Hi. I’m Michael, a 3L on the journey that is Law School. I’m not your typical law student. I’ve traveled all over, from summers spent hiking in the Sangre de Cristo Mountains of New Mexico, to an archeological dig on the Island of Crete, Greece. I’m also a former small business owner. My...
Inspiration is a funny thing. It can come a quick as lightning, be fostered by friends, or take years to strike. Its no surprise that I am unaware of what my future holds. I was never one of those law students who entered law school immediately knowing that the goal was to be a trial attorney, a professor, or even an in-house counsel. So for my three years in school, I have strived to try all manner and facets of the law. Some areas I have thrived in, like contract drafting, while others I have floundered at, like torts. Some opportunities I made the best of, like trial team and the immigration clinic, and some I realized weren’t for me.
As a result, I continually dive into any challenge and opportunity only knowing that the experience will, at the very least, lead one step further down the road to discovery. I have quickly realized that when one is open to any and all the doors in front of them, powerful things can happen! For instance I am quickly becoming more and more fascinated with the idea of starting my own small business. I may not know on what, but the challenge of growing an idea into something of value seems impossible to resist.
As such I have begun to look for inspiration from everything and anything, like the conference on business innovation (BIF-8) that I attended last month, to even the people around me. Just last week, my girlfriend and I were talking about one of my role models, Richard Branson, when she suggested that I simply reach out to him. I said, “One does not simply just reach out to Richard Branson, the CEO of Virgin. He’s way to busy for the likes of a law student”. We then debated over whether or not I would ever get a response from someone so busy. Ultimately my girlfriend lawyered me by saying, “Why not, shoot him a question and see what happens? People like him, took risks, you should too!” So I sent him a tweet, and low and behold, Sir Richard Branson replied.
So my advice to all is quite simple: you may not know where or what you want to do in the future, so take risks, be open, and look for inspiration from the world around you!
