That said there are some personality traits that are valued more often than not. If you think you have these you could make a good paralegal:

Honesty and integrity:		Legal systems only work when legal practitioners act honestly, with integrity and without conflict of interest. The standard required is less that of a businessperson and more that of a trusted adviser with a duty to act honourably and put the client first
Competence:		Incompetent legal practitioners can cause untold misery and tend to lead very uncomfortable, stressful lives!
Attention to detail:		Law is frequently about ensuring that everything has been considered. Basically asking 'what if?' and 'Are all the bases covered and loose ends tied up?' A businessperson might be satisfied with the deal "I'll buy 20,000 pounds of apples from you for £4,500." But a good legal practitioner will ask exactly who was buying/selling (an individual or his/her company), what apples were being sold (Coxes?) when they'd be delivered and paid for, where they'd be delivered to, how they'd be delivered and paid for, who bears the risk if there's an accident during transportation, did the £4,500 include VAT etc.
Ability to work under pressure:		Sometimes there are unmovable deadlines to be met. could you keep your cool?
Taking responsibility:		Legal practitioners have to take responsibility for the work they do. People who just walk away from an unresolved problem rarely make good paralegals
Trustworthy:		Paralegals are often given quite a lot of responsibility - they need to be trustworthy
Liking people:		Most things come down to people in the end and if you are not good with people then you won't make a good paralegal - unless yours is a paper-based job of course

Do you agree/ disagree? From your experience have we missed out any essential traits? Let us know via office@ theiop.org (note break in the link)

Starting Your Paralegal Career

Choosing a career is a big step.

"Our character is what we do when we think no one is looking"
Jackson Browne

If you:

• Are not sure whether you have the right temperament to be a paralegal

• Want to explore the many different features of your own personal style, including your approach to home and work life, your communication style and motivation and your particular strengths and weaknesses

• Want to prepare as best you can if you interview with one of the many recruiters who use personality profiles by knowing in advance the kind of information potential employers will have access to

Then you should consider using the DISC work profile.

MyDISC Personality Profile

The profiling is immediate, informative and confidential.

It isn't a full 'personality test' in the strict technical sense, but it does provide you with an illuminating, honest, impartial and confidential insight into your individual style. See the DISC site for more information.

For more information, or to take the profile test then visit the MyDiscProfile site by clicking here. Please note this is a commercial service and so it does charge for the profiling. For more details see their web site.