Customer Reviews

Should You Really Be A Lawyer?: The Guide To Smart Career Choices Before, During & After Law School

5 star:		(10)
4 star:		(3)
3 star:		(2)
2 star:		(1)
1 star:		(3)

 

 

As its cover suggests, this book was written for the BEFORE, DURING, and AFTER (law school) folks. Although it will add value (and confirmation) to many people in the DURING and AFTER crowd, the book (I think) is most critical for those in the BEFORE crowd.

No one can argue with the book's observations that (a) law school is extremely expensive and (b) many (if not most) law students have no idea what attorneys really do day-to-day. Moreover, soon after law school, many graduates learn that (i) they do NOT like what attorneys really do day-to-day (often an odd mix of boring work and stressful consequences) and (ii) they NEED to be a "big law firm attorney" in order pay off their school debts. This realization is tough to digest (particularly since the student was told so many times in the past that "there is so much you can do with your law degree").

Although there certainly are "options" to the big law firm life (and this book is good at helping the BEFORE, DURING and AFTER reader to try to discover his/her options), there do not seem to be enough "real options" out there . . . given one's debt and the big law firm salaries. Thus, there is a sense of "I'm trapped."

It's true that with a lot of work (and a lot of sunk costs and lost time) one can find a "real option" and get out of the "trap" -- it is also true that some attorneys find an area of law and a law firm that they really do like or have a great "next step" that happens (and, yes, it is also true that all jobs probably "suck" in some way). However, rolling the dice with three years of your life and $100k plus (and lost income), is really pretty crazy -- and certainly not very "big firmmy" -- even though many (if not most) entering law students do seem to do this.

I do not know if working at a law firm for a year or so (before law school) would really give a prospective law student ENOUGH information to know whether law school (and being an attorney) is the right thing for him/her. However, I do think that Self-Assesment and such an experience (and other research into what you will really end up doing upon graduation) should become the "norm" -- I think this book will help make that happen!

This book was one of the most helpful books about law, law school and the legal profession I have come across. It forces you to ask yourself probing and challenging questions that get at the real reasons behind why you are considering law school. It also gave great information about the what the legal profession is like and how to explore it yourself. While cautionary in tone, it does assert that there are valid reasons for choosing the law and that if you explore yourself well enough you can make an informed decision one way or the other. It's a must buy for anyone considering law school. Before you plunk down $100,000 and three years of your life, use this book to make sure that it's worth it for you.

If you are considering going to law school or a current law student or lawyer questioning your career decisions, this book provides exceptional guidance on making the right choices for you when it comes to a legal career. As a non-practicing lawyer who now works with students at a law school, I recommend this book to all students who are questioning whether law is really the best profession for them. The book avoids making judgments about the value of a legal education or career and instead poses questions and provides honest information which help people do the necessary soul searching (and reality checking) to make sure that they are pursuing a legal career for the right reasons. Being a lawyer is a great job, but it is not for everyone. This book will help applicants, students, and practicing attorneys figure out if they are on the right track sooner rather than later.

How I wished a book like this would have been given to me when I was younger. Back then I briefly considered attending law school simply because I didn't know what else to do. I was a liberal arts major, with no clue as to what I should do next. Being that I come from a Chinese family, I was also pressured into becoming a lawyer for the money and prestige that the profession was suppossed to bring. Fortunately a good lawyer from the Chinese community came to my rescue and counseled my parents thus effectively changing their minds. Believe me, I was lucky as back then most people did not have such luxury.

Today however, you do. This book by Deborah Schnider is excellent in describing what being a lawyer is really like and helps cut through the indecision, confusion, misconception, fear and guilt about entering or leaving the profession. The only thing I warn you is that this book may not work on a person with a closed mind. I tried giving this book to a friend of mine who did go to law school, hated it, but is still a lawyer. He hates his job but doesn't dare consider leaving because his parents paid for his education and he doesn't dare want to disappoint them. Everytime I bring up the subject, we argue. Some people will never come around, but for those who are in serious doubt and wish to do something about it, this book is for you.

As a career counselor I know what it can be like to support someone who is facing a huge decision of time and committment...or, perhaps, facing a decision to make a change away from the time and committment they have already indulged in! Should You Really Be a Lawyer does a great job in breaking down all those little conversations that go around in our heads and provides understanding so decisions can be made more clearly and effectively. I highly recommend this book as a tool for making an educated decision. The appendix at the end of the book also provides invaluable 'next step' guides that will be useful for any career crossroad!

I was reluctant to go to law school, so reluctant that I went a good three years after taking the LSAT (because I got a good score) only because that was the last year the score was good. I can't say that I wasn't warned or that I suffered from overconfidence that I would be the lone individual who would overcome the frequent gripes about the profession and the misery entrenched in big law firms. I also can't say that if I had bought this book a year to this day, that I wouldn't be where I am now... mainly dropping out of law school; but I can say that this book empowers people to make well-informed yet intuitive decisions about taking on such a daunting profession. Every fear and concern I had about making this huge decision was addressed from every angle in this book. At certain points, it was erie... truly.
But even after talking to my Dean of Students, who agreed with the assessment that the legal profession is a a miserable place at the moment, I wasn't able to reconcile the feeling that I was a quitter or too weak. The book really allows the stories to speak for themselves and it resoundingly declares that there is a successful life awaiting those who leave the profession. From those who went off to write Legally Blonde to CEO of Fortune 100 companies, people do overcome that feeling eventually.

I truly thank G-d that someone wrote this book and that I read it.... it is highly recommended to anyone who is entering the field.

About the greatest thing about this book is cover which is even not that great. For someone who proclaims to have gone through law school as the author claims, the book is very poor in written form. The book also does a LOT of repeating and dressing up "facts" in a way that is often used by marketers to sell their product. Although there may be one or two good points in the book, most of it is common sense. Basically, it is an expensive way of telling you to ask yourself the questions as to whether or not you know what lawyers do and whether or not you have researched the field of law enough to have the confidence to head to law school. Like I said before, she (the author) has some valid points but everything in the book can be found online for free and is basic common sense. I would'nt suggest forking out the cash for this reading.

Exhaustion made me quit this book halfway, but that's more than enough reading to discover that its authors have embarrassingly little to say about the legal profession beyond the obvious. The first three chapters can be summed up in a sentence: don't go to law school for the wrong reasons, because it's expensive. That's a fine notion, but rather than explore the issue in any meaningful way, they just dish out banal pop culture references, TV & movie quotes, generic anecdotes that go nowhere, and a whole lot of repetition. Making matters worse, they smack down a big glossary of psychobabble terminology early on (i.e. "confirmation bias", "decision paralysis", "information cascade"), then refer to the terms constantly in a misguided attempt to sound intelligent and scientific.

Check out this passage from page 9:
"Deborah was obsessed with getting a graduate degree by 30, an arbitrarily chosen age that took on far too much significance in her decision-making. This common trap is called ANCHORING -- attaching great importance to a fact or figure that may have little or no bearing on our judgments or decisions.
When she decided to stay in law school, Deborah was influenced by her fear that she might later regret her decision to leave. Again, this is another powerful force called REGRET AVERSION, which means that people tend to shy away from taking an action because they fear they'll regret making their decision later. Like a lot of CHOICE CHALLENGES, the practice of making decisions based on fear of regret sounds obvious when you hear it explained, but the extent to which this tendency affects your decisions is greater than most people think.
Deborah was also overwhelmed by the thought of how to decide what to do if she left law school. This reflects a common CHOICE CHALLENGE called DECISION PARALYSIS -- a reference to the difficulty people encounter when having to select from many options. For Deborah, ruling out law ruled in everything else, and the thought of choosing among all those professional paths was too daunting."

Isn't it scary how so many words can contain so little information?

Second example (page 65):
"If you don't like using the skills that most lawyers use, you probably won't enjoy being a lawyer. If you dislike thinking about legal subjects and reading legal documents, it doesn't bode well for your happiness in law. It's better to find out before starting school whether you would enjoy working in a legal environment, and whether legal work is in line with your priorities. If you don't consider these questions now, you may wind up confronting them later when the stakes are higher -- after you've invested three years and a ton of money on a JD."

There's also a section headlined "What Psychological Experience Can I Expect From Law School?", whose given answers are the following (and I quote):
1. Read about it
2. Talk to law students and law school counselors about common stressors
3. Try it out

Seriously.

In sum, this is a cheaply conceived, badly written, and sloppily edited hybrid between a third-rate career book and a fourth-rate psychology book from two morons who show no indication of having ever been lawyers.

I can boil this book down to one thing: Do informational interviews with real attorneys in order to see if the law is right for you. The book has some lengthy and, in my opinion, not too useful self-assessment exercises. And just when they get you thinking that they are going to impart wisdom about what it is that real lawyers DO, they tell you to go out and schedule informational interviews with real lawyers. This is a great idea, but you don't need to read the book to get it. If you really can't think of enough questions for an informational interview, then pay the $10 to buy this book and use the appendix. Otherwise, don't waste your time.

As both a former law student and a current legal career counselor, I think this book is a must-read for future and present law students and lawyers. It is completely thought-provoking and forces you to question why you want to go or stay in law school. It is a very honest book and allows you to be honest with yourself.
As a law student, I would have loved to read this book, as I would've realized I was not alone in feeling depressed about law school and that I was not the only one who did not want to practice. Now that I have graduated and helping those in need at a nationally ranked law school, I would recommend this book to each of my students when they start questioning why they came to law school. For those who came for the wrong reasons, the book may let them get over their guilt and let them leave, or at least, realize they have many alternatives to practice; on the other hand, it can also give those who are in doubt their passion for wanting to go into law. A must-read for any lawyer, law student, or would-be law student.