Friday, May 9, 2008

Common Sense

Do you ever look back on a decision you made and wonder what on earth you were thinking? That's how I feel about law right now. I did well in college & law school and enjoyed it--particularly classroom discussion and study groups. Anything where I had to work alone was boring. What I really disliked was writing papers--I always waited to the last minute, and they were often sub-par. And guess what--that is what my job is!

Now I wonder why didn't I think about the day-to-day practice of law more? I enjoy thinking & talking about law, but that doesn't happen much in real life. I sit in an office, alone, for 10 hours a day researching and writing stuff. Yes, I do sometimes speak with clients and other attorneys, but it is minimal compared to the rest of my day. The tasks I enjoy the least are where I spend most of my time.

I am very much looking forward to teaching! I am scared about classroom management, but I love science and I love interacting with people. In college & law school I thought that I eventually wanted to teach college, but it would take years of experience practicing law before most colleges or law schools would consider me, and it's well known that professors are expected to publish papers and law review articles! This would be more research and paper writing, which is not what I am interested in. Teaching high school or middle school will be much more interactive and challenging in new ways.

No matter how hard teaching is, and I am prepared for complete misery in my first few years, it certainly won't be boring!

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