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You think it can't be done. It can

You want to progress, but it’s harder when you’re the only one.

There’s no one who looks like you.

No role models to show you what’s possible.

You’re invited to attend but no one includes you.

You speak but they don’t hear you.

The people you see succeeding are different to you. They tend to look the same, talk the same and all have a certain background.

When you’re the only one, it’s easy to think you don’t belong.

It’s natural to doubt that you’re enough.

You think you can’t succeed.

But you can.

All you have to do, is be the first.

Caroline Flanagan

Be the first!

In the Be The First Progression Programme you don’t just progress your career. You elevate who you are.

You shed the powerlessness of being the only one and step into the powerful identity of being the first.

This may seem hard to believe right now.

But remember who you are. Look how far you’ve come. You are more powerful than you think.

🔥 You can break down barriers

🔥 You can break through bias

🔥 You can be the change you want to see.

JOIN Be The First Progression Programme and I will show you how.

Apply here
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What it is

The Be The First Progression Programme is a unique 6 month coaching programme for black lawyers who want to excel in their field. The programme gives you everything you need to progress your career to the next level and beyond:

The 5 Vital Skills 🚀

The Secret Sauce 🔥

The 4 Progression Pitfalls that you need to avoid 🥳

And a goldmine of coaching, teaching and tools to support you every step of the way.

I’ve made the process so simple, so doable, so easy to integrate into the daily demands of being a lawyer, you have no more excuses for playing small this year.

Apply here
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Who it's for

The Be The First Progression Programme has been specially curated and designed for the black lawyer who wants to progress their career in law.

To be eligible for this programme you must be all of:

  • a qualified lawyer / attorney
  • have a current role in private practice or in-house
  • be mid to senior level
  • self-identify as black

For example this programme is not for you if you:

  • want to exit the legal profession
  • are in between roles
  • are a trainee or newly qualified
Apply here

The 5 Vital Skills

Decide your goal

The first thing you’ll do under the programme is decide your goal! And not just any goal. You’ll work through a simple Progression Audit to ensure your progression happens quickly and easily and is sustainable over the long term.

Implement feedback

Nothing will get you to your progression goal faster than your ability to process and implement feedback. Not getting enough feedback, not understanding the feedback you get, making negative feedback mean something about you, ignoring feedback because you disagree or think it’s irrelevant – all of this will keep you stuck. Enter the Feedback Formula – a fuss-free formula that turns negative feedback into a gift and removes the frustration and fuss out of asking for it, receiving it and implementing it so that it moves you forward.

Build relationships with people different to you

If anything is essential to your progression, it’s the relationships you build along the way. But not every relationship is equal. There is value in your relationships with people who look like you, for sure. But when you’re the only one, it’s the relationships you build with people who are different to you that counts. Walking into a room and discovering you’re the only one; trying to build connection with the old/middle-aged/white/man/woman you have nothing in common with; the events that seem designed to exclude you – all of this can make relationship building feel daunting and difficult. Enter the Relationship Building Bootcamp – a specialised training series for gaining the confidence to walk into any room and connect with any one and find it energising, not exhausting.

Be visible

It’s not enough to be good or even great at what you do. People need to know who you are, know what you do and keep you front of mind.  When you avoid the spotlight and stick to working in the background, being visible feels hard. Putting yourself front and centre doesn’t come easily. Talking about your accomplishments feels cringey. You terrified of being seen as “that person” – the who’s always bragging and takes all the credit for themselves. Enter Authentic Visibility – a step by step guide to being visible while staying true to who you are.

Add value

You worked twice as hard to get here. But what got you here won’t get you there. Nobody is rushing to promote the workhorse or the safe pair of hands! Promotion goes to the one who adds the most value. In an industry that values long hours, it’s hard to imagine adding more value without doing more work. Enter the Value Plan – a personalised plan for adding twice the value without working twice as hard.

ATTENTION! Don’t be overwhelmed by the amount you get with this programme!
We don’t tackle everything at once! You are always in charge of what you are working on and how quickly you want to progress. I created this process to meet you exactly where you are now – whatever your goal, wherever you want to go, whatever else you have going on.

APPLY HERE
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The Secret Sauce

“I’m not the only one in the room, I’m the first”

This is the secret sauce for progressing your career when you’re the only one.

It’s just a thought. Just a sentence in your brain that you choose to believe.

But thoughts are powerful.

Change your thoughts and you change EVERYTHING.

The thought “I’m the first” is the difference between feeling isolated and powerless in a room, and showing up powerfully and majestically in a room.

It’s where you control the narrative.

You include yourself

You stand out from the crowd.

You add value to the room just being in the room.

“But how can I stop thinking I’m the only one? I can’t just change my thoughts!” you say.

The answer is actually yes, you can!

Enter – Be The First Mindset Management where I teach you the skill of awareness of when your brain slides back into “Only One” thinking and bringing yourself back to believing you’re The First.

Finishing line

The Success Guarantee System

Be The First isn’t just a proven process for progressing your career.

It’s more than a unique set of skills and tools and a secret sauce (don’t forget the secret sauce!).

It’s even more than a transformational Coach (that’s me) who will guide you fearlessly, believe in you deeply and support you powerfully all the way to your goal.

It’s a complete SUCCESS GUARANTEE SYSTEM with a host of features that will make your progress inevitable this year, including:

Recordings Library – worried you won’t make every session? Don’t worry I’ve got you.  One of the reasons we meet every week is to allow for the times you can’t make it. And to ensure you never miss a thing, every coaching session is recorded and uploaded to our Recordings Library with a password protected link so you can watch the sessions you miss (or re-watch the ones you found most valuable).

Consolidation Months – in December, April and August of every year we take a break from the live coaching to allow you to consolidate your progress,  build your self-coaching skills and to give you flexibility during the busiest times of the year. This is in addition to your 24 coaching sessions.

360 Coaching – with group coaching progressing to your goal is quicker, easier and alot more fun. You learn by being coached directly and you understand by seeing others be coached and by the different experiences each of you share with group.

Community Hub – In BTF we stay off email and avoid the distractions of social media! We use a separate app for connecting, announcements, asking me questions and getting support as well as to track your wins and your progress.

Apply here
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*Programme Feature* TIME CONTROL

Worried you don’t have time to focus on your career? Enter Time Control – a system of tools and best practices for taking control of your time so you have:

  • more time for the things that matter outside of work
  • enough time for working on your career goals
  • more calm and ease in your day to day experience of being a lawyer.
Apply here
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*Programme Feature* SELF CARE PROTOCOL

Feeling overwhelmed?

Worried that progressing to the next level will be too much or leave you at risk of burnout?

NOT ON MY WATCH!

You’ll develop a bespoke protocol for making sure you develop healthy sleep, exercise, diet and downtime habits so you are always taking care of yourself and so your progress is sustainable over the long term.

Apply here

Application process

The deadline for submitting your application is midnight (BST) on Friday 12 April 2024.

👉🏾You are applying for a place in the May 2024 class. There are 15 places. Don’t delay your application as offers will be made on a first come first served basis.

1️⃣ Use the calendar below to book your Application Call.

2️⃣ Answer the questions on the booking form to confirm your details.

3️⃣ Attend your Application Call with Caroline (please allow 30 minutes)

4️⃣ Within 3 Business Days of your call you will receive either:

  • a confirmed offer of a place on the programme; or
  • if we aren’t able to offer you a place on the programme at this time, notification to this effect.

5️⃣ You accept the offer by email and set up payment details

6️⃣ We send you a Progression Audit to get you thinking about your goal. That’s it!

Scroll down to make your application today.

Apply now