Bill Every Second - Why Women Lawyers Need To Stop Discounting Their Time
There’s something I’ve seen again and again in the women I coach—something that quietly undermines careers, confidence, and the very culture of law firms. It’s not a dramatic failure or a glaring misstep. It’s subtle, habitual, and for many women, it’s happening every single day: discounting their time.
Recently, over lunch with a senior associate at a top-tier US law firm in Paris, we were talking about billing practices. She shared something that stopped me in my tracks: even when women on her team know they’re underreporting their hours—they keep doing it. The men aren’t. But the women are. Even when they’re explicitly told not to.
Let’s be clear: this isn’t just about numbers on a timesheet. This seemingly small decision has enormous ripple effects:
It impacts promotion and compensation.
It distorts firm culture and perceptions of performance.
It even limits what the firm can ethically charge clients.
And most of all, it chips away at your sense of value—which is something I care deeply about helping women reclaim.
Why Do Women Discount Their Time?
There are three main patterns I see with the incredible, high-achieving women I work with:
1. Self-Worth Tied to Money
“If I bill that much… am I really worth it?”
This internal questioning is a confidence issue. And it’s not uncommon—especially in environments where value is externally measured in euros, pounds, or dollars. But billing isn’t a judgment on your personal worth. It’s a record of your work. And your job is to do the work—not to reduce its perceived value.
2. Fear of Appearing Inefficient
Many women worry: Did I take too long? Should that task have taken less time? So they trim their hours.
But remember: your billing rate reflects your experience. Junior associates bill at lower rates because it takes longer to get things done. That’s normal. That’s expected. And senior associates? Same thing. You’re still on a learning curve. If you're spending the time, that time deserves to be logged.
3. Need for External Validation
This one is particularly strong: What will the partner think? What will the client say?
Many women are raised—culturally, socially—to be helpful, not demanding. Not “greedy.” We’re taught to smooth things over. To not make a fuss. But this leads to a kind of internal censorship where we undervalue ourselves before anyone else even has a chance to.
The Cost of Underreporting
The consequences aren’t just personal. Underbilling affects the entire system:
Firms lose revenue they’ve rightfully earned.
Female lawyers are seen as less productive, which affects their chances for partnership.
The pipeline to leadership becomes thinner—because women are quietly falling off track, not due to lack of talent, but due to invisible choices like these.
So What Can You Do?
Start with this: money is just money. It’s not your soul. It’s not your character. It’s not a referendum on your intelligence or ability. It’s a construct—a tool—and it's time to use it wisely.
This is the heart of what I work on every day with my clients: building confidence from the inside out. True confidence doesn’t depend on what anyone else thinks. It doesn’t come from money, title, or recognition. It comes from clarity, from purpose, from internal strength.
A Challenge for Today
If this resonates with you, here’s a small but powerful step you can take:
Bill every single minute you work today.
No rounding down. No trimming the “thinking time.” No mental negotiations.
Just… bill it.
It may feel uncomfortable—and that’s okay. That discomfort is part of the change. The more you practice it, the easier it becomes. You’ll start to own your time, your worth, and your career path.
And I’d love to hear how it goes. Leave a comment. Message me. Let’s keep this conversation alive.
You deserve to be valued. Not just when you make partner—but every step along the way.
Let’s stop discounting our time. Let’s start owning our worth.
With warmth and belief in your brilliance,
Cecilia Poullain