10 things we learn from Rachel Zane from SUITS

Even though we’re in the midst of a moving, shaking and gender gap-fighting generation of ladies who refuse to back down and accept the status quo, women in the workplace have it hard.

Here are 10 things we learn from Rachel Zane from SUITS.

1. You don’t have to accept anyone’s definition of you

People will  always form preconceived
notions about you. Maybe it’s the town you grew up in, your last name, your family’s high profile business or your dad’s affiliation to one of the most senior ranking law firms on the coast.
Whatever it is, people will think that they know you and because of that, they’ll make judgments on your character, your career and your choices.
The beauty of being a woman in today’s society (and hell, just being a person in general), is that you don’t have to live in line with anyone’s preconceived ideas of who you are.

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2. The path that’s well-traveled isn’t the path for everyone

You don’t have to follow the yellow brick road all the way to the career of your dreams. Chances are you’ll wind up in an office where nearly all of your colleagues traveled many a road to get where they are today—some don’t even have a clue how they got there.
Find what you’re passionate about and let that stick. Just because you didn’t get into the grad school program of your choice doesn’t mean you won’t still make it in this industry.

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3. You can be a woman and a professional

Sometimes it’s too easy to feel like you need to check the things that make you a woman at the door when you’re walking into a big meeting with clients. Spoiler alert! You don’t. It’s that consideration, concern and respect for people that make you a better professional because you’re a woman.
So don’t worry about getting attached to your employees or offering up a shoulder to cry on when a colleague has a bad day. The ability to empathize, sympathize and relate only make you more versatile.

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4. Don’t be afraid of your intelligence

It’s so easy to fall back into that assumed “bossiness” that has defined an era of women, but guess what? Owning your intelligence doesn’t push you into one box or the other. Instead, it keeps you from fitting neatly into any box.
At any level and in any industry, your intellect should be celebrated. Don’t be ashamed to put those book smarts on display – you’ve earned it.

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5. It’s okay to have a secret (or two)

We all have secrets. Sometimes they’re big ones and other times, they’re little ones – but more important than their size is the fact that they belong to us. They’re not meant to be put on display for judgment; they’re not fodder for public opinion.
Our secrets are our stories. They’re where we’ve come from, where we’re going, or maybe where we’ll never, ever go again; they’re where we keep our hopes and dreams; where we harbor the things that have hurt us, the things we’re scared of, the things we’re proudest of. And so long as they’re ours, they don’t have to be anyone else’s.

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6. Stand up for yourself

One of the hardest lessons you’ll learn in the office and out in the real world is how to stand up for yourself.
It’s easy to be pushed to the sidelines and to let people do the talking for you, but as a woman making it in a man’s world, you have to remember that you are your own advocate. So be your own advocate.

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7. If at first you don’t succeed, keep trying

Life is a game of wins and losses, so missing the mark on the first try shouldn’t be enough of a deterrent to keep you from trying again. You’re going to fail. You’re going to screw up. You won’t always get it right the first time you try, and you may not know all the answers the first time they call your name.
Guess what? It’s normal not to know everything – and it’s okay to screw up, to not get it right on the first try, to not always know the answers. The beauty is in knowing that you can screw up.

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8. Women can be fierce co-workers and friends

Want to be bossy, be the boss, wear the pants and still get along with your co-workers?
The good news is that many of the horror stories you’ve heard of women clawing their way up the corporate ladder at the expense of their female peers are probably wrong. You can expect the most from your feminine colleagues, push them harder than you’ve ever pushed before and still invite each other out for a drink once the workday is done.
It’s no longer all or nothing when it comes to getting along with your female employees.

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9. Your parents’ story doesn’t have to be yours

You don’t have to walk in the same footsteps as mom and dad and you don’t have to want everything that they want for you either. It’s okay to stray from the road that you know so well – especially if your story is destined to take you different places anyways.

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10. You can have it all

No matter what your version of “having it all is”, if you work hard enough for it, work long enough for it and put enough “oomph” behind it, you can get it, you can have it; it can be yours.
There’s no reason you shouldn’t have the high profile gig in New York, the London flat, the grad program of your dreams and still have the cross-country boyfriend; you can have the 9-9 and a family, the dream and the reality.
And don’t ever let anyone tell you otherwise.

4 Life Lessons we Learned from MIKE ROSS of SUITS

Harvey Specter from “Suits,” is among the most evocative characters to personify the powerful, charming, ambitious, successful businessman.

He knows how to play the game and he knows how to get what he wants. He’s not afraid of a knife fight and he’s not afraid of fighting fair when the enemy’s fair, too.

However, the character of Mike Ross, is equally — if not more — interesting (although less explored). Resonating with a lot of Gen-Y’s entrepreneurs, he’s ambitious and intelligent, although a bit naive and makes the occasional mistake.

He gives value to his emotions, he attacks usual problems in unexpected ways and he overcomes obstacles to complete any task at hand.
Here are four points We’ve learned from Mike Ross:

1. Mistakes are fine.

Nobody’s perfect and Mike Ross perfectly exemplifies it. He makes mistakes. When the facts he obtains from his eidetic memory don’t allow him to forecast bad surprises, or when he wants to compromise his or Harvey’s winning position in order to help someone, he sometimes screws up. This happens to all of us in life.

However, when Mike makes a mistake, he always finds ways to recover and come out on top. Naturally, just like in the real world, this isn’t always possible.

In today’s world, where we always strive for perfection and don’t cut ourselves any slack, Mike’s character teaches us a valuable lesson: It’s not all over just because you made a mistake. Learn from it; grow stronger; become better.

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2. Always be fact-oriented.

Mike displays the importance of objective facts. The fact that he has an eidetic memory and can recall any fact, number, sentence or even document, provides for interesting twists in the show.

However, the crucial lesson is this: You need facts. Be it to defend a position, to make a claim or to defend yourself from a claim, you must always reference real information. Especially in the business world, it’s easy to make claims, to have ideas and to try approaches without validating them with real, cold-hard data.

Mike’s character, with his eidetic memory, reminds us of just how important facts are, especially when the stakes are high and the margin for error is low. Everything you say is more valuable when it’s verifiably true.

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3. Have fun and enjoy the ride.

In the world of business, especially when the stakes are high, it’s easy to become stressed, worn out, jaded. Well, it’s important that we enjoy the process, too. The hard parts will be hard and the easy ones will be easy, but at the end of the day, we still need to do all of them.
Mike is a good example of how we should all strive to enjoy the ride. He plays to win and he’s not afraid to take risks. But, he never becomes tired or affected by situations. When the team is victorious, he celebrates, and when they’re in trouble, he stops to think about how to overcome the obstacles.

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4. Win or lose, loyalty trumps everything.

On “Suits,” Mike doesn’t always win. Most of the time, him and Harvey win brilliantly, but sometimes, they crash spectacularly. Still, regardless of the outcome, they always stick together.

When someone betrays Harvey, it’s a betrayal to Mike, as well. Just as when someone does a good thing for one, it’s a good thing for the other, too.


The Harvey and Mike team sticks together through good and bad. Even in situations where Mike goes behind Harvey’s back to try an unapproved strategy or because Mike thinks Harvey’s wrong, the two work toward a common goal, and they stick together in the end.