Showing posts with label goals. Show all posts
Showing posts with label goals. Show all posts
Monday, April 21, 2014
Half-Marathon Update!
So today the Boston Marathon is going to be happening, and while I'm not running in that (or anywhere close), on Saturday, I finally ran my first half-marathon--time to check that off my bucket list! It was so intense but also so fun, and I want to run another one as soon as I can, probably in late June. I think it would help me to have something physical to prepare for this summer to help balance me out while I study for the bar exam. I ran pretty much nonstop for the first six or seven miles, at a nice slow 13-minute-mile pace, and during that part of the race I was thinking, this is so easy! Why didn't I do this a long time ago? I want to run another one of these tomorrow! But then . . . reality set in at mile 8. And it's like, I'm SO hungry. And my legs hurt. And I'm really sweaty and I just want to go take a shower and eat a bacon cheeseburger and some fries (which is exactly what I did when I was done). Then I ended up getting off course at mile 8.5 and turning around at one of the water stations when I was supposed to keep going beyond it. The next mile marker I saw, instead of being 9, was 12. And I knew something was wrong because I had skipped 3 miles . . . I definitely considered just going on to the finish line, but I just couldn't. I was determined to do it right and do the whole thing, so I went back and got back on the trail and walked/ ran the rest of it. So ultimately I did 14.1 miles instead of 13.1, but that's ok. I came in last in my age group, but that's also ok. The main thing is that I finished. That's all I set out to do. And now I'll be in recovery mode probably for the whole week, and then I'll start running again next week. I'm going to do some low-impact exercise this week like swimming, but there is no way I can run for a few days considering that I can't even walk like a normal person right now because my knees and legs are so sore. But I'm already in substantially less pain than I was in on Saturday afternoon, so I know I'm on the mend. I have at least two more of these races in mind to do this year because this has now become a competition with myself--next time I'll want to beat my time from Saturday, and then keep getting better from there. But overall, it feels so great to finally check that goal off my list!
Wednesday, February 12, 2014
Haiti and Half-Marathons . . .
So, I have a lot of exciting news to share with you all tonight! First, Catherine and I won first place in the regional client counseling competition, and our 2L teammates won second place! We are incredibly excited because we never expected for the competition to go that well, but we are thrilled, and are now looking forward to participating in the national competition next month in Oklahoma! (And if we win that we get to go to Puerto Rico for internationals, but let's not get ahead of ourselves here . . . ) I am also so excited to have an excellent team of 2Ls who can do well in this competition next year, as well.
Next piece of exciting news: I've decided how I'm going to spend my 25th birthday, which is rather rapidly approaching on May 16th. I am going to spend my birthday week in Haiti volunteering with Mission of Hope. This Christian organization works in Haitian villages to provide health care, education, food, and the Gospel to the people there. Late one night the first week of January (the night I wrote this post), I started researching organizations abroad to do a mission/ volunteer trip with and found Mission of Hope, and just in the past week took the plunge, committed to going, and reserved a room at the mission headquarters for the week of May 14-21. So I'll walk across the stage at graduation and then hop on a plane four days later, and I am SO happy about it and so glad to be making this a reality. And also, my sister is coming with me! We are both very invested in this sort of thing, and very passionate about doing the Lord's work in the developing world, so this is definitely our cup of tea. I just kind of realized that it's now or never, you know? Of course I can always say that "sometime I'll go on a mission trip," but if you put it off too long, life and other responsibilities get in the way and it often doesn't happen. I decided that it's time for me to practice what I preach, put my money where my mouth is, and DO what I always say I am so passionate about. Life is just too short to wait to do important things later--we need to do them now. So I can't wait to ring in my 25th birthday in Haiti in a few months.
Applying that same "it's now or never" attitude, I also signed up to run my very first half-marathon on April 19th! I have wanted to do this for YEARS and have written about it on this blog many times and had it on my list of goals for a number of years. I know that I'm not in shape yet, or anywhere close, but I realized that I need to register for a race first and then get in shape after that. I need the time pressure of a race date to push me to get where I need to be physically to tackle 13.1 miles. So I have approximately 9 weeks, and somehow, I will be ready. It doesn't matter how long it takes me to run this half-marathon as long as I simply finish it. (Finishing alone would be accomplishment enough for me. I don't really care about my time.) So I'm doing this, and it's going to happen, finally!
I decided the first week of January that 2014 is going to be the year that I make things happen, dust off some dreams that have laid stagnant for far too long, and do my part to craft a passionate and fulfilling adult life. I decided that I need to be more assertive about pursuing the life and career I want. It's not going to just "happen," I have to be willing to work for it and to do things I haven't done before, especially in the job arena. I've realized that the whole idea of someone randomly calling you and telling you, "You know, this position just opened up, and you would be perfect for it," is 100% not a thing, and that you have to network like crazy and make opportunities happen instead of waiting for them to fall in your lap. So that's exactly what I've committed to doing, and it's beginning to work (more about that later), so I'm very encouraged. But just in general, my mantra lately for life has been this: "If you do what you've always done, you'll get what you've always gotten." And that's just not good enough for me. What I've always gotten just isn't good enough anymore. The same old results aren't going to cut it for me in 2014, because this year I'm just pursuing more. I honestly just want to claim this year for Christ, to declare over my life that this is the year of the Lord's favor, the year that I watch God work in ways I've never seen Him work before, the year that I watch Him do immeasurably more than anything I could ever ask or imagine. I've been tapping into that for my strength and inspiration, and it's been more than enough, because He is more than enough. Make this your year, too. Claim the favor of God over your life, and go out and let Him work through you, because He is the God of new things, of second chances, and of making a way where there is no way. This IS the year of the Lord's favor.
Next piece of exciting news: I've decided how I'm going to spend my 25th birthday, which is rather rapidly approaching on May 16th. I am going to spend my birthday week in Haiti volunteering with Mission of Hope. This Christian organization works in Haitian villages to provide health care, education, food, and the Gospel to the people there. Late one night the first week of January (the night I wrote this post), I started researching organizations abroad to do a mission/ volunteer trip with and found Mission of Hope, and just in the past week took the plunge, committed to going, and reserved a room at the mission headquarters for the week of May 14-21. So I'll walk across the stage at graduation and then hop on a plane four days later, and I am SO happy about it and so glad to be making this a reality. And also, my sister is coming with me! We are both very invested in this sort of thing, and very passionate about doing the Lord's work in the developing world, so this is definitely our cup of tea. I just kind of realized that it's now or never, you know? Of course I can always say that "sometime I'll go on a mission trip," but if you put it off too long, life and other responsibilities get in the way and it often doesn't happen. I decided that it's time for me to practice what I preach, put my money where my mouth is, and DO what I always say I am so passionate about. Life is just too short to wait to do important things later--we need to do them now. So I can't wait to ring in my 25th birthday in Haiti in a few months.
Applying that same "it's now or never" attitude, I also signed up to run my very first half-marathon on April 19th! I have wanted to do this for YEARS and have written about it on this blog many times and had it on my list of goals for a number of years. I know that I'm not in shape yet, or anywhere close, but I realized that I need to register for a race first and then get in shape after that. I need the time pressure of a race date to push me to get where I need to be physically to tackle 13.1 miles. So I have approximately 9 weeks, and somehow, I will be ready. It doesn't matter how long it takes me to run this half-marathon as long as I simply finish it. (Finishing alone would be accomplishment enough for me. I don't really care about my time.) So I'm doing this, and it's going to happen, finally!
I decided the first week of January that 2014 is going to be the year that I make things happen, dust off some dreams that have laid stagnant for far too long, and do my part to craft a passionate and fulfilling adult life. I decided that I need to be more assertive about pursuing the life and career I want. It's not going to just "happen," I have to be willing to work for it and to do things I haven't done before, especially in the job arena. I've realized that the whole idea of someone randomly calling you and telling you, "You know, this position just opened up, and you would be perfect for it," is 100% not a thing, and that you have to network like crazy and make opportunities happen instead of waiting for them to fall in your lap. So that's exactly what I've committed to doing, and it's beginning to work (more about that later), so I'm very encouraged. But just in general, my mantra lately for life has been this: "If you do what you've always done, you'll get what you've always gotten." And that's just not good enough for me. What I've always gotten just isn't good enough anymore. The same old results aren't going to cut it for me in 2014, because this year I'm just pursuing more. I honestly just want to claim this year for Christ, to declare over my life that this is the year of the Lord's favor, the year that I watch God work in ways I've never seen Him work before, the year that I watch Him do immeasurably more than anything I could ever ask or imagine. I've been tapping into that for my strength and inspiration, and it's been more than enough, because He is more than enough. Make this your year, too. Claim the favor of God over your life, and go out and let Him work through you, because He is the God of new things, of second chances, and of making a way where there is no way. This IS the year of the Lord's favor.
"See, I am doing a NEW thing! Now it springs up; do you not perceive it? I am making a way in the wilderness and streams in the wasteland."
Isaiah 43:19
"He has sent me . . . to proclaim the year of the Lord's favor."
Isaiah 61:1-2
Sunday, January 12, 2014
Final Semester
Well, life is officially back to normal, which actually feels really good. While I love the whole stretch of time between Thanksgiving and going back to school/ work after the new year, it feels great to just get back into my normal routine after the annual month and a half long break from that routine due to exams and the holidays. And I might be in the minority on this, but I LOVE January. Sure it's cold, but it's brimming with new possibilities and is goal-setting heaven for a Type A person like me.
So, here's what's going on with me now and in the next couple of months:
1) Yes, this is indeed my last semester. I graduate in May, and even though I know this term will end up being just as busy as any other, at least at the outset it's academically the lightest semester I've had in longer than I can even remember. I'm taking advanced litigation drafting, divorce mediation, trial practice, torts II, and a family law seminar, and I will only have one real exam and one paper, so that's good. Most of the classes are skills courses that will involve things like putting on an entire trial and writing court documents, rather than the normal law school class that involves learning tons of case law and legal theory. So it will still be a challenge, but a different kind of challenge, and all of those classes are incredibly relevant to my future career. I've also had exposure to most of the subject matter at some point already, so this semester is mostly about nailing down the advanced skills. For example, I already know how to write almost all the types of documents on the syllabus for litigation drafting because there's not much I didn't write last summer at work, but I know I still need to get a lot more comfortable with quickly pulling together things like pretrial orders and ante-litem notices. I'm also hoping to audit one of the bar prep courses (I can't actually take it for credit because I can't take any more credits than I'm already taking.)
2) I'm doing Moot Court this semester and am really excited about it! We have the best people on our team and I'm already good friends with all of them, so I'm excited to work with each of them. Our competition problem is about the legality under the Fair Labor Standards Act of unpaid internships--incredibly relevant, timely, and also something that matters personally to most 20-somethings who have taken on at least one, if not many, unpaid internships. And best of all, we get to go all the way to Seattle to argue our case at regionals! If I literally had gotten to pick any city in the U.S. for our regionals to be held at, I would have picked Seattle.
3) As of today, I'm jumping back into eating healthy and exercising. I'm not going to be obsessive about it or go paleo or anything like that, but I just want to be conscientious about trying to eat a lot of fruits, vegetables, whole grains, etc. Today, for example, I made salmon with honey and cracked black pepper and glazed carrots. I am planning to have smoothies for breakfast almost every morning and I am stocked up on Greek yogurt, juice, and frozen fruit to make that happen. And Catherine and I have started training again because we are doing a race soon! It is a 5K that raises money for an organization that fights homelessness, and it's in just two weeks. This was something I signed up for in my "I need to do something that matters with my life" moment about a week and a half ago. I made some other exciting plans then too, such as what I want to do to celebrate my 25th birthday, but more about that later. I'm determined to get outside my own little bubble this semester and volunteer more and do more for others. There's a whole big world of needy people out there, and I can't continue to stay comfortable in my own little corner of it.
4) In addition to the whole running thing, I really want to do a lot more strength training this year. There are few health benefits I can even think of that can't be acquired by regular visits to the weight room, even though I know a lot of women who are scared to try it for fear of "bulking up." (But ladies, that's not even a possibility because we don't produce enough testosterone. Just putting that to rest.) But the best thing about strength training is that it makes you burn more calories at rest--like, while you're sitting on your couch watching The Bachelor--than you would if you weren't doing it. What's not to like?
5) Catherine and I are also going to Jacksonville in a few weeks to compete in a client counseling competition! The topic is First Amendment law, and I know we need to prepare for it, BUT it's hard not to look at the trip as a beach vacation on the law school's dime. But we need to try to do a decent job at the actual competition, of course, and then there will be beach time.
6) Possible trips to Chicago, Albany (GA), and the beach are also in the works over the next few months. LOTS of traveling about to happen.
7) I want to read 50 books (or more) this year. I just read The Rainmaker by John Grisham, and it was excellent. Now I'm working on his book The Street Lawyer, and also Ben Mezrich's book Bringing Down the House.
8) I'm going to at least test out becoming a morning person this month/ year. I'd like to try at least three weeks straight of getting up no later than about 6am and immediately diving into early morning productivity. If I'm not into it after that, I'll just go back to being a night owl and sleeping in a little later, but I've heard so many people rave about the early-morning thing that I have to try it.
9) Anna and I talked about this while she was here--we want to celebrate our daily lives more. Not just the big things or the big accomplishments, but the little things too. I'm calling this my "celebrate because it's Tuesday" philosophy. Every day deserves to be appreciated, not just, for example, weekends or vacation days. So we're going to try to stop and smell the roses more/ watch more sunrises/ light more candles/ wear the pretty jewelry and use the pretty dishes just because.
Thanks for reading!
So, here's what's going on with me now and in the next couple of months:
1) Yes, this is indeed my last semester. I graduate in May, and even though I know this term will end up being just as busy as any other, at least at the outset it's academically the lightest semester I've had in longer than I can even remember. I'm taking advanced litigation drafting, divorce mediation, trial practice, torts II, and a family law seminar, and I will only have one real exam and one paper, so that's good. Most of the classes are skills courses that will involve things like putting on an entire trial and writing court documents, rather than the normal law school class that involves learning tons of case law and legal theory. So it will still be a challenge, but a different kind of challenge, and all of those classes are incredibly relevant to my future career. I've also had exposure to most of the subject matter at some point already, so this semester is mostly about nailing down the advanced skills. For example, I already know how to write almost all the types of documents on the syllabus for litigation drafting because there's not much I didn't write last summer at work, but I know I still need to get a lot more comfortable with quickly pulling together things like pretrial orders and ante-litem notices. I'm also hoping to audit one of the bar prep courses (I can't actually take it for credit because I can't take any more credits than I'm already taking.)
2) I'm doing Moot Court this semester and am really excited about it! We have the best people on our team and I'm already good friends with all of them, so I'm excited to work with each of them. Our competition problem is about the legality under the Fair Labor Standards Act of unpaid internships--incredibly relevant, timely, and also something that matters personally to most 20-somethings who have taken on at least one, if not many, unpaid internships. And best of all, we get to go all the way to Seattle to argue our case at regionals! If I literally had gotten to pick any city in the U.S. for our regionals to be held at, I would have picked Seattle.
3) As of today, I'm jumping back into eating healthy and exercising. I'm not going to be obsessive about it or go paleo or anything like that, but I just want to be conscientious about trying to eat a lot of fruits, vegetables, whole grains, etc. Today, for example, I made salmon with honey and cracked black pepper and glazed carrots. I am planning to have smoothies for breakfast almost every morning and I am stocked up on Greek yogurt, juice, and frozen fruit to make that happen. And Catherine and I have started training again because we are doing a race soon! It is a 5K that raises money for an organization that fights homelessness, and it's in just two weeks. This was something I signed up for in my "I need to do something that matters with my life" moment about a week and a half ago. I made some other exciting plans then too, such as what I want to do to celebrate my 25th birthday, but more about that later. I'm determined to get outside my own little bubble this semester and volunteer more and do more for others. There's a whole big world of needy people out there, and I can't continue to stay comfortable in my own little corner of it.
4) In addition to the whole running thing, I really want to do a lot more strength training this year. There are few health benefits I can even think of that can't be acquired by regular visits to the weight room, even though I know a lot of women who are scared to try it for fear of "bulking up." (But ladies, that's not even a possibility because we don't produce enough testosterone. Just putting that to rest.) But the best thing about strength training is that it makes you burn more calories at rest--like, while you're sitting on your couch watching The Bachelor--than you would if you weren't doing it. What's not to like?
5) Catherine and I are also going to Jacksonville in a few weeks to compete in a client counseling competition! The topic is First Amendment law, and I know we need to prepare for it, BUT it's hard not to look at the trip as a beach vacation on the law school's dime. But we need to try to do a decent job at the actual competition, of course, and then there will be beach time.
6) Possible trips to Chicago, Albany (GA), and the beach are also in the works over the next few months. LOTS of traveling about to happen.
7) I want to read 50 books (or more) this year. I just read The Rainmaker by John Grisham, and it was excellent. Now I'm working on his book The Street Lawyer, and also Ben Mezrich's book Bringing Down the House.
8) I'm going to at least test out becoming a morning person this month/ year. I'd like to try at least three weeks straight of getting up no later than about 6am and immediately diving into early morning productivity. If I'm not into it after that, I'll just go back to being a night owl and sleeping in a little later, but I've heard so many people rave about the early-morning thing that I have to try it.
9) Anna and I talked about this while she was here--we want to celebrate our daily lives more. Not just the big things or the big accomplishments, but the little things too. I'm calling this my "celebrate because it's Tuesday" philosophy. Every day deserves to be appreciated, not just, for example, weekends or vacation days. So we're going to try to stop and smell the roses more/ watch more sunrises/ light more candles/ wear the pretty jewelry and use the pretty dishes just because.
Thanks for reading!
Saturday, December 14, 2013
2013: Year in Review
As I think back on 2013, I realize that it has been an insanely busy year. As I think back on the goals I've had for this year, I realize that I have met some while totally falling short on others. I didn't run that half-marathon even though it's been on my goal list for seriously YEARS. (Oops.) I didn't read the Bible entirely through. I didn't travel abroad. I didn't practice a whole lot of random acts of kindness, I didn't always follow my rule to "say what I mean and mean what I say," and I definitely didn't have coffee with Chris Tomlin (all items on my goals list for this year. That last one was a distinct possibility since I went to his church for awhile! But alas, it didn't happen. Yet. :) I'm pretty sure I wasn't always classy, didn't always inspire others, and didn't stop to watch the sunsets nearly often enough--all things that, either literally or figuratively, I wanted to do more!
But I also did a ton of other stuff, and it's kind of exciting for me to think back on the things I did accomplish in 2013. I got published for the first time, with an article on patenting in biotechnology. I joined the editorial board of the law review and edited more than 600 pages for our fall publication down to every last footnote and punctuation mark. I traveled to Chicago, Fort Lauderdale, Richmond, Savannah, the mountains, the beach, and more. I had a job as a law clerk in a fast-paced litigation firm in the big city. I helped to coordinate a national moot court competition on legal ethics and professionalism, including writing the competition problem. I took a bunch of classes. I helped to research and edit a professor's article on neuroscience and criminal culpability. I competed in moot court and client counseling and closing argument competitions (gotta develop those practical lawyering skills). I learned how to do demands, interrogatories, petitions, ante-litem notices, and motions, and prepared trials, cross-examination, and discovery.
I did some things I've never done before this year--got a hotel room all by myself, went on a vacation by myself, and picked an apartment and signed a lease with no "supervision," parental or otherwise. I read some amazing books. I spent some great time with friends going to music festivals and baseball games and pool days and other fun things. I went to the symphony and art shows and Spin classes and wine tastings and birthday parties and some fancy dinners and networking events. I tried Chicago deep dish pizza and watched the sun rise on the beach and made some unlikely friendships with people who are very different from me but have taught me a lot about life.
But I can't stay in one place or sit still for long, and I am already thinking about what I want to accomplish next year. Next year I want to get a real big-girl litigation job--as a real attorney, not a law clerk. I want to pass the bar exam. I want to publish another article, run a 10K, graduate with honors, and win my first real case. I want to become a World Vision child ambassador. I want to speak up for women and children who can't speak up for themselves. I want to take a class or two at a nearby university, but only in fun stuff, like Italian or creative writing, because I'm not ready to stop learning. I want to travel to amazing places in the US and the world (first picks: San Antonio and Seattle). I want to own a Bible that's falling apart and learn how to be a woman of prayer. I want to be smart, curious, honest, funny, and compassionate.
I want to keep writing. I want to inspire and encourage people. Here's to a great new year!
But I also did a ton of other stuff, and it's kind of exciting for me to think back on the things I did accomplish in 2013. I got published for the first time, with an article on patenting in biotechnology. I joined the editorial board of the law review and edited more than 600 pages for our fall publication down to every last footnote and punctuation mark. I traveled to Chicago, Fort Lauderdale, Richmond, Savannah, the mountains, the beach, and more. I had a job as a law clerk in a fast-paced litigation firm in the big city. I helped to coordinate a national moot court competition on legal ethics and professionalism, including writing the competition problem. I took a bunch of classes. I helped to research and edit a professor's article on neuroscience and criminal culpability. I competed in moot court and client counseling and closing argument competitions (gotta develop those practical lawyering skills). I learned how to do demands, interrogatories, petitions, ante-litem notices, and motions, and prepared trials, cross-examination, and discovery.
I did some things I've never done before this year--got a hotel room all by myself, went on a vacation by myself, and picked an apartment and signed a lease with no "supervision," parental or otherwise. I read some amazing books. I spent some great time with friends going to music festivals and baseball games and pool days and other fun things. I went to the symphony and art shows and Spin classes and wine tastings and birthday parties and some fancy dinners and networking events. I tried Chicago deep dish pizza and watched the sun rise on the beach and made some unlikely friendships with people who are very different from me but have taught me a lot about life.
But I can't stay in one place or sit still for long, and I am already thinking about what I want to accomplish next year. Next year I want to get a real big-girl litigation job--as a real attorney, not a law clerk. I want to pass the bar exam. I want to publish another article, run a 10K, graduate with honors, and win my first real case. I want to become a World Vision child ambassador. I want to speak up for women and children who can't speak up for themselves. I want to take a class or two at a nearby university, but only in fun stuff, like Italian or creative writing, because I'm not ready to stop learning. I want to travel to amazing places in the US and the world (first picks: San Antonio and Seattle). I want to own a Bible that's falling apart and learn how to be a woman of prayer. I want to be smart, curious, honest, funny, and compassionate.
I want to keep writing. I want to inspire and encourage people. Here's to a great new year!
Wednesday, November 6, 2013
Help Me Cross Off a Bucket List Item . . .
. . . by helping my blog reach 10,000 page views this month! I only have 1,000 to go. If what I write resonates with you or encourages you, please share it with your friends and family. I am very careful about who I share it with myself because, for job search reasons, I want to remain anonymous as I write, but if anybody else wants to share it, that's great!
Also, please feel free to email me at the address listed on the right side of this page: comments, critique, etc. If you want to do a guest post or have me do a guest post for you, please email me and let me know.
New to my blog? Never been on my blog at all until this moment?
You might like some of these posts:
Reflections on Grace
Is the Gospel Offensive?
I'm Tired of Hearing that True Love Waits
Validation Addiction
The Great Chick-Fil-A Boycott
Just One Touch
You can also find some of my thoughts on social justice and the necessity of compassion for Christians, the biggest myths about relationships, social media, the role of desire in the Christian life, unorthodox but effective prayer, and politics and faith, as well as my mission statement for life and a piece on my favorite Bible verse of all time.
Thank you to all of my readers! You are what makes writing worthwhile.
Also, please feel free to email me at the address listed on the right side of this page: comments, critique, etc. If you want to do a guest post or have me do a guest post for you, please email me and let me know.
New to my blog? Never been on my blog at all until this moment?
You might like some of these posts:
Reflections on Grace
Is the Gospel Offensive?
I'm Tired of Hearing that True Love Waits
Validation Addiction
The Great Chick-Fil-A Boycott
Just One Touch
You can also find some of my thoughts on social justice and the necessity of compassion for Christians, the biggest myths about relationships, social media, the role of desire in the Christian life, unorthodox but effective prayer, and politics and faith, as well as my mission statement for life and a piece on my favorite Bible verse of all time.
Thank you to all of my readers! You are what makes writing worthwhile.
Saturday, August 10, 2013
Law School Bucket List
So I just got back a little while ago from this joyful, laughter-filled catch-up coffee date with one of my best friends, who I only saw once all summer as we worked in different cities. I feel like every time we get together, the conversation is full of ridiculous and hilarious stories dating from our childhoods to the present, lots of confessions that start with "so I've never really told anyone this before, but . . . " and hopeful discussions of all our aspirations for the future. We moved from Starbucks over to Panera for dinner because we literally talked for about 6 hours. She was going to use some of the time to study for the MPRE exam next week, but, oh well, that will have to happen another time! I am feeling so blessed right now to have such a great friend in my life.
We started talking about everything we want to accomplish in our last year of law school, because our time here runs short as we see graduation on the not-so-distant horizon. We came up with SUCH a great 3L bucket list/ goals list. Some of them are her ideas, some are mine, and some of them (#1 and #3, anyone?) are never going to actually happen. But they might. So here's our list:
1) Go skydiving. I mean, there's a place we can do it that's only an hour and a half away.
2) Volunteer at a local soup kitchen.
3) Join the local all-women's roller derby team.
4) Volunteer at one of the local Habitat for Humanity events.
5) Take every advanced skills course we can possibly take (I'm thinking advanced litigation drafting, advanced civil procedure, tort law seminar, pretrial practice, and divorce mediation. Now that I'm pretty sure I want to do trial law and domestic relations/ personal injury work, I have a much better idea of the classes I need to be taking).
6) Go to trivia night at the Mellow Mushroom. This is what all the cool people are doing.
7) Invest significant time and energy into building strong friendships with the 1L and 2L students, and into mentoring them, giving them advice, and ministering to them. Be one of those people that the younger students look up to, trust, and confide in.
8) Go regularly to high-intensity training and Zumba classes on main campus.
9) Get up early and go running downtown on a regular basis.
10) Volunteer at the local adoption agency/ crisis pregnancy center.
11) Keep getting as much job experience as possible. We decided that developing practical lawyering skills was a lot more important than grades, although ideally, we'd do well with both.
12) Go to local bar events and network without being awkward. (This is going to be hard, because we are two of the most awkward people EVER.)
13) Get in shape and become those people who can do, like, 60 pushups in one minute.
14) Run a half-marathon.
15) Embrace leadership positions in various student organizations that we're involved in.
16) Go to her family's lake house for a weekend.
17) Actually look cute and make an effort when we're on campus. There have been times when I go days on end without wearing makeup/ doing anything with my hair, especially during finals, but this year, I just kind of want to look pulled together!
18) For me: ask the cute guy I met last week out on a date already.
So that's some of our ideas for the year ahead . . . I'll keep you all posted if we make any progress on this list!
We started talking about everything we want to accomplish in our last year of law school, because our time here runs short as we see graduation on the not-so-distant horizon. We came up with SUCH a great 3L bucket list/ goals list. Some of them are her ideas, some are mine, and some of them (#1 and #3, anyone?) are never going to actually happen. But they might. So here's our list:
1) Go skydiving. I mean, there's a place we can do it that's only an hour and a half away.
2) Volunteer at a local soup kitchen.
3) Join the local all-women's roller derby team.
4) Volunteer at one of the local Habitat for Humanity events.
5) Take every advanced skills course we can possibly take (I'm thinking advanced litigation drafting, advanced civil procedure, tort law seminar, pretrial practice, and divorce mediation. Now that I'm pretty sure I want to do trial law and domestic relations/ personal injury work, I have a much better idea of the classes I need to be taking).
6) Go to trivia night at the Mellow Mushroom. This is what all the cool people are doing.
7) Invest significant time and energy into building strong friendships with the 1L and 2L students, and into mentoring them, giving them advice, and ministering to them. Be one of those people that the younger students look up to, trust, and confide in.
8) Go regularly to high-intensity training and Zumba classes on main campus.
9) Get up early and go running downtown on a regular basis.
10) Volunteer at the local adoption agency/ crisis pregnancy center.
11) Keep getting as much job experience as possible. We decided that developing practical lawyering skills was a lot more important than grades, although ideally, we'd do well with both.
12) Go to local bar events and network without being awkward. (This is going to be hard, because we are two of the most awkward people EVER.)
13) Get in shape and become those people who can do, like, 60 pushups in one minute.
14) Run a half-marathon.
15) Embrace leadership positions in various student organizations that we're involved in.
16) Go to her family's lake house for a weekend.
17) Actually look cute and make an effort when we're on campus. There have been times when I go days on end without wearing makeup/ doing anything with my hair, especially during finals, but this year, I just kind of want to look pulled together!
18) For me: ask the cute guy I met last week out on a date already.
So that's some of our ideas for the year ahead . . . I'll keep you all posted if we make any progress on this list!
Tuesday, February 26, 2013
The Best Is Yet To Come.
Late last night, I got an exciting email about an opportunity for my third year of law school that I have never even thought about or expected to have. I'm not sure if I will move forward with it or not, but just the same, it made me filled with anticipation for what next year--and beyond, the future, the great unknown--will hold.
I'm a huge planner, and so often I honestly catch myself thinking that I've probably contemplated pretty much every angle my life could possibly take--as far as how my career trajectory will go, what my family will look like, where I might live, etc. I know it's crazy, but I sometimes feel like there's no way the future will surprise me THAT much, because surely I've considered most of the paths my life will logically follow. But then God gently reminds my heart that I haven't seen anything yet. You can't out-plan God. You can't out-dream Him. You can't get to a place of such stable expectancy that He is no longer able to surprise you!
If I would have known ten years ago everything that was going to happen to me in the next decade, I would never have been able to handle the weight of that knowledge. That's why not knowing is such a blessing. And even though I didn't know ahead of time, God took me into each day and gave me what I needed, when I needed it. There are things that I've done in the last few years that I never would have thought I could do, until the time came, and I found that I had the strength to move forward. (For example, I was just reminiscing this morning about my first day in this city, when I was panicking about everything, got in a fender bender at a Zaxby's, and was about to pack my bags then and there and quit law school because I didn't think I could handle it. I'm so glad I didn't because I have been so blessed here).
Sometimes I feel fearful of the next couple of years, particularly in the job realm. My thoughts frequently look like this: Oh my goodness will I get a job if so where will it be what if I hate my job will I have enough money how will I repay my student loans I'm freaking out!! But every step of the way, God is there. Helping me, holding my hand, teaching me that He is the same yesterday, today, tomorrow, and forever. Whispering to me that I need to keep living in wide-eyed wonder, because the best is yet to come. My future holds amazing possibilities that I haven't even thought about yet. Yours holds potential that's beyond what you can imagine now. Don't even try to imagine it all, because there will still be surprises. Embrace that spiritual adrenaline rush once in awhile--God delights to surprise you with blessings you never imagined could be yours!
Here's what I want to do in the next ten years: Write blogs and e-books and regular books and inspire people through my writing to a closer, more passionate, life-changing relationship with Jesus Christ. Practice law and help people in my career. Work in legal education and administration. Travel travel travel. Live in new cities. Become debt-free. Buy my own home. See the Northern Lights, sunrise over the Grand Canyon, and the Holy Land. Those plans make me really excited but . . . God's plans for my life are still better. And the same is true for you. Get on the roller coaster and hold on for the ride, because I know one thing: it's going to be exciting.
I'm a huge planner, and so often I honestly catch myself thinking that I've probably contemplated pretty much every angle my life could possibly take--as far as how my career trajectory will go, what my family will look like, where I might live, etc. I know it's crazy, but I sometimes feel like there's no way the future will surprise me THAT much, because surely I've considered most of the paths my life will logically follow. But then God gently reminds my heart that I haven't seen anything yet. You can't out-plan God. You can't out-dream Him. You can't get to a place of such stable expectancy that He is no longer able to surprise you!
If I would have known ten years ago everything that was going to happen to me in the next decade, I would never have been able to handle the weight of that knowledge. That's why not knowing is such a blessing. And even though I didn't know ahead of time, God took me into each day and gave me what I needed, when I needed it. There are things that I've done in the last few years that I never would have thought I could do, until the time came, and I found that I had the strength to move forward. (For example, I was just reminiscing this morning about my first day in this city, when I was panicking about everything, got in a fender bender at a Zaxby's, and was about to pack my bags then and there and quit law school because I didn't think I could handle it. I'm so glad I didn't because I have been so blessed here).
Sometimes I feel fearful of the next couple of years, particularly in the job realm. My thoughts frequently look like this: Oh my goodness will I get a job if so where will it be what if I hate my job will I have enough money how will I repay my student loans I'm freaking out!! But every step of the way, God is there. Helping me, holding my hand, teaching me that He is the same yesterday, today, tomorrow, and forever. Whispering to me that I need to keep living in wide-eyed wonder, because the best is yet to come. My future holds amazing possibilities that I haven't even thought about yet. Yours holds potential that's beyond what you can imagine now. Don't even try to imagine it all, because there will still be surprises. Embrace that spiritual adrenaline rush once in awhile--God delights to surprise you with blessings you never imagined could be yours!
Here's what I want to do in the next ten years: Write blogs and e-books and regular books and inspire people through my writing to a closer, more passionate, life-changing relationship with Jesus Christ. Practice law and help people in my career. Work in legal education and administration. Travel travel travel. Live in new cities. Become debt-free. Buy my own home. See the Northern Lights, sunrise over the Grand Canyon, and the Holy Land. Those plans make me really excited but . . . God's plans for my life are still better. And the same is true for you. Get on the roller coaster and hold on for the ride, because I know one thing: it's going to be exciting.
Wednesday, February 6, 2013
Blog Fitness Challenge
First, a confession: I've been trying to get in shape for pretty much FOREVER. The thing is, I haven't really been trying all that hard--which is probably why I haven't succeeded yet. And tonight at the gym, I just got tired of it, and I decided it is time to do something about it.
I want to be able to go for long runs without having to stop and catch my breath soon after I begin. I want to be able to do half-marathons, play sports, do strength training, etc., without being held back anymore by my overall lack of physical fitness. I want to go to my high-intensity training class (which is like boot camp) and do every single exercise without an issue. And perhaps most of all, I want to actually get into a truly consistent and challenging exercise routine, and I want to do it now--because I don't want to realize a few years down the road that I've turned into a totally sedentary adult, because at that point it may almost be too late to change my habits. Looking further down the road, I want to be that 85-year-old that still plays tennis and still goes to the gym every morning (well, that may be kind of hard since I don't actually play tennis now, but you know what I mean: I want to be active and healthy no matter what age I am.) And I also know that physical fitness is probably the biggest factor--I really think even more so than diet and nutrition--in preventing conditions like heart disease and diabetes (and these conditions are much more likely to affect sedentary people whether they are at a healthy weight or not).
But the problem is that I always push exercise and caring for myself to the bottom of my priority list when life gets busy. You can always be too busy to work out if you want to be! And really, the busier I am, the more I need to exercise, because it is such a good stress-reliever for me.
That said, the challenge: I want to be more accountable about health, fitness, and my efforts to get in shape, especially in terms of stamina and endurance. One of the biggest specific goals I have in that area is to significantly reduce the amount of time it takes me to run one mile (last I checked, the best I can do is a slightly embarrassing more than 10 minutes. That's not anywhere near half-marathon-ready, and I really want to improve). So, I am planning to start running, and exercising in general, a whole lot more. I'm expecting that the more active I become, the more time I can shave off that run.
And for the accountability part? Every week, I'm going to time myself running a mile on the treadmill or the track. And every Friday, starting this one, I'm going to post my time on the blog. Having it out there for the world to see will hopefully motivate me a lot to make it the best I can do! So check back on Fridays and we'll see how I'm doing. :)
I want to be able to go for long runs without having to stop and catch my breath soon after I begin. I want to be able to do half-marathons, play sports, do strength training, etc., without being held back anymore by my overall lack of physical fitness. I want to go to my high-intensity training class (which is like boot camp) and do every single exercise without an issue. And perhaps most of all, I want to actually get into a truly consistent and challenging exercise routine, and I want to do it now--because I don't want to realize a few years down the road that I've turned into a totally sedentary adult, because at that point it may almost be too late to change my habits. Looking further down the road, I want to be that 85-year-old that still plays tennis and still goes to the gym every morning (well, that may be kind of hard since I don't actually play tennis now, but you know what I mean: I want to be active and healthy no matter what age I am.) And I also know that physical fitness is probably the biggest factor--I really think even more so than diet and nutrition--in preventing conditions like heart disease and diabetes (and these conditions are much more likely to affect sedentary people whether they are at a healthy weight or not).
But the problem is that I always push exercise and caring for myself to the bottom of my priority list when life gets busy. You can always be too busy to work out if you want to be! And really, the busier I am, the more I need to exercise, because it is such a good stress-reliever for me.
That said, the challenge: I want to be more accountable about health, fitness, and my efforts to get in shape, especially in terms of stamina and endurance. One of the biggest specific goals I have in that area is to significantly reduce the amount of time it takes me to run one mile (last I checked, the best I can do is a slightly embarrassing more than 10 minutes. That's not anywhere near half-marathon-ready, and I really want to improve). So, I am planning to start running, and exercising in general, a whole lot more. I'm expecting that the more active I become, the more time I can shave off that run.
And for the accountability part? Every week, I'm going to time myself running a mile on the treadmill or the track. And every Friday, starting this one, I'm going to post my time on the blog. Having it out there for the world to see will hopefully motivate me a lot to make it the best I can do! So check back on Fridays and we'll see how I'm doing. :)
Saturday, February 2, 2013
It Doesn't Have to Be Perfect.
It really doesn't. Life doesn't have to be perfect. You and I don't have to be perfect. Our goals and dreams don't have to be perfect. Our days don't have to be perfect. Our friends don't have to be perfect.
I was really reminded of this this week when I was reading one of the alumni blogs from my college. One writer, a 2009 grad, was talking about how you can't be afraid to have your career path meander a little--or a lot. You can't be afraid to try new things, and ultimately, you can't be afraid to fail. And you can't be so focused on finding the "perfect" job or "perfect" life that anything less than that ephemeral and elusive ideal feels like settling. And she reminded readers of this classic quote:
Don't let the perfect be the enemy of the good.
Just don't. Don't pursue an ideal that you know can never really happen when if you opened your eyes, you just might see a satisfying possibility right in front of you. I'm all for not settling, and holding out for the best, but sometimes by doing that, I've ignored something great. Don't let "not settling" turn into a paralyzing inaction while you wait around for perfection, because it won't happen. Perfect shouldn't be the goal--"good" or "excellent" or "satisfying and fulfilling" should be.
I was really reminded of this this week when I was reading one of the alumni blogs from my college. One writer, a 2009 grad, was talking about how you can't be afraid to have your career path meander a little--or a lot. You can't be afraid to try new things, and ultimately, you can't be afraid to fail. And you can't be so focused on finding the "perfect" job or "perfect" life that anything less than that ephemeral and elusive ideal feels like settling. And she reminded readers of this classic quote:
Don't let the perfect be the enemy of the good.
Just don't. Don't pursue an ideal that you know can never really happen when if you opened your eyes, you just might see a satisfying possibility right in front of you. I'm all for not settling, and holding out for the best, but sometimes by doing that, I've ignored something great. Don't let "not settling" turn into a paralyzing inaction while you wait around for perfection, because it won't happen. Perfect shouldn't be the goal--"good" or "excellent" or "satisfying and fulfilling" should be.
Wednesday, January 16, 2013
When to Stop Setting Goals
I've had a pretty exciting week so far--besides a good start to the semester overall, I just found out that the paper I wrote last semester on patent protection in biotechnology is going to be published, so I'm happy about that. It's no great American novel or anything, but it is exciting to be able to officially "be a published author"--something I've wanted to be for a really long time. It was pretty satisfying to pull up my goals list and check that one off!
And that started me thinking about goal-setting in general, and about how making and pursuing goals is a really big part of my life. In fact, I make goals on many different occasions--the new year, a new semester, the start of summer, my birthday, a new month, and you get the idea. And while I don't think there's anything wrong with that, and in fact it keeps me motivated and makes me want to work harder, I've started thinking that it can be possible to set goals and plan out your life so obsessively that you almost push God out of it, and that's something I want to make sure I stay away from. The biggest goal we can have is still so much smaller than God's plans for our lives! God can do more in you, through you, with you, and for you than you could EVER plan for and more than your biggest goals could EVER reflect. Your goals for your own life are miniscule compared to what the God of the universe wants to do in your life, if you'll allow Him to do so.
Whatever you do, don't fall into the trap of thinking that God's plan for you is only as big as your plan for yourself. Your most farfetched, wildest dream for your life is only a drop in the bucket compared to what God dreams for you. Don't settle for simply setting and meeting your own goals when the Lord wants to pull you out of your comfort zone, continually surprise you with His goodness and mercy, and lead you into His dynamic and divine plans for your life, which are greater than what you can dream up or set goals about. Don't be so focused on your own plan that you miss greater things for your life. Cultivate your capacity for awe--awe at how deeply you are loved, at how exciting, unexpected, and wonderful God's dreams for you truly are, at how great His thoughts about you are, and at the fact that the One who keeps the planets in orbit cares to know your name.
Everyone's talking and blogging about coming up with a "word" or phrase to define your year in 2013. I've read a lot of people's choices: abundance, joy, revival, etc. My 2013 phrase? "Awestruck wonder." Because living out God's dreams is living in a place where the amazing becomes ordinary, where heaven meets earth, where the oceans part and the mountains move--and that's something to be in awe of every day.
And that started me thinking about goal-setting in general, and about how making and pursuing goals is a really big part of my life. In fact, I make goals on many different occasions--the new year, a new semester, the start of summer, my birthday, a new month, and you get the idea. And while I don't think there's anything wrong with that, and in fact it keeps me motivated and makes me want to work harder, I've started thinking that it can be possible to set goals and plan out your life so obsessively that you almost push God out of it, and that's something I want to make sure I stay away from. The biggest goal we can have is still so much smaller than God's plans for our lives! God can do more in you, through you, with you, and for you than you could EVER plan for and more than your biggest goals could EVER reflect. Your goals for your own life are miniscule compared to what the God of the universe wants to do in your life, if you'll allow Him to do so.
Whatever you do, don't fall into the trap of thinking that God's plan for you is only as big as your plan for yourself. Your most farfetched, wildest dream for your life is only a drop in the bucket compared to what God dreams for you. Don't settle for simply setting and meeting your own goals when the Lord wants to pull you out of your comfort zone, continually surprise you with His goodness and mercy, and lead you into His dynamic and divine plans for your life, which are greater than what you can dream up or set goals about. Don't be so focused on your own plan that you miss greater things for your life. Cultivate your capacity for awe--awe at how deeply you are loved, at how exciting, unexpected, and wonderful God's dreams for you truly are, at how great His thoughts about you are, and at the fact that the One who keeps the planets in orbit cares to know your name.
Everyone's talking and blogging about coming up with a "word" or phrase to define your year in 2013. I've read a lot of people's choices: abundance, joy, revival, etc. My 2013 phrase? "Awestruck wonder." Because living out God's dreams is living in a place where the amazing becomes ordinary, where heaven meets earth, where the oceans part and the mountains move--and that's something to be in awe of every day.
Tuesday, January 8, 2013
New Year, Fresh Start
Welcome to 2013! Joining everyone else in their New Years' Resolution blog posts, here are some goals I have for 2013 . . . some serious, some not so serious.
1) Refuse to allow anyone else to determine how happy I have a right to be. No one can steal my joy, and no one else has the ability to decide my attitude.
2) Know when it's ok to settle and when it's not. I have a right to be picky when it comes to my future--and so do you!
3) Watch all ten seasons of Friends at some point this year.
4) Read 50 high-quality books this year (which may sound like a lot, but really, one book a week is not impossible).
5) Run a half-marathon.
6) Improve this blog, gain new readers, and produce more and significantly better content.
7) Kindly, gently, but firmly, release myself from emotionally toxic, fake "friendships," and refuse to feel guilty about doing so. That doesn't mean treating these people rudely, never speaking to them again, or not wishing the best for them . . . but life is way too short to waste tons of emotional energy on people who aren't genuine, who only care about their own image, who are self-absorbed, who ignore you, etc.--and who are probably never going to change. This goes for any kind of relationship, but sometimes, you have to realize that the person you want someone to be, or the person that you thought they were, or the person that they could be, is simply not the person that they ARE. And you have to act accordingly.
8) The flip side of that--invest myself in genuine, deep friendships, and let my family and friends know how much I care about them on a very regular basis.
9) Do well in my law school classes and activities and make decisions I feel good about concerning what I want to do and where I want to do it post-graduation.
10) Work on being more: Assertive. Tenacious. Authentic. Compassionate.
1) Refuse to allow anyone else to determine how happy I have a right to be. No one can steal my joy, and no one else has the ability to decide my attitude.
2) Know when it's ok to settle and when it's not. I have a right to be picky when it comes to my future--and so do you!
3) Watch all ten seasons of Friends at some point this year.
4) Read 50 high-quality books this year (which may sound like a lot, but really, one book a week is not impossible).
5) Run a half-marathon.
6) Improve this blog, gain new readers, and produce more and significantly better content.
7) Kindly, gently, but firmly, release myself from emotionally toxic, fake "friendships," and refuse to feel guilty about doing so. That doesn't mean treating these people rudely, never speaking to them again, or not wishing the best for them . . . but life is way too short to waste tons of emotional energy on people who aren't genuine, who only care about their own image, who are self-absorbed, who ignore you, etc.--and who are probably never going to change. This goes for any kind of relationship, but sometimes, you have to realize that the person you want someone to be, or the person that you thought they were, or the person that they could be, is simply not the person that they ARE. And you have to act accordingly.
8) The flip side of that--invest myself in genuine, deep friendships, and let my family and friends know how much I care about them on a very regular basis.
9) Do well in my law school classes and activities and make decisions I feel good about concerning what I want to do and where I want to do it post-graduation.
10) Work on being more: Assertive. Tenacious. Authentic. Compassionate.
Tuesday, September 25, 2012
My New Career Goal
OK, this one is really simple and for once doesn't involve anything like getting a Ph.D. or breaking into a highly competitive field or finding a position that lets me pay off all my loans in a year. It isn't even really geared towards "getting a job," but more towards building a network so that I can eventually, well, get a job. My new goal is to do something--anything--to enhance my professional development and build my network every single day. I left it purposely open-ended, but the idea is to keep me from getting the "tunnel vision" that so often plagues law students, where they either are not focused on the future at all, or where they only have one career-related goal and think that it's the end of the world if they don't achieve it.
So, what does that mean for me? It could include:
I've noticed that a lot of my fellow students don't seem to recognize that the "rules of engagement" for finding jobs has completely changed from what it was even 10 years ago. Or they seem to be aware of it, but to not know how it should affect their job search. Here are two things I've learned about it:
Here is what I think is by far the most important one: In this economy, you don't "choose" your job or career path; it, in many ways, chooses you. Some students "choose" to work in, for a random example, labor and employment law. But let's say those students graduate and there are no jobs to be found in labor and employment law. Are they going to do nothing for 5 years while they wait for positions in their "chosen" field to open up? Of course not. They will take whatever jobs are offered to them. Maybe a position in a D.A.'s office. Or in a small personal injury firm. Or doing legal consulting for a business. And those first opportunities may eventually lead them into their "choice" of labor and employment law, but more likely than not, a whole new career path they could never have envisioned on their own, but that is deeply satisfying, opens up. I am not "choosing" what I'm going to do next summer or after I graduate law school--not in terms of what it is or where it is. I don't say this to be negative, but the economy is too bad to be doing that and it's a set-up for disappointment. Of course I am going to more strongly pursue opportunities in fields I think I would really enjoy, like family law and public interest work. And I'm also not saying we have no autonomy in the job search or that we're all going to have to just take jobs we hate--not at all. But in a generation that's grown up with choices that even our parents never could have imagined when they were young, we need to learn to relinquish some of our ability to choose, accepting that holding on to our "choice" with clenched fists is a hindrance and not a help. This job market is not about choices; it's about making the most of whatever opportunities are offered to us.
And finally, I've learned that the first few years of work after law school (or after college or any grad school) are about being willing to do the dirty work and "pay your dues." My friend aptly compared it to doing a residency after medical school. It means you need to be ok with not working in your dream job, in your dream city, right away. It means you're willing to work the crazy-long hours, knowing that it won't last forever and is a way to get established and get valuable experience. It means you might take the clients or cases or even the office cubicle that nobody else wants. It means that the words "work-life balance" probably shouldn't come out of your mouth for the first year or so. It means you realize that your first job doesn't have to be your last, and while it may be hard at first, it gets better.
And I'll be perfectly honest--these career lessons can be tough pills to swallow, but I think being aware of them will help me in the long run. And I also know that whatever job I end up in has every bit as much potential as any other job to be part of a career I really love.
So, what does that mean for me? It could include:
- handing out a business card
- going to a career lecture or attorney panel (checked this one off for today--went to a great public interest career panel discussion)
- sending emails to speakers at said panels to thank them for the advice they gave
- polishing my resume
- polishing some writing samples
- doing some small things to enhance my resume, like getting research-certified in legal databases and joining the American Bar Association
- doing a mock interview
- applying for a position
- maintaining strong relationships with people who know me and my work product and could recommend me to employers
I've noticed that a lot of my fellow students don't seem to recognize that the "rules of engagement" for finding jobs has completely changed from what it was even 10 years ago. Or they seem to be aware of it, but to not know how it should affect their job search. Here are two things I've learned about it:
Here is what I think is by far the most important one: In this economy, you don't "choose" your job or career path; it, in many ways, chooses you. Some students "choose" to work in, for a random example, labor and employment law. But let's say those students graduate and there are no jobs to be found in labor and employment law. Are they going to do nothing for 5 years while they wait for positions in their "chosen" field to open up? Of course not. They will take whatever jobs are offered to them. Maybe a position in a D.A.'s office. Or in a small personal injury firm. Or doing legal consulting for a business. And those first opportunities may eventually lead them into their "choice" of labor and employment law, but more likely than not, a whole new career path they could never have envisioned on their own, but that is deeply satisfying, opens up. I am not "choosing" what I'm going to do next summer or after I graduate law school--not in terms of what it is or where it is. I don't say this to be negative, but the economy is too bad to be doing that and it's a set-up for disappointment. Of course I am going to more strongly pursue opportunities in fields I think I would really enjoy, like family law and public interest work. And I'm also not saying we have no autonomy in the job search or that we're all going to have to just take jobs we hate--not at all. But in a generation that's grown up with choices that even our parents never could have imagined when they were young, we need to learn to relinquish some of our ability to choose, accepting that holding on to our "choice" with clenched fists is a hindrance and not a help. This job market is not about choices; it's about making the most of whatever opportunities are offered to us.
And finally, I've learned that the first few years of work after law school (or after college or any grad school) are about being willing to do the dirty work and "pay your dues." My friend aptly compared it to doing a residency after medical school. It means you need to be ok with not working in your dream job, in your dream city, right away. It means you're willing to work the crazy-long hours, knowing that it won't last forever and is a way to get established and get valuable experience. It means you might take the clients or cases or even the office cubicle that nobody else wants. It means that the words "work-life balance" probably shouldn't come out of your mouth for the first year or so. It means you realize that your first job doesn't have to be your last, and while it may be hard at first, it gets better.
And I'll be perfectly honest--these career lessons can be tough pills to swallow, but I think being aware of them will help me in the long run. And I also know that whatever job I end up in has every bit as much potential as any other job to be part of a career I really love.
Sunday, July 1, 2012
90 Days to a New You
So today, my sister and I started this multi-faceted self-improvement program called "90 days to a new you." We picked today to start because: 1) it's the start of a new week, 2) and the start of a new month, and 3) the start of the latter half of 2012. Technically, the challenge will end--as the name suggests--90 days from now, on September 28th. I'm trying to pursue some self-improvement during this time in terms of intellectual, spiritual, social, physical, and financial goals. For one, my sister and I are both using this time to pursue a challenge where you read the Bible from cover to cover in 90 days. Here's a link to a reading schedule if any of you want to give it a try.
I'm also trying to become much more consistent with exercise and physical fitness in general. Like a lot of people, I tend to go through these periods where I work out 24/7, and then suddenly slack off for about 3 weeks, rendering me completely out of shape all over again when I start back up again. So I'm trying to do a variety of different workouts this summer to keep me motivated, including going to a bunch of fitness classes at the university's main campus that I can take for free, as a law student. In the past two weeks, I've sampled kickboxing, Zumba, and body sculpt classes, and also tried out the university's pool for the first time since I started school here. Swimming is basically the most stress-relieving workout you can do, and I used to do it a lot in college, but I pretty much stopped doing it during 1L year. Well, now's as good a time as any to take it up again. I'm also planning to start keeping a "workout journal" where I keep track of when I exercise and what I do, just as a way of keeping myself accountable to stay active.
And then I'm planning to use these next 3 months to try to get a lot more organized in a lot of the day-to-day tasks of my life: cleaning, cooking healthy meals, paying bills, filing papers, running errands, etc. I'm also planning to read a lot of books I've been wanting to read for a long time; to be intentional about spending quality time with friends and maintaining relationships; and to keep blogging (I am hopeful that reading the Bible in the next 90 days will give me a lot of writing inspiration).
School starts in a month and a half, and I anticipate being very busy during my second year of law school, so I think it's important for me to use the rest of the summer to pursue some personal improvement and get some good systems in place so I won't be overwhelmed by the hectic activity of 2L year. I'll keep you all updated as the challenge progresses!
I'm also trying to become much more consistent with exercise and physical fitness in general. Like a lot of people, I tend to go through these periods where I work out 24/7, and then suddenly slack off for about 3 weeks, rendering me completely out of shape all over again when I start back up again. So I'm trying to do a variety of different workouts this summer to keep me motivated, including going to a bunch of fitness classes at the university's main campus that I can take for free, as a law student. In the past two weeks, I've sampled kickboxing, Zumba, and body sculpt classes, and also tried out the university's pool for the first time since I started school here. Swimming is basically the most stress-relieving workout you can do, and I used to do it a lot in college, but I pretty much stopped doing it during 1L year. Well, now's as good a time as any to take it up again. I'm also planning to start keeping a "workout journal" where I keep track of when I exercise and what I do, just as a way of keeping myself accountable to stay active.
And then I'm planning to use these next 3 months to try to get a lot more organized in a lot of the day-to-day tasks of my life: cleaning, cooking healthy meals, paying bills, filing papers, running errands, etc. I'm also planning to read a lot of books I've been wanting to read for a long time; to be intentional about spending quality time with friends and maintaining relationships; and to keep blogging (I am hopeful that reading the Bible in the next 90 days will give me a lot of writing inspiration).
School starts in a month and a half, and I anticipate being very busy during my second year of law school, so I think it's important for me to use the rest of the summer to pursue some personal improvement and get some good systems in place so I won't be overwhelmed by the hectic activity of 2L year. I'll keep you all updated as the challenge progresses!
But as for you, be strong and do not give up, for your work will be rewarded. 2 Chronicles 15:7
Wednesday, June 20, 2012
What's Really Important to You
Today I read a pithy yet inspiring little quote: "Actions speak louder than goals." Now, anyone who knows me well knows that I am all about having a number of clear, written, specific goals. In fact, right now as I look through the files on my laptop, I see a life goals list, a summer 2012 goals list, a fall 2012 academic goals list, and a 2012 year goals list. That's a lot of goals. But as this quote reminded me, goals are completely useless if they aren't backed by action. You can make goals all you want to, but they don't amount to much if you never DO anything to make them happen. A goal without action is shallow idealism. I know some people (and I probably do this sometimes too) who talk all the time about goals they want to accomplish, but I never see them taking any concrete steps to bring their goals to fruition.
And then there are the excuses--I know you've probably used them a time or two, because we all have! "I'm too tired. I'm too busy. It's too hard." But the thing is, you WILL find the time, energy, and means to do the things that are truly important to you. In fact, if you want to know what's really important to you, don't bother pulling up your goals list. Just take a look at how you spend most of your time, what you think about the most, what keeps you up at night and wakes you up early in the morning, what you talk about and write about and ponder. Whatever it is, for good or bad, that's what's important to you. This can be kind of a sobering exercise--there are definitely days when the things I spent the most time and energy on were decidedly NOT what I want to consider important in my life. (Trust me, I would never want to say, "Oh yeah, today my life priorities were updating my Facebook status and reading Seventeen magazines.") But it's a good reality check as to what's really a priority.
So in sum: a goal is a good thing. It's definitely a start. But by itself, it's just not enough. Sometimes, one decisive action is worth ten goals.
And then there are the excuses--I know you've probably used them a time or two, because we all have! "I'm too tired. I'm too busy. It's too hard." But the thing is, you WILL find the time, energy, and means to do the things that are truly important to you. In fact, if you want to know what's really important to you, don't bother pulling up your goals list. Just take a look at how you spend most of your time, what you think about the most, what keeps you up at night and wakes you up early in the morning, what you talk about and write about and ponder. Whatever it is, for good or bad, that's what's important to you. This can be kind of a sobering exercise--there are definitely days when the things I spent the most time and energy on were decidedly NOT what I want to consider important in my life. (Trust me, I would never want to say, "Oh yeah, today my life priorities were updating my Facebook status and reading Seventeen magazines.") But it's a good reality check as to what's really a priority.
So in sum: a goal is a good thing. It's definitely a start. But by itself, it's just not enough. Sometimes, one decisive action is worth ten goals.
If you want to accomplish something, you will make a way. If not, you will make an excuse.
Monday, June 11, 2012
Career Aspirations
I mentioned that I had exciting news, so here goes: Over the weekend, I had the opportunity to really solidify in my mind--and then verbalize--what I really want to do with my life, career-wise. I've known for a long time what I've wanted to do, but I've beaten around the bush when asked about future plans because getting to this career seems almost insurmountable. In a lot of ways, it seems more like a dream job than a real career path.
I want to work in the intersection of forensic psychology and law. These are the people who evaluate clients for their mental competency to stand trial and assist in all sorts of psychological consultations to determine how mental health and behavioral issues play a role in the courtroom, especially in criminal, family law, and personal injury cases. Forensic psychologists are experts in how psychological issues and neuroscience affect our understanding of criminal responsibility, sentencing, and the potential for recidivism. They do not always have law degrees, but many of them do because they have to be able to communicate effectively with attorneys, judges, and juries about how psychological issues might affect the outcome of a case. And that is exactly what I want to do. I've been absolutely fascinated by the brain and behavioral sciences since I took my first psychology class as a freshman in college. This is my passion, and I want to be able to pursue it.
Along with those decisions, I also really think that I want to eventually move back to Virginia (of course, provided that there's work available there in the areas I'm interested in). I love Georgia. I really do. And I have such wonderful friends here, who I wouldn't want to leave, and I think I could definitely be happy staying here. But I also miss living in VA a lot, and I feel like I left part of my heart in the Shenandoah Valley! It was so amazing to go back a few weeks ago, and I felt like I was coming home. After I came back here again, I realized that I really, really missed it, even though I've tried to convince myself that I don't. That would mean taking the bar exam in Virginia and pursuing moving up there, either right after law school or eventually.
There are so many obstacles that stand in the way of me reaching these career goals, but I'm going to see them as challenges to deal with as they come up. For one, I would have to get a master's, if not a doctorate, in psychology--in addition to finishing my J.D. My bachelor's degree is not in psychology, which is not really a problem, except that I may need to take a couple prerequisite courses before I could enroll in a master's program. And I would probably want to work for a couple years after I finish law school just to gain experience, be sure of my career aspirations, and pay down student loans before I started working on the psychology degree.
I can't say for sure that this is the direction I'm going to go in, and I want to be open to whatever I'm supposed to be doing. But this is what I am passionate about now and have been passionate about for a long time. Today when I was at work, the director of career services stopped by and we chatted for awhile, and I told her that this is what I want to do. It made it seem more official just to really talk to someone about it--and who better to tell than the director of career services? It's hard to know exactly where I will end up, but as long as I know this is a passion I have, I think I owe it to myself to see if it's possible to turn it into a career.
I want to work in the intersection of forensic psychology and law. These are the people who evaluate clients for their mental competency to stand trial and assist in all sorts of psychological consultations to determine how mental health and behavioral issues play a role in the courtroom, especially in criminal, family law, and personal injury cases. Forensic psychologists are experts in how psychological issues and neuroscience affect our understanding of criminal responsibility, sentencing, and the potential for recidivism. They do not always have law degrees, but many of them do because they have to be able to communicate effectively with attorneys, judges, and juries about how psychological issues might affect the outcome of a case. And that is exactly what I want to do. I've been absolutely fascinated by the brain and behavioral sciences since I took my first psychology class as a freshman in college. This is my passion, and I want to be able to pursue it.
Along with those decisions, I also really think that I want to eventually move back to Virginia (of course, provided that there's work available there in the areas I'm interested in). I love Georgia. I really do. And I have such wonderful friends here, who I wouldn't want to leave, and I think I could definitely be happy staying here. But I also miss living in VA a lot, and I feel like I left part of my heart in the Shenandoah Valley! It was so amazing to go back a few weeks ago, and I felt like I was coming home. After I came back here again, I realized that I really, really missed it, even though I've tried to convince myself that I don't. That would mean taking the bar exam in Virginia and pursuing moving up there, either right after law school or eventually.
There are so many obstacles that stand in the way of me reaching these career goals, but I'm going to see them as challenges to deal with as they come up. For one, I would have to get a master's, if not a doctorate, in psychology--in addition to finishing my J.D. My bachelor's degree is not in psychology, which is not really a problem, except that I may need to take a couple prerequisite courses before I could enroll in a master's program. And I would probably want to work for a couple years after I finish law school just to gain experience, be sure of my career aspirations, and pay down student loans before I started working on the psychology degree.
I can't say for sure that this is the direction I'm going to go in, and I want to be open to whatever I'm supposed to be doing. But this is what I am passionate about now and have been passionate about for a long time. Today when I was at work, the director of career services stopped by and we chatted for awhile, and I told her that this is what I want to do. It made it seem more official just to really talk to someone about it--and who better to tell than the director of career services? It's hard to know exactly where I will end up, but as long as I know this is a passion I have, I think I owe it to myself to see if it's possible to turn it into a career.
Thursday, February 16, 2012
Motivation
At the moment, I am trying to juggle preparing for a closing argument competition, writing an article for my school's news website which is due next week, doing my reading and outlining for all my classes, doing a big legal research and writing assignment on the Americans with Disabilities Act, looking for a summer job and submitting lots of applications, preparing for a legal research exam, attending a bunch of meetings and career workshops, and trying to still maintain a social life and have some time for myself. Like to sleep. Or do pleasure reading. Or go to the gym. Next week, to add to the fun, the spring Moot Court competition for 1L's will start (not the competition itself, but signups begin and I'll think we'll be receiving the problem then).
It is a very busy time of year, and there's always so much to do and a plethora of things to keep track of. People often say that when they are busiest, they find that they actually do better in school, in keeping up with friends, etc. This may seem counterintuitive, but I have a theory that I think explains it, at least for me. I feel like if I drop the ball in one area, it then becomes really easy to kind of give up and start being lazy and slacking off on everything. But, the reverse is also true: if I am really keeping up with my responsibilities in one area of my life, that tends to spill over into every other area of my life. It's kind of like the observation that when you have it together in something, you tend to kind of have it together in everything. I call this theory the "anti-compartmentalization of motivation," which really makes it sound more complicated than it is. The idea is that you can't compartmentalize motivation. It's very hard to get incredibly motivated in one area of your life without finding that motivation spilling over into a lot of other areas of your life. Have you ever wondered why, for example, going to the gym very consistently makes you want to also get all your school responsibilities under control too? It's because that motivation from having one area of your life--exercise and taking care of yourself--under control makes you want to take responsibility for other areas of your life too.
I try to take advantage of this theory during incredibly busy times like right now. By necessity, I've had to be incredibly motivated to prepare for the closing argument competition, because we just got the problem and the information on Monday and we have one week to prepare and basically memorize 10-minute arguments for both sides. There has been no time to waste, so every day this week I've been going to the library after class and preparing for that competition. That in turn has made me be really motivated to get on top of my classes, and so forth, so in spite of the busyness of this week, I've actually been meeting deadlines better and feeling more on top of things than I have in awhile. Maybe I need more crazy-busy weeks to help me get things done!
And now I need to stop blogging for the moment . . . and go read contracts . . . and meet with my career counselor to go over my resume . . . etc.!
Wednesday, February 15, 2012
Bucket List
I hope everyone is having a great Wednesday! During a slightly boring constitutional law class today (hey, it happens), I got inspired to start revising my life goals list/ bucket list.
Here are a few highlights from my list, at least ones I'm willing to share! I hope they might prove to be inspirational for somebody else:
And here's a song that has really been speaking to me lately . . . "Always Enough" by Casting Crowns.
Here are a few highlights from my list, at least ones I'm willing to share! I hope they might prove to be inspirational for somebody else:
- Graduate summa cum laude from law school and pass the bar exam on my first try
- Participate in or coordinate a research project or lecture series on issues of neuroscience and the law
- Write and publish a bestselling book
- Become a certified Spanish interpreter for civil court proceedings
- Be completely debt-free by December 31, 2016 (yes, that includes student loan debt--this is 2 1/2 years after I will graduate from law school)
- Buy my own home and write a check at the closing to pay for the entire thing (no loans, no mortgage, no debt)
- Eventually, get to a point where I live on 10% of my income and give away the other 90%
- Visit every state in the US
- Go to Italy, South Korea, and the Holy Land
- Watch the sun rise over the Grand Canyon
- Read the New Testament in the original Greek
- Learn how to play the violin
- Read at least 100 "classic" or "award-winning" books
- Learn how to speak Korean
- Run a half-marathon
- Go snowboarding
- Complete the Tough Mudder race
- Bench press my body weight
- Ride a roller coaster
- See a play on Broadway
- Read the Bible through every year for the rest of my life
- Do something incredibly heroic and selfless for someone who could never repay me (like donating my bone marrow, etc.)
- Get a standing ovation
- Graduate from Washington and Lee University with honors
- Spend a day exploring ancient Corinth
- Sponsor children through World Vision
- Study abroad in Costa Rica
- Assist in research for a Bible commentary
- Learn how to read ancient Greek
- Go to the midnight showing of a movie
- Drive a horse and buggy in Amish country
- Go surfing
- Spend a night outside under the stars
And here's a song that has really been speaking to me lately . . . "Always Enough" by Casting Crowns.
Friday, January 27, 2012
Thoughts for the New Year
I know that the initial "newness" of 2012 may have worn off as it is almost the end of January, but I think that now is as good a time as any to reassess those New Year's resolutions and consider where to go from here. I know for a lot of people, by about Valentine's Day if not well before, their list of carefully thought-out New Year's resolutions has been all but forgotten in the hurried pace of a new year and its new demands. In fact, some people tend to make the exact same resolutions year after year--exercise more, lose weight, spend more time with family, do better in school, get a better job, etc, hoping that each new year will be THE year when those goals are finally met. ("This year, I'm finally going to get my whole life together!")
I like to think of my aspirations for a new year as "goals" rather than using the word "resolution." To me, a resolution is the sort of thing that, if you fail even once or twice, you've failed to live up to your resolution. On the other hand, I see a "goal" as something you can consistently work toward and be making progress toward even if there are some failures in the process. It feels more like a chance to make progress towards a worthy vision or ambition and less like an all-or-nothing demand that feels impossible to meet.
Scripture refers to vision a number of times, and I believe that God's people are called to have God-sized visions and goals for their years and their lives in general. Some of God's best counsel concerning vision and goal-setting is almost hidden in the middle of the Old Testament book of Habbakuk. This prophet lived in a time when the people of Israel saw far too much violence, evil, and injustice in their own country, and Habakkuk complained to God about these terrible problems, asking him when he would act and when things would ever change. Habbakuk 2:2-3 records the Lord's reply: "Write down the vision and make it plain on tablets so that whoever reads it may run with it. For the vision awaits an appointed time . . . though it linger, wait for it; it will certainly come and will not delay."
To me, these verses first speak to the importance of writing down the goals and visions God has given us for our lives. Studies have shown that people who write down specific goals and deadlines by which they intend to accomplish those goals are much more likely to succeed in reaching them than those whose goals are only vague notions in their minds that haven't been put in writing. I believe writing goals down gives the goal-setter not only a psychological advantage but also a spiritual one. When God has given a particular vision for His glory to an individual, a couple, a family, a church, or any group, writing that vision down is crucial for holding all those involved accountable to working towards that vision and trusting God for its accomplishment. Why is this accountability through the writing of goals so important? "Make it plain on tablets so that whoever reads it may run with it." I don't know about you, but I want to be held accountable to run with every vision that God has placed within my heart for 2012 and beyond. I want to write these visions down--in lists to put on my fridge or in my car or in my journal or whatever works for you--so that every time I see and read them, I am prompted by God's Spirit in me to run towards accomplishing His will and His vision for my life.
God also told Habakkuk that the vision awaited an appointed time--that although he might have to wait for it, it would certainly be coming. I think the context of this book indicates that Habakkuk's vision was to see some of the wrongs and injustice in his land and among his people being made right. We may not always see our God-given visions come to pass right away, especially when they are huge visions like correcting an injustice or starting a chain reaction of change in a broken sector of society. But God has encouraged me greatly with this verse that any vision truly from Him will come to pass at the time He has appointed it to be. It is my task to wait upon Him even as I pour myself into doing all I can to fulfill the ultimate vision of the spread of God's kingdom on our earth.
I need to be in prayer that each day God would reveal to me the goals and visions He has for me. I do not want to be satisfied with small goals that I will feel that I have accomplished without His help. I also don't want to settle for only goals that are self-serving--that improve my reputation, my status, my assets, my quality of life. In fact, I want to be willing to sacrifice these very things if that is necessary for me to pursue the goal of God's glory in my life. So, what is your God-given vision for 2012? Write it down and then run with it.
And last but not least, an encouraging song for the new year: "Lord I Need You" by Chris Tomlin. This is the first song I listened to in 2012 and I've listened to it pretty much every day since. It is a great reminder for every day of the year:
I like to think of my aspirations for a new year as "goals" rather than using the word "resolution." To me, a resolution is the sort of thing that, if you fail even once or twice, you've failed to live up to your resolution. On the other hand, I see a "goal" as something you can consistently work toward and be making progress toward even if there are some failures in the process. It feels more like a chance to make progress towards a worthy vision or ambition and less like an all-or-nothing demand that feels impossible to meet.
Scripture refers to vision a number of times, and I believe that God's people are called to have God-sized visions and goals for their years and their lives in general. Some of God's best counsel concerning vision and goal-setting is almost hidden in the middle of the Old Testament book of Habbakuk. This prophet lived in a time when the people of Israel saw far too much violence, evil, and injustice in their own country, and Habakkuk complained to God about these terrible problems, asking him when he would act and when things would ever change. Habbakuk 2:2-3 records the Lord's reply: "Write down the vision and make it plain on tablets so that whoever reads it may run with it. For the vision awaits an appointed time . . . though it linger, wait for it; it will certainly come and will not delay."
To me, these verses first speak to the importance of writing down the goals and visions God has given us for our lives. Studies have shown that people who write down specific goals and deadlines by which they intend to accomplish those goals are much more likely to succeed in reaching them than those whose goals are only vague notions in their minds that haven't been put in writing. I believe writing goals down gives the goal-setter not only a psychological advantage but also a spiritual one. When God has given a particular vision for His glory to an individual, a couple, a family, a church, or any group, writing that vision down is crucial for holding all those involved accountable to working towards that vision and trusting God for its accomplishment. Why is this accountability through the writing of goals so important? "Make it plain on tablets so that whoever reads it may run with it." I don't know about you, but I want to be held accountable to run with every vision that God has placed within my heart for 2012 and beyond. I want to write these visions down--in lists to put on my fridge or in my car or in my journal or whatever works for you--so that every time I see and read them, I am prompted by God's Spirit in me to run towards accomplishing His will and His vision for my life.
God also told Habakkuk that the vision awaited an appointed time--that although he might have to wait for it, it would certainly be coming. I think the context of this book indicates that Habakkuk's vision was to see some of the wrongs and injustice in his land and among his people being made right. We may not always see our God-given visions come to pass right away, especially when they are huge visions like correcting an injustice or starting a chain reaction of change in a broken sector of society. But God has encouraged me greatly with this verse that any vision truly from Him will come to pass at the time He has appointed it to be. It is my task to wait upon Him even as I pour myself into doing all I can to fulfill the ultimate vision of the spread of God's kingdom on our earth.
I need to be in prayer that each day God would reveal to me the goals and visions He has for me. I do not want to be satisfied with small goals that I will feel that I have accomplished without His help. I also don't want to settle for only goals that are self-serving--that improve my reputation, my status, my assets, my quality of life. In fact, I want to be willing to sacrifice these very things if that is necessary for me to pursue the goal of God's glory in my life. So, what is your God-given vision for 2012? Write it down and then run with it.
And last but not least, an encouraging song for the new year: "Lord I Need You" by Chris Tomlin. This is the first song I listened to in 2012 and I've listened to it pretty much every day since. It is a great reminder for every day of the year:
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