💼 The Importance of Non-Legal Skills & Experiences to the Life of a Lawyer:
One of my favorite realizations from 110+ How I Lawyer interviews is how important the skills and experiences gained prior to law school are to finding a successful legal career.
To be fair this may go against my professional interest. After all, I teach legal skills for a living. And don’t get me wrong. These skills are extremely important. Without them success is hard to come by.
BUT one thing I hear time and again is how important pre-law skills and experiences can be.
This could be knowledge of an industry.
It could be knowledge about a particular community or group.
It could be a skill that translates well too law but is hard to learn in law school (technology, sales, customer service, ability to learn fast).
The reality is that legal skills are necessary but rarely sufficient. And for new lawyers or summer interns think of this as a secret value add. You may not yet have legal experience but your other skills and interests and experiences can and should be leveraged.
TL;dr Even at the beginning of your career you bring more to the table than you think!