Dec 21, 2022
“I wouldn’t take it back for all the money in the world.”
That’s how Marcus Payne chooses to reflect on his role as Chief
Counsel for Queensland Health during a global pandemic.
“It was a wonderful experience in terms of the pressure and what I
learnt but would I choose to go back and do it again? I’m not
sure!”
Now Head of Legal at Urban Utilities, Marcus clearly likes a
challenge - in September he completed a bucket-list goal, swimming
across the English Channel in 14 hours and 29 minutes.
“I’m a pretty firm believer that anyone can do amazing things, it’s
just about having the right approach and not trying to do too much
too quickly.”
The “right approach” to something as difficult as swimming The
Channel includes training in the cold and dark from three in the
morning, ahead of a busy work schedule. But most importantly, it
involves a team of motivators.
“You’re not allowed to wear a watch either so I very quickly found
myself surrendering to the fact that I didn’t know where I was, I
didn’t know how long I’d been out there, I didn’t know how long to
finish - I just resigned myself to be very present in each
moment.”
In this final episode of Friends in Law for 2022, Marcus explains
the lessons such a huge physical challenge share with the daily
challenges of life and career, the role senior lawyers must play in
a post-pandemic office and the slowly tipping scales of work/life
balance that can only come when you truly enjoy what you do.
TOPICS
Host: Alex Correa - Career Coach in Law
Brought to you by Alex Correa Executive
With thanks to our guest : Marcus Payne
Friends in Law is edited and engineered by Cold Ghost (aka Fletcher Babb) Produced by Bern Young