Time for Doubt


In your article 'Bad timing', Stuart Popham of Clifford Chance says 'a degree of stress and pressure is healthy' (see [2007] Gazette, 8 March, 18). He misses the point. Whereas a degree of pressure may be healthy, stress never is.



Young solicitors are put in positions of responsibility and, because of their lack of experience, they have perfectly natural feelings of anxiety and uncertainty. In the tough macho world of the law, and in particular in the big City firms, the intensely competitive atmosphere does not allow for any feelings of self-doubt. It is quite likely that the brightest and best lawyers will suffer most because they will have been brought up to expect very high standards for themselves and failure is unthinkable.



There is no one for them to turn to, certainly not their bosses, nor their peers with whom they are in competition. Often they are unable, or unwilling, to turn to their supervising partners, if they have one, and they may well be reluctant to speak to their parents for fear of losing face.



While all large firms have counselling facilities, to turn to them involves an admission of their own perceived weakness and in any event they wonder whether they can trust that the firm will not find out and they will be branded as unable to take the heat.



Until there is a real understanding that it is all right to have self-doubt and that it is safe to be able to discuss feelings of inadequacy, lawyers will drop out of the system or worse. I am afraid that with feelings so entrenched, this will be a long time coming.



MP Dillon Weston, solicitor and therapist, London