Partnership. Are you sure?
Today I want to share something a little more personal.
It’s about my own relationship with the idea of becoming a partner in a law firm — and how that journey shaped the work I do today with women on the partnership track.
When Success Is Someone Else’s Definition
Like many of us, I was a “good student.” Top of my class. Excellent at English, French, history — and yes, music too. In Australia, where I grew up, being a high achiever meant one of two things: you studied medicine or law. I knew medicine wasn’t for me, so law it was.
But if I’m really honest, I didn’t choose law so much as I absorbed it. My father was a respected lawyer at one of Australia’s top firms. He loved his work — truly loved it. He was intelligent, disciplined, widely admired. He read The Economist, went to the gym — and so I did too. I modelled myself on him in every way I could.
So it made perfect sense that I would follow the same path. It felt like success.
The Dream of Partnership — and the Reality Check
Fast forward through law school, qualifying in Australia, and working in the UK, and I eventually found myself in Paris. I worked in-house for a while — but the law firm life still called to me. For me, being a partner was the pinnacle. The truest expression of professional success.
It wasn’t about the money.
It was about identity.
So I went back into private practice. And… I absolutely hated it.
The hours were irregular and brutal. The stress was relentless. I was putting enormous pressure on myself — and not because anyone else was demanding it. I’d internalized this belief that becoming a partner was success. Full stop.
Eventually, I left the law firm and returned in-house at a French asset manager. I stayed for nearly 15 years — first in legal, then in the front office, structuring investment funds. Along the way, I pursued other interests, deepened my curiosity, and finally trained as a coach.
From "Wanting to Be a Partner" to Coaching Future Partners
It might seem ironic that I now coach women who want to become partners in law firms.
But to me, it’s perfect.
Because now, I help women make that decision consciously — not because it’s what they think they should want, but because they’ve asked themselves the right questions. Questions I wish I’d asked myself years ago:
Why do I really want to be a partner?
What does success mean to me, not just to others?
What kind of partner do I want to be?
What do I want to bring to the table?
Had I asked those questions earlier, things could have turned out differently. I might have chosen a different path — or I might have approached partnership with clarity and resilience, instead of pressure and self-doubt.
Either way, I would have been in the driver’s seat.
Pathway to Partnership: A Coaching Programme That Starts With "Why"
In the first module of my programme, Pathway to Partnership, we focus entirely on this kind of clarity.
We look at:
Why you want to become a partner
What kind of partner you want to be
And how to align your ambition with your values, your strengths, and your long-term vision
Why do we start there? Because once you’re clear on your "why," the rest becomes easier. You stop second-guessing yourself. You stop scattering your energy across conflicting options. You get focused — and that focus releases energy. It brings confidence. It builds momentum.
From there, we go deeper into the other two pillars of the programme:
Confidence — so you show up powerfully, even in intimidating rooms
Client Development — because no one becomes partner without learning to build relationships that matter
You Deserve to Make a Conscious Choice
You don’t have to follow someone else’s definition of success. You don’t have to repeat the story your parents lived or the one your firm expects.
You get to define it for yourself.
And that’s the work I love most — helping women get clear, step into their power, and either walk toward partnership with purpose… or walk away from it with peace.
If this speaks to you, and you’re wondering whether Pathway to Partnership might be the right fit, feel free to reach out. The first cohort has just begun, and I’m opening a waitlist for the next round.
Let’s have a conversation. You don’t have to figure this out alone.
Until next week,
Cecilia