Q&A with Jourdan Day
Jourdan is in the firm’s Labor and Employment Department, practicing in a wide variety of labor and employment law areas. She has experience defending discrimination and retaliation charges filed with the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission and the Ohio Civil Rights Commission.
Describe a pivotal moment that influenced your career path.
For me, the most pivotal moment was when I decided to pursue becoming an attorney. That occurred during a middle school civics group project on basic freedoms under the Bill of Rights. Everyone came to the project with different ideas and interpretations, but finished with new perspectives and open to new arguments. It was during this project that I realized the law is not black and white, something to only be applied. Rather, there are many gray areas, ripe for argument and persuasion. This continues to excite me about the legal profession today.
Name an attorney you admire and tell us why.
Mary Menkedick-Ionno and Erika Pearsol-Christie have been great mentors to me. They helped me navigate the profession as a new attorney fresh out of law school and understand what life as an attorney is like. Their leadership was very influential to me, and I hope to encourage and support the next generation of women attorneys as they have supported me.
What is the best advice youā€™ve received about how to be a successful attorney?
The importance of listening, as opposed to just hearing. All aspects of communication are important, but listening to clients, opposing counsel and colleagues is critical. As problem solvers, we must listen to the wants and needs of our clients. Through listening, we develop a rapport with clients or counsel, we gain a better understanding of the problem at hand and can better craft a solution that will achieve the desired goals.
Tell us about your favorite thing to do outside of work.
Outside of work, I love to dance. I took lessons and classes, performed and choreographed all the way through law school. Although I don’t take as many classes as I would like to these days, dance is a fun way to exercise, challenges your mind and is a great way to break up your daily routine. I highly recommend taking a class, even if you’ve never danced before!
If you had a theme song, what would it be?
I recently took an online quiz, which told me my theme song is “Run the World” by Beyoncé. The more I thought about it, the more it seemed appropriate. I was raised by a single mother and grew up around strong women leaders who have helped me achieve my goals. I am so thankful for the women before me who broke down barriers and shattered glass ceilings.
