within the legal world as a whole, expanding where I can to include other areas that employ professional secretaries. Any tip offs & information is appreciated, subject of course to the law of the land that includes confidentiality & libel!!

Stand down troops, I will keep you posted if you keep me posted.

 

Hello there.

I am going to start with a bit about me. My name is Suzie Qwerty, Suzie Q or even Q to my friends. By day I am Legal Secretary extraordinaire, 80 WPM, 100% accuracy, high attendance, always positive. Hows about that then? Please feel free to point out any deliberate mistakes in my blog but there are currently no plans to give out any prizes. Please however keep your eyes open for regular promotions on the site, I am looking to work with local businesses to bring their wares to your attention by dangling a few carrots (usually in the form of giveaways & discounts). Check out the Worklife section for out first promotion, kindly provided in partnership with T M Lewin Shirtmakers. T M Lewin have shops in all the regions we operate, see store locator for details:

http://www.tmlewin.co.uk/Content.aspx?content=Stores.htm

I am retained by the best lot of recruitment consultants out there: Douglas Scott Limited, Legal Recruitment Specialists & Specialists In Your Field. They are a great bunch, a blend of recruitment savvy & legal experience. I have worked on a number of fantastic, long term legal assignments in all the regions Douglas Scott operate, North East, Yorkshire, North West, Midlands & South West. Manchester is my home though, right here in the city centre which is great fun.

The lifestyle section will cover all things outside of work: evenings, weekend, days off & holidays amongst others. I'll be talking shopping, eating, bars & cafes, all sorts of stuff that is going to be of interest to like minded professionals. I look forward to keeping you entertained for years to come.

Love Suzie