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Turning your Internship into a Job
Let me paint a scenario of a time when I let a big opportunity slip through my fingers: The time: fall 2008, and I’m half-way into an externship with a really great agency. I turn in an assignment to my supervising attorney who reminds me that applications for summer internships at this agency are due in a week. Cue: me saying, “oh ok,” and totally missing the huge sign of my boss encouraging me to apply for a PAID summer internship. No, instead I decide to apply to a different agency that summer for an internship that does not pay me for my time (an internship I could have done during the school…
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Mastering the Business Lunch
One summer I participated in a program where I interacted with a lot of private attorneys. This resulted in a lot of business lunches, which was fun, but there were also some cringe-inducing moments. I remember one lunch where a coworker’s main focus seemed to be figuring out how many glasses of wine he could drink. This wasn’t a lunch among friends or even same-level staff, but rather with clients and supervisors! Needless to say his behavior ended up being super awkward. Now that it’s summer (though it’s constantly raining here in Chicago), there are more opportunities to step outside the office for networking lunches, and of course, if you…
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Rocking your Internship
Once the excitement of a new internship dies down, you may feel like you’re not getting everything you can out of your experience. I remember one stint I did as an extern (meaning, I was basically paying my school to volunteer at this agency), where by week three it seemed like the attorneys had no time for me; I was going to get lost in the shuffle, and basically just observe court every day if I didn’t become more proactive in attempting to get some experience. It wasn’t easy for me to be proactive in that environment. I had assumed the attorneys I was paired with wanted my help, and would…
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Networking Basics: How to Master a Networking Event
Late spring/summer always seems to have so many networking opportunities. Usually there are events to help students network, but a lot of professional orgs and alumni groups have get togethers around this time as well. I remember the summer before starting law school I attended my first legit networking event and was kind of confused about what to do. Thankfully, with practice it gets easier (and sometimes it’s actually fun). But when you’re first starting out as a new professional, you really have to work on managing and maintaining your professional image at these events because you never know when you’ll cross paths again. Usually when people don’t seem to…
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How to Study for the Bar
So–I wrote this post a million years ago in a different forum but thought I’d share here rather than create new material on how to study for the bar since this was written when the Bar was still fresh in my mind. For those that have started your bar prep course, you’ve likely found that you don’t remember much from 1L year and aren’t scoring very high on the tests and essays. That is completely normal. It takes a while to remember the basics, but what happens is that everyone starts to freak out and then it’s hard to handle the stress. So first, regardless of how you’re doing on…
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Working with Interns as a New Attorney
Summer is my favorite time at work—not because of the nice weather or all the trips planned, but because we have a ton of student interns working with us, and that means that I’m going to get a ton of work done. A TON! Now, when I was still very new, I was uncomfortable directing students and didn’t know how to give them proper guidance. I would be disappointed in the completed work, and instead of confronting the student; I’d decide to just do the work myself. I think that is the method a lot of attorneys take because they get frustrated in the amount of work they have to…
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Mistakes to Avoid as a Legal Intern
Summer internships/externships/clerkships/associate positions are starting soon (if they haven’t already started). It goes without saying that these next few weeks are an important part of your legal career. You expand your professional network, increase your legal skillsets, and get a better idea of what kind of law you do (and don’t) want to practice. It’s also true that first impressions really matter and you have to make sure that you portray yourself as a professional, capable, and attentive intern. With that said, here are some missteps you want to avoid so as to put your best foot forward. One. Don’t be distracted by electronics. Let me tell you how annoying…
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Things to Know Before the Bar
I always thought it was so unfair how short lived the celebration for law school graduation was since I had to start my bar prep course the Monday after my graduation weekend. It’s like, can I please have a second to take in this accomplishment? Instead, we jump right into Bar studying and what will likely be known as one of the most stressful periods of your life. Yay! The reality is that the Bar shouldn’t be as intimidating as it is. If you’ve taken essay courses in law school then you know what to expect from the exam. But there is so much riding on this exam that the…
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The Importance of Self-Reflection
There is so much to look forward to when an academic year ends—especially if it ends with your graduation. It’s just such a happy and exciting time! In the midst of all the excitement it’s easy to get overwhelmed and forget to really step back and appreciate your big accomplishment. Taking time to self-reflect on all the good you accomplished (and the dips along the way) is the best stepping stone for your next phase in life—whether that phase be a new school year in the fall, or starting your career. I really encourage new grads to take a moment after the celebrations have quieted down and really review all…
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Addressing Sex Harassment in the Workplace.
If you have Netflix and an hour and half to spare, you must watch Anita. The documentary is based on the Anita Hill testimony during Clarence Thomas’ confirmation. As attorneys, women, and women of color, it is such a necessary education. In 1991, I was too young to know or understand what was happening. Then growing up, post-Anita, the general belief was that sex harassment in the workplace was wrong and kind of just assumed everyone knew that from the get-go; I obviously had no real knowledge of how bad it really was for many women. What Anita shows is that because of her testimony more people were exposed to…