finding the perfect job/career

[ddbones12]

This is my final year of law school. I am excited to be finished BUT I am scared as hell of the real world. I want to find a job where I enjoy what I do. I do not want to dread going to work in the morning, or count the hours until days end.

Advice!!! How did you find a job you enjoy?

[sulee]

Hi dd (if I may call you that!)

It strikes me that you made a wise choice attending law school. There are so many diverse paths that your career can follow, within this one category. There are great books out there, probably starting with "What Color is Your Parachute" that offer self help tools to direct your career to match your inclinations, passions, abilities, preferences and assets. Perhaps you are a justice seeker for the less fortunate, maybe you would work for a Legal Aid type place, perhaps you want to see the so and so's get their due--then how about being in a DA's office. Focusing on children, animals, entertainment, inventions. Perhaps you just want a 9-5er... Maybe travel... I'm sure that the perfect blend of your needs and wants exists in a job out there. Gosh.. it seems to me that the world is your oyster right now!

CONGRATULATIONS on the (near) completion a gigantic effort! I know how I felt when I finished my graduate work... excited, relieved, scared, etc. But after a few almosts, and a few misses, (none of which were awful, by any stretch of the imagination!) I got a WONDERFUL job, doing exactly what I think I was born to do. The days fly by, I never dread going in, I'm not overwhelmed every day (just some days!) and I truly feel that the people that I spend my days with like having me around, just as I enjoy their company and collegiality.

GOOD LUCK, Attorney DD!!

sulee

[lyndam52]

There is a book in my library at work (I maintain the law library at the federal courthouse here) entitled "What can I do with a law degree" or something close to that. The array of options is amazing! You might see if your library has that - or order it from Amazon (about $15).

[NikkiT723]

Well, my question to you would be: "What kind of firms have you clerked for? And did you like them?"
I am in the legal field too, (court reporter), and I know there's tons of paths you can take. I personally prefer corporate stuff and intellectual property-type stuff, but others I know find that extremely dry and boring and would rather do PI or med-mal or something else. It's really personal preference. I think that your first few years out in the real world will be a learning experience, and that's when you'll decide what areas you really are turned off by and what you're drawn to.
Try to clerk in as many different types of firms as you can to get a feel for them and just follow your heart. And don't forget: you can always move on if you're not happy with the first (or second or third) place you choose.

Good luck!

Nikki

[Barney]

Congratulations on (almost) finishing law school! That's a great accomplishment! I have been practicing law in Chicago for about 8 years. (Corporate trial work, mostly).

If I can dispense some advice that I wish I had been given . . . ask questions, ask a lot of questions . . . talk to a lot of lawyers about *what* they do; *why* they love it; *do* they love it; would they choose it over again; if they could choose one area of law - which would it be . . . to name a few topics for discussion.

When I graduated from law school, I will confess that I did not know that there was life outside of a courtroom. I am the only lawyer in my family. I did not know that there were lawyers who did other things like worked for corporations, or not-for-profits, or estate planners, or just plain old transactional lawyers! I thought that all of the "glitz and the glam" was in the courtroom! (It can certainly be a huge rush, and tons of fun, but it's not so much "glitzy and glamorous!")

Once you've asked A LOT of questions to figure out exactly what kinds of jobs are out there -- figure out what makes you tick. If money makes you tick, (and there is no shame in that) then a big firm is for you. You'll need a big firm to make the cash. If simply helping people is important (and salary doesn't matter), then maybe a not-for-profit is the way to go. You won't get your loans paid back too quickly, but you will be fulfilled in many different ways. If you love the fight of it all, and loved moot court, trial advocacy, and legal writing classes, then think long and hard about litigation. (Us litigators are a rare breed, but if it fits you, then we can have a lot of fun!) If unpredictable, long hours aren't for you, then estate planners are pretty predictable!

Also, not all firms are created equal . . . you can be a litigator at one firm and have an entirely different lifestyle than your friend the litigator at the firm next door. So, in addition to asking questions and deciding what kind of lawyer you want to be, (what makes you tick), think a bit about where you want to do it (if a firm is for you). A large firm mentality is very different from a mid-size or small firm mentality. You can get incredible training at a mid-size or small firm and have much more managable hours with a more friendly atmosphere and you'll be more likely to want to get up and go to work!

Hopefully, I've answered a few questions for you. I didn't really tell you how I got my job . . . I'm more telling you what I wish I had done . . . I clerked the summer before my second year with a solo practitioner. So, there was no chance of an offer after school. I took a job after school with an insurance defense firm doing medical malpractice and products liability defense work. It was fun, but I didn't ask near enough questions and just took the first job that I got. I left there about 18 months later and came to my job - a commercial litigation firm, where I do mostly corporate litigation. I was able to learn (18 months later) that corporate litigation was more for me than insurance litigation.

GOOD LUCK! If you have any questions, or if any of my ramblings didn't make sense, I'm happy to ramble on some more!

[ddbones12]

thanks for the tips and advice guys

Barney

So i know i want to do some form of estate planning-either general or for a school or non profit.
Do you have any suggestions on how to find jobs specific to estate planning.

I feel like all jobs are --that you just go work for a firm and do what they give you. And i know thats not for me

thanks for more tips

[Barney]

I can't speak much to schools or non-profits, but I can speak to law firms -- most law firms have specific departments, including estate planning. If you are there to work in the estate planning department, then chances are you will not get work from other departments. I know that I don't have freedom to use estate planning associates for litigation projects. (Except that I do probate litigation (will and trust contests), so I use them for that!)

By the way - do you have a tax background? Estate planners really need a tax background. I don't know if you know much about it - but, our estate planners are all CPAs or have their LLM. Just a tidbit of information to be sure that you are not barking up the wrong tree!

Did you clerk for a firm any of your summers in law school? Our clerks must do projects for all of our departments, but they usually give us a very strong indication of which department they are leaning toward at some point during the summer. That department will try to feed them more projects than others and get a better feel for them. If there is a need for them in that department, then, they get an offer, then they will be hired specifically for that department (e.g., the estate department).

Anyway - again, I'm not really answering your question other than to tell you that, if you are hired in a firm to do estate planning, then chances are your partners will guard you very preciously! They need you for their projects. If the firm is smaller, then you may be more of a "general practitioner."

So, it sounds like the target should be a mid-size, more departmentalized firm, where you won't get stuck doing the kitchen sink. There are also law firms that do ONLY estate planning and estate litigation. A lot of these places won't hire first year associates because they are too hard to train and they don't have the resources, but if you do some research and find these firms in your area, they may be a great place to target.

How to get your foot in the door? Research, for a start. Networking would be next.

Research? Have you ever heard of Martindale Hubble? Go to www.martindalehubble.com. That is a listing of all lawyers and law firms in the country. I don't know if you plan to stay in Malibu, but click on the "firms" tab and then type in the city and state where you are going after graduation. Take a look at the descriptions of those firms. Then take a look at their websites. If they do estate planning and if they are over 15-20 lawyers, then consider sending them a cover letter and resume. Just start pounding the pavement -- it now becomes a numbers game!!! There are all kinds of sample cover letters on the internet, or go see your career adviser at school. They can help a lot. This is how I got my first job -- it was pre-internet craze, so I had a paper listing of 200 firms in Chicago . . . and I sent cover letters and resumes to probably 150 of them!! I kept of list of what I sent, where I sent them, who responded, etc. I think that I have all of my rejection letters somewhere in my house still! Tedious, not fun, but necessary!

Networking? Who do you know? Who can help you? Start calling people! You never know who's brother's sister's mother's uncle can help you! Tell everyone that you are looking for a job. It sounds obvious, but you'll be surprised how many people don't know and how many people will say, "oh, my friend is looking for an associate . . ."

What do you think, a place to start? What have you done so far?