By: Paula Elianna Lwanga
Going in, I genuinely believed I was ready to run the place. Thanks to arguing with
classmates at school and writing long essays, I assumed I had the whole justice system
figured out. I had visions of myself strolling into the office, dissecting complex statutes,
and flipping through dramatic evidence binders. I thought I was lightyears ahead of
everyone else.
Turns out, I hadn’t even cleared the starting line. My brief time at Nabasa Co. was a
massive wake-up call right from the jump.
Day One: The Reality Check
On day one, I was welcomed with open arms by the whole team at the firm. The founder of
the firm, Phoena Wall, was a sweetheart—the mountain of awards and certificates hanging
around the walls left me in complete awe. Her kindness was completely ironic compared to
the amount of accomplishments she had.
The Human Resources manager, Mark, showed me around the building. I awkwardly said
“hi” to everyone, giving these overly intense, stiff-armed waves that made me look less like
a cool new intern and more like a nervous politician running a highly questionable local
campaign.
Mark proceeded to show me to where I’d be sitting during my work placement. The desks
felt extremely secluded and were separated by segments to maintain maximum focus and
concentration. The environment felt like a party for deaf people. Pin-drop silence.
Very boringgggg, until… Denise came along (she’s the best bro). She told me to write my
expectations about public speaking and what I expect to learn from the law firm. I finished
it in lightning speed and looked at her with a wide grin, handing in my book.
After that boost of adrenaline, I sat on my phone in a trance of sadness while looking at my
friends send snaps of all the cool things they were doing at work; envy filled my soul. Not
what I expected at all.
Day Two: The “Extreme Corporate Makeover”
Day two was way more pumped and captivating. Denise beckoned my name to go to the
boardroom. At the time, I wasn’t the only person around my age doing work placement at
Nabasa Co. and Advocates, so we introduced ourselves and had a little chit-chat.
Denise then began to talk about public speaking and give us all the properties and
fundamentals we needed to know. It was at that very moment that I figured I was lacking
more than I could imagine; my ego sunk to the earth’s core.
She politely pointed out that my conversational skills and overall presentation were… well,
pretty rough. I was speaking so fast I was practically vibrating—which might win you
points in a school match, but gets you blank stares in a professional office.
Thankfully, they didn’t leave me hanging. They immediately sat me down and broke down
how to project quiet confidence, slow down my words, and handle myself when put on the
spot. I basically got an extreme corporate makeover in under 3 hours.
Mid-Week: Conquering the Digital Mountain
Then came mid-week. The HR head handed me a project that nearly broke me: organizing a
digital mountain of emails. When people talk about checking emails, you think of a quick
glance at your phone. This was a literal black hole of text. Clicking through hundreds of
them left me totally wiped out and wondering why I even bothered showing up. They were
for job applicants.
What I didn’t realize at the time was that this mind-numbing task was secretly a test of my
grit and focus—two things you absolutely need if you want to survive this field.
Once I conquered the inbox, one of the lawyers called Kevin (super smart and is also a
brace-face like me) taught me all I needed to learn about case files. It felt like an award after
all the emails from before. I learned how to log documents and actually piece together what
makes a real-life legal folder. It wasn’t just mindless admin; it was the actual backbone of
how cases are built.
Friday: Best. Day. Ever.
Then one Friday, aka the best day created in all human existence, it was jersey day and
appraisals for the people that are actually employed. I liked this day a lot, especially
because I could wear comfy clothes and feel like me after wearing heels the whole week
and uncomfortable button-up shirts.
The Final Week: Finding My Clique
The next week, the week that sums up everything, was extremely emotional for me.
Especially because it had come to my mind that all of this was done. All the friends I had
made along the way were about to disappear again; my corporate family was over…
On my second-to-last day, one of the most stunning, impeccable women I’ve ever seen said
“hi” to me. Her name was Hope, and she told me to write a testimony about my experience
here. Once I was done writing it, I headed to the room she was seated in and handed it over
to her.
I liked her because she was lowkey* lowkey* (she was pretty chill compared to the rest of
the people); she was an absolute icon.
In that same office, she was seated with some other dude called Luke. Luke was very nice,
he was funny (sometimes), and had a concerningly good talent at keeping up conversations.
Luke also believed he was an expert at French and basketball. I spent the rest of my day
talking to them about life and hobbies, and I instantly found my clique around Nabasa Co.
and Advocates.
Looking Ahead
Now here I am, on my last day. Writing to you about my journey. And hopefully, by the time
you are reading this, I am a successful lawyer because I took the subject history like Mr.
Gerald said. A man of wise words and the chapati and black Stanley combo on his desk.
Ultimately, this whole experience blew me away. Everyone at the office was incredibly kind,
down-to-earth, and always down to explain things. They didn’t treat me like a kid doing
mindless chores; they showed me how things actually operate behind closed doors.
I owe a massive thank you to the senior staff for taking a chance on me and guiding a
clueless student. I walked in thinking I was the smartest person in the room, but I walked
out with a much deeper, more realistic drive to chase this path in the future.
A work placement reflection article written for Nabasa Co. & Advocates
