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8 hacks to help you build confidence with AI FAST when you're in-house

2 min. read

I wish l'd had Al to help me when I was first legal hire and GC at a rapid scale tech company!

To automate routine work instantly; take first pass at contract reviews and redlining; be a "junior associate" to bounce things off and help with legal research and compliance before I could afford to outsource or hire...

Ah well, that ship has sailed - but it's not too late for you!

Regardless of team size, we are all juggling a massive workload with limited resources in-house. Al and Al assistants have stepped in to bridge that resource gap and make you feel supported. 

So — how do you do build confidence with AI fast when you’re in-house? 

👇

Four ways to elevate your legal role

in partnership with:

The role of in-house legal is changing - fast!

To thrive, today's legal leaders are adopting four key principles to elevate their role and stay ahead of the game.

Find out how you can do the same, in Summize's new and improved Legal Disruptors report.

Let’s jump back into my hacks for building confidence with AI FAST when you’re in-house.

1️⃣ Embrace the challenge
Feel Like a Beginner? Good. The secret to Al confidence isn't mastery - it's embracing being a beginner. Lawyers are trained to know all the answers before speaking up. With Al, that approach will keep you frozen forever. The tools change weekly. Your prompts won't be perfect. And that's exactly how it should be. Be confused. Be uncomfortable. And use Al anyway. Remember: progress beats perfect.

2️⃣ Ask the AI to coach you
When in doubt, tell the Al you're new at this and need guidance. Unlike human experts who might judge, Al is literally designed to help. Try: "I'm an in-house counsel learning Al. I need to draft an email to our business team about a new policy. Can you help me create an effective prompt that will get you to generate the best email? What information should I include in my prompt?". The model becomes your learning partner—use it to teach yourself how to use it better.

3️⃣ Practice with what you’ve got
No Company Tool? No Excuse. If your organization hasn't approved an enterprise Al solution, use free tools to start your journey. The prompting skills transfer across platforms. The mindset of experimentation transfers too.

4️⃣ Be consistent
Consistent Reps Beat Occasional Sprints. Fear and being overwhelmed stem from lack of experience. You don't need 3-hour Al sessions to build confidence. Start small with 5-10 minutes, 1-2 times a week. Schedule these mini-sessions in your calendar and protect them like client meetings.

5️⃣ Baby steps
Begin with free Al tools like ChatGPT to get used to interacting with Al, prompting and asking for an output. When you're confident enough, move on to Al tools designed for in-house legal use cases for simple legal research or summarizing case law. Then maybe try using Al for simple contracting tasks (like reviewing an NDA).

6️⃣ Leverage your network
Connect with other in-house lawyers via your network - whether it's Linkedin or an established membership. There are plenty Linkedin groups, webinars and legal tech communities out there to help you learn from peers, which will help build confidence and adopt practical Al solutions without reinventing the wheel.

7️⃣ Learn the jargon
Speaking the language of Al will empower you when using it. Learn what terms like LLM (large language model), NLP (natural language processing), input, output, generative Al etc mean and how they relate to each other. You'll stop feeling like a stranger in a foreign country, fast!

8️⃣ Celebrate progress!
Plenty folks out there complaining about the Al revolution and doing nothing about it - that there are too many tools on the market or they don't have the skills, no time to figure out where to start etc...

The Al train has left the station - if you're reading this, well done! Now go start practising! 🚂

You’re invited! ITGC TECH PICKS

Too busy for endless legal tech demos? Overwhelmed by the noise and wary of a hard sell?

​​ITGC Tech Picks cuts through the clutter with a one-hour product spotlight designed for busy in-house legal teams.

​Each session features:

​​🔹 One standout legal tech tool 

🔹 A real-time walkthrough + live Q&A

🔹 Straightforward, unscripted discussion on where the tool fits in an in-house legal function

​​Why it works:

✅ We do the filtering - only genuinely useful tools make the cut

✅ Tough questions asked on your behalf

✅ Fast, focused, and friendly - max 1 hour

✅ Optional vendor introductions (only if you want them)

✅ Replay + practical takeaway after every session

​You’ll walk away knowing exactly what the tool does, who it’s for, and whether it’s worth your time.

October’s edition with Ivo:

​We’re delighted to bring you Ivo in October’s session - an AI powered platform designed to make contracts (and your life) a whole lot easier!

🗓️ Tuesday 28th October

🕓 4pm GMT | 12pm EST | 9am PST

📍 Online | 1 Hour

👉 Sign up here! 👈

November’s edition with SpotDraft:

November’s session is with SpotDraft, run by the awesome Sabrina Pervez - SpotDraft is an AI-powered CLM platform designed to accelerate contracting, reduce risk, and give legal teams full visibility - all in one seamless workflow. It’s built for speed, usability, and the way in-house teams actually work.

🗓️ Tuesday 11th November 2025

🕓 5pm GMT | 12pm EST | 9am PST

📍 Online | 1 Hour | Free to attend

👉 Sign up here! 👈

Join my inner circle!

Do you need help navigating an overcrowded market to find the right legal AI tools for your team, or to justify budget for one?

I am launching a private inner circle for an exclusive group of first legal hires and solo GCs wanting ongoing support and to learn as you go. ✨

You will get:

✅ authentic connection with peers in the same boat

✅ personalised attention from me

✅ private space away from public feeds

We kick off in early November. Click here to join the waitlist.

Have you signed up to my LinkedIn newsletter yet?

Join me on there as I share candid insights from my journey - from lawyer to founder - and go deep on what I’m learning along the way.

Curious about in-house practice or simply want to reach out?

Don't hesitate to reply to this email - I'm happy to help with any questions, no strings attached.

Let’s connect! 💜

by Sarah Irwin

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