What Not to Do: It’s the Little Things that Count
By K Mattesich • August 26, 2010 •Writers in Residence
First, to the Ms. JD members, Board, and readers..... thank you for your patience! I spent this summer preparing for the infamous three-day "adventure" otherwise known as the California Bar Examination. I am happily done with that, and back to my Writer's in Residence Blog, "'What Not to Do.""It's the little things that count." This expression is often coined as cliche and not applied to the working world. In making friends, it’s the little things that count. In being courteous or polite, it’s the little things that count. However, in today’s economy, maybe we ought to apply this phrase to…
What Not to Do: Facebook, to Detox or not to Detox?
By K Mattesich • June 18, 2010 •Writers in Residence
It’s 2010, and this seems to be the question as of late. Detoxing Facebook. Just how important is it? The worldwide web, as we first knew it, presents us with too many options. And Facebook consists of a myriad of options. Do you accept his or her friend request? Ok, you are going to accept, but maybe you could put her on a “limited view” setting? Or perhaps a spring cleaning every year would do the trick in managing your profile…where you sift through all of your “friends” to try and remember where you know them from. Can’t recall when…
What Not To Do, Part III: It’s not what you know, it’s WHO you know
By K Mattesich • May 23, 2010 •Writers in Residence
Often times, we enter law school- prepared to bury our noses in endless casebooks, speak up in class whenever possible, and buy two supplements for every first-year course to read and highlight on the weekends. These things certainly will contribute to your success come final exam time. However, as Alex learned, getting good grades on final exams is just the starting point… As a 2L, Alex could be described as your typical “go-getter”. She is smart, hard-working, and ambitious. However, like many other law students, she underestimated the value of networking. All of her time was spent reading for her…
What Not to Do, Part II: Always Be Prepared
By K Mattesich • April 11, 2010 •Writers in Residence
Always be prepared. One really can’t really stress how undervalued this advice is. It is common sense, but often ignored at the most inconvenient times. Especially for a law student during interview season.. It was fall of 2009 and Alex had her eye on a mid-sized local firm with seemingly great people and a wide selection of practice areas. The brief and glaringly cursory on-campus interview had gone well. She had worn a conservative black suit, brought the right portfolio, and smiled and engaged with the two partners at exactly the right moments. They seemed to have clicked. So she…