Last Post of the Year—The Biggest Lessons for Introverted Law Students
By Rebecca Fiss • December 20, 2013 •Writers in Residence
This is my last post of 2013! In honor of a year of exploring options and advice for introverted law students, I want to devote this post to some closing thoughts on what I’ve learned this year. One of the most important things you can do for yourself as a law student and an introvert is to recognize that your personality is not a disability. So what if you don’t thrive in the same situations your classmates do? (See, e.g., networking events.) You have strengths that the gregarious extrovert does not. You’re probably better at analysis and thinking through issues…
Time to shut down your Facebook profile—it won’t kill you, I promise!
By Rebecca Fiss • November 03, 2013 •Writers in Residence
If you're a law student, you're entering Hell Month. From now until sometime in December, you'll gradually forget what it was like to do things that didn't involve outlines. And now it's more important than ever to take care of yourself—body and mind. Which is why you should consider getting rid of your Facebook, if just until the end of exams. Think about it. Facebook is an addictive time-sucker that most likely adds little net value to your life. In fact, for all its convenience, there's pretty convincing evidence that Facebook actually makes you more miserable. And if this is your…
A Simple Interviewing Idea for Introverts
By Rebecca Fiss • October 03, 2013 •Writers in Residence
I know that the Interwebs are already saturated with advice about interviewing. A lot of it is from career-building experts, and then a lot is from people like me, who just happen to have some basic interviewing experience and internet access. Which is why I'm not going to embark on a comprehensive review of everything you should and shouldn't do in an interview. I just have one simple tip—something that (I think) worked for me and that I wanted to pass along. Both the professional and the social world are pretty highly biased in favor of extroverts. This bias is perhaps…
The Introvert’s Guide to Choosing a Law School Study Group
By Rebecca Fiss • July 04, 2013 •Writers in Residence
I'm an introvert. I don't talk just so I can hear the sound of my own voice, I rarely say anything for the purpose of impressing or intimidating people, and I don't enjoy being around people who do.I remember, before I started law school, hearing someone talk about the importance of getting a good study group. According to that person, this meant pulling together the smartest people in the class as early in the first semester as possible.But who typically gets pegged as the "smart people" within the first few weeks? Probably the ones who practically dive across their desks…
Not Quite a Socialite SUMMER JOB EDITION: Bring-Your-Coworker-to-Lunch Day
By Rebecca Fiss • June 07, 2013 •Writers in Residence
The word "networking" makes me cringe. It gives me the cold sweats and makes me glance around for an open window to launch myself out of. This probably isn't the most helpful trait for someone in the legal field (or any career, unless I wanted to be a nun, and maybe not even then), but it's my personality, and I have to learn how to work with it.The best way I've found to force myself to network is to trick myself into thinking that what I'm doing isn't networking. Everyone has to eat, right? And if I have to walk…
Pro bono and hanging out: the social side of legal volunteer work
By Rebecca Fiss • May 03, 2013 •Writers in Residence
Now that I'm finally done with exams, I'm ready to take on a topic that I've been somewhat strategically waiting to introduce. I wanted to be all rested up and appropriately cheery before I brought this one up, because I think it's probably the most important post so far. Let me first remind you: the mission here, and the purpose of my monthly column, is to give you, a slightly shy/bookish law student, ideas on how to get yourself out of your carrel and integrated into your law school community. Remember, your years in law school are an extremely important time…
Why you should attend Bar Review (the fun kind)
By Rebecca Fiss • April 04, 2013 •Writers in Residence
Since I've mentioned it in some capacity in each of my last two posts and mentioned that it would show up as a topic sooner or later, I might as well bring it up now: Bar Review. No, it has nothing to do with the bar exam, so you can go ahead and bring your heart rate back down. The Bar Review I'm talking about has to do with the other kind of bar—the one where you get drinks. At my law school (and I think many others), Bar Review takes place every Thursday: the social chair of the Student…
“Let’s Get Physical”: Making Exercise into a Social Activity
By Rebecca Fiss • March 03, 2013 •Writers in Residence
This month's post is part two of a two-month installment inspired by a conversation I had with a 1L at a social event. She asked me what I would do differently if I could do my first year of law school over again. Two things immediately popped into my head. The first one, as I explained last month, was that I would get involved in a student organization right off the bat and more enthusiastically pursue a leadership position, rather than being scared off by my irrational fears of public speaking and of not getting my reading done.* The second one,…
Not sure how to meet classmates with your interests? Join the club.
By Rebecca Fiss • February 03, 2013 •Writers in Residence, Other Law School Issues
This month’s post is Part One of a two-part installment inspired by a conversation I had recently with a 1L at Bar Review (if you don’t know what Bar Review is or assume it has something to do with the bar exam, hold tight—a post about this all-important event is already in the works). The 1L asked me what I would do differently if I could do my first year at law school over again. I’m sure if I were given more time to respond, I could come up with a long list of things I wish I had done…