An Ending and a Beginning

Looking Back

Every school year, I begin my first day by writing down three goals that I hope to achieve by the last day. My goals for my senior year of college, for example, were to raise my GPA, get a full time job and to read four books purely for pleasure over the course of the year. I taped a sheet of paper with these goals written on it to my desk, and saw them almost every day. At the end of the year, I drew a checkmark next to each and took the piece of paper down.

I began this school year by doing the same thing. I wrote three goals down on a piece of paper, and taped it to my desk. My goals were to get a high-paying job for the summer, get good grades and to help my parents out more. Unlike my senior year of college, however, I did not end the year by dutifully putting a checkmark next to each goal. While the final goal continues to mean a lot to me, the first two were no longer served to guide my decisions and actions. My goal in this paper is to reflect a bit upon why this is the case and where it has led me.

In the Middle

So, what happened? There are a number of factors which have played roles in my shift. The first (though not necessarily the most important) is the recent changes in the big law firm model. I no longer can count on an "easy" path to follow. This isn't particularly profound, but it is the truth. I didn't realize the extent of the structural changes in the legal field before coming to law school. Once in law school, I was surrounded by people who couldn't talk about anything else. Simply aiming for a good grades so I could get a soon-to-be nonexistent high paying job seemed like a bad idea.

Impact on others

Looking Forward

Goal - niche Steps - job Hope - make change