Impostor Syndrome or Reasonable Doubt?
By Bianca "Bee" Gay • March 16, 2015 •Issues, Other Issues
There’s been a lot of recent talk about Impostor Syndrome, or the inability to internalize your accomplishments, which leads to a strong belief that you’re not qualified for something- despite the fact that your educational and professional accomplishments clearly prove otherwise. Impostor Syndrome leads you to think you’re not good enough to do something, like you don’t belong because you’re an impostor. Before you give yourself this diagnosis, consider that maybe what you’re feeling isn’t impostor syndrome at all. Maybe it’s just reasonable doubt. It’s perfectly normal to experience doubt when trying something new, especially as a new lawyer. But…
BEEatitudes: Plan BEE
By Bianca "Bee" Gay • December 29, 2014 •Writers in Residence
I can’t believe the year is over! It seems like only yesterday I wrote my first post as a 2014 Writer in Residence for Ms. JD about the agony of failing the July 2013 bar exam. Fast forward to December 2014, and not only am I an attorney in Massachusetts, but I am more comfortable with the idea of failure than I was twelve months ago (attending a lunch with Lupita Nyong’o might have helped with that). Over the past year I’ve taken you on a roller coaster ride that I’m sure left you dizzy and thinking “wow! Bianca is one strange, crazy, indecisive,…
BEEatitudes: Life After Law Can Be Pretty Sweet- An Interview with Chloe Epstein
By Bianca "Bee" Gay • December 18, 2014
For my December post, I had the honor of interviewing Chloe Epstein, President of Chloe’s Soft Serve Fruit Co. I first learned about Chloe while reading an article on another website, and when I learned that she is a lawyer I immediately wanted to pick her brain about life after law and using your legal experience to explore your other passions. Bianca Gay: When and why did you decide to go to law school? Chloe Epstein: As a Political Science major, I dabbled with the thought of law school in college but was not convinced upon graduation. I wanted to…
BEEatitudes: Live Outside The Box (No Matter What People Say)
By Bianca "Bee" Gay • October 08, 2014
If you’ve been reading my posts since January, you probably think I’m crazy, all over the place, and a really weird girl. And you’d be right. My journey from law student to lawyer has been a real life game of chutes and ladders. One minute I’m on a path to Destination A, and the next there’s a broken ladder causing me to take a detour that leads me to Destination B. It took me a while to get used to the ups and downs of life, and my inability to adapt made me feel like a failure. But in the…
BEEatitudes: Keep Not Settling
By Bianca "Bee" Gay • September 08, 2014
When last we “spoke” in July, I shared my challenges with finding a job now that I’m a lawyer. I’m still looking for work, and I’m hopeful that I’ll find something soon. But I want that something to be great, not just something I have to take simply because it beats unemployment. For the past few years, that’s been my mentality. I was so sure that something would be better than nothing, so instead of just applying for jobs I really wanted, I started to I apply to any and everything, whether I thought I’d like it or knew I’d…
BEEatitudes: So You’re A Lawyer, Now What?
By Bianca "Bee" Gay • July 21, 2014 •Writers in Residence
When I graduated from law school, my life was one big fat ugly maelstrom of bar exam stress and financial insecurity. Over a year later, I'm now an attorney, but not much else has changed. In recent weeks I've attended several events with my parents. At all of them, they've introduced me as "Bianca, [their] daughter, the lawyer." My parents are so proud of my accomplishments- sometimes, more so than I am. They never miss a moment to brag about their successful daughter, the lawyer. Whereas I sometimes find myself hiding what should be my greatest accomplishment. Truth be told,…
BEEatitudes: But You Don’t Look Like A Lawyer…
By Bianca "Bee" Gay • June 07, 2014 •Writers in Residence
It’s been a little over a month since I found out that I passed the Massachusetts Bar Exam. I’ll be sworn in on June 16th, but it still hasn’t sunk in that my childhood goal of being a lawyer when I grow up is now a reality. Apparently, it’s also hard for others to believe that I’m a lawyer, and I don’t know whether to feel offended or elated. I don’t walk around like “I am lawyer, hear me roar.” But in a recent encounter at the nail salon, a woman did a double take after I revealed I’d just…
BEEatitudes: About The Bar Exam… (My Longest Post Ever)
By Bianca "Bee" Gay • May 16, 2014 •Writers in Residence
Lately I’ve been asked about my experience taking the bar in light of the fact that I just passed the February exam (after studying for only 20 days max). What better place to write about that than here? [Let me start by saying I don’t advise anyone to study for the bar exam for as little time as I did. My experience was due to circumstances beyond my control- it was not my ideal situation. What I do hope you’ll get out of this post is an appreciation for the power of positive thinking, determination when your back’s against the…
BEEatitudes: Allow Me To Reintroduce Myself…
By Bianca "Bee" Gay • May 06, 2014 •Writers in Residence
I may or may not be listing to Jay-Z’s “Public Service Announcement” while writing this post, but in the interest of giving my readers a formal introduction, I couldn’t help but quote my favorite track on the Black Album. While I was born in Dallas, Texas, I spent most of my life in the suburbs of Boston, Massachusetts. I was an only child until I was 8, and I’m an introvert, so I could usually be found alone with a good book in my hand (some things never change). For as long as I can remember, I’ve always been a…