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Career Unicorns
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Stop the dread.
Build your dream career.

I coach BIPOC, women, and first-generation professionals who feel stuck, frustrated, and overwhelmed at work to take action to build their dream careers in 3 months.  

Services
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3 Ways We Can Work Together

1:1
Coaching

Career, executive, & leadership coaching for lawyers, law students, new graduates, engineers, data scientists, product managers, leaders, founders, and new managers.

Group
Coaching

The group coaching program is built for BIPOC, women, and first-generation professionals to reach their career, leadership, and mental wellness goals.

Programs for Organizations

Co-create trainings, programs, and keynotes with organizations for career development, leadership development, mental and financial wellness.

About

Hi, I'm Samorn Selim!

Welcome to Career Unicorns - Spark Your Joy. I’m a lawyer turned career coach on a mission for us to take our careers from dread to joy. 

I grew up as the daughter of poor illiterate Lao refugees.  I was the underdog.  But against all odds, I graduated from Berkeley Law, landed a 6-figure job with a big law firm in my mid-20's.  

 

I had always assumed checking off the boxes of big achievements for my resume would bring me happiness.   

 

I was wrong. 

 

As an outsider, people said I was lucky even just to be there and that I had to pay my dues.  

 

I was miserable. I woke up filled with dread every morning wanting to change but didn't know how.  I felt too overwhelmed, anxious, and stuck.

After working with my career coach, I reconnected with what brought me joy.  Within 3 months, I transitioned to my dream job as the Director of Employer Outreach at Berkeley Law where I coached students and alums to build their dream careers.

Since then, I’ve coached more than 1,000 BIPOC, women, and first-generation professionals who are lawyers, techies, and leaders to build their dream careers.

I’ve come to realize that the idea that you have to pay your dues and work in a toxic place is a myth.  

We can face our challenges head on, do work we are passionate about, and work with good people with kind hearts to make a big impact.  
 
We can land dream jobs, be promoted to leadership positions, and negotiate 6-figure salaries.  So even as we struggle, we can find a sense of belonging.

Official Bio

Experience

  • Founder and Creative Joy Director of Career Unicorns 

  • Attorney at Manatt, Phelps & Phillips 

  • Director of Employer Outreach at Berkeley Law 

  • Keynote at Google, Wilson Sonsini, and Dress for Success

Leadership​

  • Board Member, American Bar Association Career Center 

  • Co-chair of Diversity Committee, Bay Area Legal Recruitment Association 

  • Leadership Facilitator and Coach, Coca Cola Scholars Foundation Leadership Development Institute

Education

  • J.D., Berkeley Law, Prosser Award for Contracts

  • B.A., U.C. Berkeley, High Distinction in General Scholarship

    • Highest Honors in Legal Studies​

    • Honors in Social Welfare

    • Minor in Education
       

Honors

  • Forbes names Career Unicorns as top 11 career coaches

  • Feedspot names Career Unicorns - Spark Your Joy as top 9 best career coach podcasts

  • BBC Worklife and Harvard Business Review features Career Unicorns as career expert

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Why Work with Samorn?

Instead of starting and stopping your job search and feeling stuck and frustrated...

Create a strategy that gets you clarity to land your dream career in 3 months.

Instead of wondering what you should write on your resume, cover letter, LinkedIn, and thank you notes...

Get detailed and tailored feedback on how to show your value and land interviews.

Instead of being afraid to reach out to people to network and learn more about opportunities...

Get exact scripts and emails on what to say to get people to want to talk to and help you.

Instead of drawing a blank when someone asks, “Tell me about yourself” or other questions...

Learn strategies and get feedback so you know what you need to say to land offers.

Instead of freaking out whether you should negotiate and being anxious about what to say if you do negotiate...

Know how to position yourself to get 20-40% increases in your compensation package.

Instead of settling for jobs that undervalues you and underpays you...

Land leadership positions without having to wait years or get more degrees.

Ready to get results like these?

Who I Work With
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Who I Work With

I've coached clients to land jobs at Stripe, Meta (formerly Facebook), Doordash, Electronic Arts, Airbnb, Uber, Latham & Watkins, Wilson Sonsini, Kirkland & Ellis, Farella Braun + Martel, Hanson Bridgett, and more.

Lawyers

lawyers

law students

jd advantage

government & policy

Techies

engineers

data scientists

 

product managers

marketers

Leaders

c-suite executives​

directors

 

leaders

new managers

Podcast
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Listen to the Podcast

Spark Your Joy with Samorn Selim

Are you feeling stuck and frustrated at work?  Join Career Unicorns - Spark Your Joy podcast where we chat about how you can find a sense of belonging in a world that repeatedly tells you that you’re not supposed to be here.

Books
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belonging

Self Love Lessons From A Workaholic Depressed Insomniac Lawyer

A raw, vulnerable, and authentic memoir about the daughter of illiterate, poor Lao refugees growing up in Stockton who defies the odds of being a welfare queen to earn a degree from Berkeley Law and work at a Big Law firm.

Praise

Client Praise

1:1 Coaching for Leaders & Techies

"I highly recommend Samorn Selim as a career coach. She used her experience and deep understanding of the job market to help me find a job in one of the MAANG companies. Samorn takes a personalized approach, is a great listener and provides tailored guidance in achieving the goals that were set at the start of the journey. She not only helped me level up, and negotiate a great package, she filled me with confidence to dream big. Whether you are seeking a change in your career path or looking to take your professional skills to the next level, I have no doubt that Samorn will be an invaluable asset to you, like she was to me. She has a knack of making you feel worthy of your dreams!"

Kishita A.

Senior Manager, Marketing Strategy and Insights at Google

Contact
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Contact Samorn

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