“Be resilient and be loyal to the company or your client. They believe in you and you should believe what you do”
Manusha Punyadi Perera had her goals set right from a very young age. “It has always been my desire to become a lawyer and I was studying and working towards becoming qualified,” she says.
Manusha, who is currently the Head of Law and Intellectual Property (IP)Development at Sun Mark Ltd & Associated Companies, UK reminisces about her journey as a young law aspirant, “While reading law, I started working for two high street law firms as an intern and this gave me the opportunity to get involved with civil litigation and case management. In 2011, I joined Sun Mark Limited which is a renowned International export company. I oversee the the company’s Intellectual Property (IP) portfolio and commercial side of the company. It is a great company to work for and I am grateful to Lord Rami Ranger who believed in me and gave me the opportunity to serve the company.”
She says she believes in being adaptable in a workplace, “I did not have an option to choose which areas of the law I was going to specialise in, I believe this is the case for most graduates. Therefore, I did not choose but took up the employment available at the time and was being adoptable and transferred my skills into what is available.”
A word of advice she would give youngsters who are newly stepping into the legal industry is that, “There is a saying that ‘Work like you do not need money’. This is exactly what I can say to the younger generation joining the industry. Just work hard, do not complain about your salary or the benefit you are getting from the company but rather concentrate on what you can give to the company or to your clients. Legal sector is very competitive and what you sow now can reap later in the career.”
“Challengers are constant and inevitable,” says Manusha. “Be resilient and be loyal to the company or your client. They believe in you and you should believe what you do. Once you have the correct moral sets of thoughts your action will lead you in the right direction.”
With a work environment that can be demanding, Manusha makes sure that her weekends are kept aside for indulging in some of her favorite hobbies. “It depends on what I find relaxing each day. I make plans for the weekend. Baking and trying International cuisines makes me de-stressed and takes my mind away from hectic week and prepares myself for the coming week. Sometimes deciding what dessert to bake on the weekend and making a list of ingredients which I need to buy on Friday evening and change the plans on Thursday evening is also fun!”
