Mental health professionals have noted that milestone anxiety is a topic arising more frequently in therapy sessions. 

Lawyers Weekly spoke with Stuart Barnett, thought partner and executive coach for lawyers; Glenn Hughes, winner of Mentor of the Year 2021 Partner of the Year Awards; and Peter Harkin, winner of Mentor of the Year 2021 Australian Law Awards.

“Milestone anxiety is very much about comparing yourself to those around you,” said Mr Barnett.

“Competition has become the backbone of our society,” observed Mr Hughes.

“Kids are ranked and measured from an early age at school. Only those with near-perfect ATARs can get into law degrees, and only those with CVs worthy of a United Nations posting can get jobs in the top law firms.

“By the time they are behind a desk in a law firm, the competitive spirit is well and truly ingrained,” he said.

“Then, the pressure to maintain that life trajectory kicks in and, if they are not careful, anxiety creeps in. 

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“In the legal profession particularly, people are working with others who have the same drive and determination, so it gets harder, not easier, to maintain the same trajectory,” said Mr Hughes. 

People attracted to the law are often high achievers, which makes them naturally competitive, said Mr Barnett.

“This can be destructive if it results in a young lawyer trying to live up to external pressures and expectations.

“The legal profession has the propensity to value people according to how good a lawyer one is,” Mr Barnett added.

“For a young lawyer, that can quickly become a question about their value as a human being.”

“Nearly all law firms are competitive by nature,” added Mr Hughes. “This is driven by client expectations, timesheets, budgets, business plans and the lure of promotions.

“These are collective organisational goals that help make law firms successful, but, individually, the constant measurement of one’s achievements leads to anxiety when compared to others’ achievements.

“In some firms, this reinforces an ‘up-or-out’ mentality — which impacts milestone anxiety,” Mr Hughes said.

“All lawyers are impacted by milestone anxiety,” added Mr Barnett.

“I have had clients who are senior lawyers who are getting towards 40 and feel under massive pressure to become a partner — they are acutely aware that many of their peers are already partners.

“Social media is an exaggerating factor,” stated Mr Barnett. “It makes us more aware of other people’s milestones — and it’s a very edited version of reality.”

“Lawyers see their contemporaries reaching milestones on social media bragging platforms like LinkedIn, Instagram, and Facebook — something that didn’t happen 20 years ago,” said Mr Hughes. 

Young lawyers face a high level of aspirational marketing in society, which creates artificial norms of what success and happiness look like, he said. 

“Social media only ever highlights one aspect of success, it rarely shows all the sacrifices made to achieve that success,” he added.

“My advice to junior lawyers would be to run their own race, rather than focusing on the progression of their peers,” said Mr Harkin.

“You see this approach in top athletes,” added Mr Barnett. “The mindset is to race themselves, objectively looking at their performance and analysing how they improved compared only to themselves.”

“Young lawyers should seek out an employment environment where their career progression is regularly discussed, documented, and supported by their superiors and the practice,” said Mr Harkin. 

“That way, they have clarity and structure by which to approach their career milestones, which should reduce any anxiety involved.

“If they are feeling anxious about milestones, they should speak to their team leader, engage a mentor, or access their firm’s employee assistance program.”