First year still struggling to get work. Any advice? Forum

[Anonymous User]

I’m a first year associate at a firm with a free market system and where first years are unassigned to a practice group. I’m having an extremely difficult time getting work and really starting to stress that I’m going to get fired. I’ve maybe billed like 160 hours so far this year. Everyone said that things would pick up in the new year but I’m still one of the slower associates in my office. I’ve been told that I do good work, but can’t seem to consistently get work. The assignments that I do get are like one offs that maybe take 3-8 hours.

I spent the majority of my day trying to get work, meet with people from other offices, and just doing professional reading. I am now wondering if I need to branch out to try to find work from groups that I’m not interested in. Any advice? I’m freaking out that I’m going to get fired

[trebekismyhero]

My first year I billed barely over 1400 hours and probably less than 200 the first two months of the year after billing a ton during the stub year and I got good reviews, next year I billed 2300 hours. It is fine, just keep reaching out to partners and senior associates and you'll eventually get work.

[Anonymous User]

My first year I billed barely over 1400 hours and probably less than 200 the first two months of the year after billing a ton during the stub year and I got good reviews, next year I billed 2300 hours. It is fine, just keep reaching out to partners and senior associates and you'll eventually get work.

Did you get your bonus the first year? My firm has a "soft target"--unsure what that even means.

[trebekismyhero]

My first year I billed barely over 1400 hours and probably less than 200 the first two months of the year after billing a ton during the stub year and I got good reviews, next year I billed 2300 hours. It is fine, just keep reaching out to partners and senior associates and you'll eventually get work.

Did you get your bonus the first year? My firm has a "soft target"--unsure what that even means.

No, my firm had a fairly strict hours requirement. But I still moved up the class year and was in good standing and got an above market bonus the next year.