When you have worked with clients for over twenty years you know their ways.  You have lived their highs and lows, drunk their tea and coffee, with a slice or two of cake, and listened to their life stories.

You’ve been a friend, a counsellor and on occasions the deliverer of truths to give them up ‘boot up the backside’.

Regrettably this year, dealing with death of clients has become something we have had to increasingly deal with. The expected, and unexpected calls to the office, from a family member, telling us that they have lost a loved one.  Yes, we have lost a client, but invariably we have lost also a friend, and all of a sudden there is a whole in your professional life and a tear to be shed. 

I’ve realised it is ok to be upset, but also to cherish the memories they have given you, how they have been a cornerstone to you progressing in your professional development.

I remember after the death of one of my ‘old girls’, I was called to her solicitors office, as there was “something for me”.  It was an envelope, and inside was a recipe for lemon drizzle cake, the cake she used to make for our review meetings for over 15 years, with the message “Over to you now – remember to double sift the flour”.

This article was first published in CityWire.