Success and Happiness

Why I don’t care about success

"So forget about “success”, and just find joy, passion, love, awesome-ness right now, in this moment. *That* is a success you can achieve, without any self-help course, without any method. Just go out and do it."

via: Zen Habits

Grammar can be fun!

Bad grammar is the bane of pedantic internet trolls and the source of 47%* of those soul-sucking blog comment that I detest.  Grammar can also be the bane of the cover letter and the cause of your application promptly reaching the soul-sucking recycle bin**, so it is important to pay attention and, when in doubt, check the rules.

Fortunately, sometimes the internet gives something back; when it comes to grammar those gifts from the internet can be lovely.  You can check out some fun web comics from theoatmeal.com where you can learn about grammar along with information about kittens riding goats, bacon hats, hairy knuckles, out-drinking pandas, the dangers of leapfrogging a unicorn, and bears:

• learn about semicolons,
• learn about i.e.,
• learn about words you might be misspelling, and
• learn about apostrophes. 

If you are after grammar advice on a variety of topics, I like

• Paul Brian's Common Errors in English Usage*** and
• Grammar Girl.

*Not scientifically verified.
**The recycle bin only sucks souls when your application ends up there, at all other times it is the source of light and joy in the universe, much like a double rainbow or kittens.
***Also available in book form. I remember when all we had was the internet in book form, we called it the library, and we used Ethel the reference librarian instead of Google...oh days of yore.

Wisdom from blog comments

Sometimes a million monkeys randomly banging away on blog comment boxes do produce a little wisdom, no Shakespeare, but still wisdom.  I typically find blog comments to be the largest waste of time and bandwidth on the internet; for some reason this is particularly true of legal blog comments:  sound and fury in abundance but completely devoid of significance--perhaps it is Shakespeare after all.  Against my better judgement, today, I read the comments on an ABA article.  Along with the usual comment induced heightening of my blood pressure and thoughts that rhyme with "LaRouche Swag" and "Back Sass,"  came the unusual feeling that someone had struck on a moment of ever so slight enlightenment:

"Atticus Finch didn’t work in a law factory and probably made just enough to feed his family. If new attorneys are willing to accept that, they can all be Atticus Finches, too. Want to fight for justice in the courtroom? Become a prosecutor or a public defender or start your own solo practice."  --quote some person called MAC in a blog comment

 Delivery of legal services to the poor depends on countless hours performed by private attorneys in big firms, and many people augment the fulfillment they normally get from a larger firm job with pro bono work and community involvement.  Often those larger firm attorneys are able to give larger contributions to pro bono work and the community because of the money and resources at their disposal.  But there is more to the job of a large firm attorney than what they do in their unbilled time.

New lawyers can and do make profound contributions to justice while working at larger firms, but--pay attention, this is the important part--if your purpose and drive is to help the helpless, to protect the innocent or the innocent victims, or to save the world, you are likely to feel unfulfilled and unhappy if your work's main motivation and driving force is not the same.  At the end of the day, the master of the large firm attorney is the paying client, not the pro bono client.

If you came to law school because you want to stand on the side of the Tom Robinsons of the world, if you believe Boo Radley deserves his dignity, then make sure your work's purpose is standing up for Tom Robinson or delivering dignity to Boo Radley.  If you take a public service or public interest position, debt be damned, your reward will follow, it may not be in the form of dollars, but trust that your reward will follow.

What Public Interest Lawyers Believe

Everyone is full of grace and beauty.

Reporting Your Volunteer Hours FAQ

Q1: When must my hours be reported?

A1: Monday April 5, 2010.

Q2: My form says hours are due April 2, 2010, are you sure they are due on Monday?

A2: I am sure, you hours are due Monday April 5, 2010. Do not panic; if you ask nicely, and you completed your time before April 1, Bill will probably accept your form later, but you might not be in time for the awards lunch.

Q3: Form? Where do I get a form to report my hours with?

A3: http://www.lclark.edu/livewhale/download/?id=97

Q4: How many hours do I need for an honors award?

A4: 30 hours.

Q5: What do I get if I report 30 or more hours?

A5: You receive an honors certificate (suitable for framing), recognition in the graduation program (suitable for impressing parents), designation on your transcript(suitable for noting on your resume), and lunch at noon on April 15th (suitable for eating, it is delicious Indian food).

Q6: I do not have 30 hours and I am thinking of not bothering reporting my hours, should I report them?

A6: Yes, you should report your time even if you have less than 30 hours. Your time counts toward the school's annual total reported to the Oregon State Bar--if enough people report, we can beat University of Oregon in total hours given. Also, you time can be accumulated toward the Public Interest Certificate if you are headed in that direction. Plus, if you report your hours, Bill will be happy and you will feel like a pillar of your community.

Q7: What counts?

A7: Almost anything that you do for a non-profit, church, social group, court, bar association, government office, or campaign will count as either community service or pro bono time. Have someone sign off on the time you have put in, and Bill will sort it out.

Q8: I volunteered all last summer, does that count?

A8: Yes, report your time.

Q9: What about time I put into the PILP Auction or for another student group?

A9: Generally, student group work does not count. The exception is, if the work has primarily an off-campus effect, then it can count. Things like project work for NEDC, NLG legal observing, some projects with EJA and SALDF, mentoring and supporting the mentoring program through BLSA and MLSA, putting in extra hours at the clinic, and helping with the VITA tax program count. If you can point to someone off campus who directly benefits from your work, you can probably convince Bill that it should count.

Q10: What if I put in more hours than required by my paid internship or more at clinic than required for credit?

A10: If you put in extra time and you do not receive pay or credit for that extra time, it counts and you should have your time signed off on.

Q11: I keep getting eaten by the Grue, what do I do?

A11: Try staying in the light or taking a light with you into dark places and the Gures will never bother you.

Q12: Grue? What are you on about?

A12: Before there were internets, there were electronic bulletin boards and usenet with FAQs like this for things like ZORK. No computer should be without one.

Q13: Hey shut up about the Grue, is there anything else I should know about volunteer hours?

A13: You bet, you can find it all in the Handbook http://www.lclark.edu/livewhale/download/?id=96

Interviewing skills, or "This one time I ..."

The hot trend in human relations for at least the last decade has been using behavioral questions in interviews. Those are questions that get at your skills and experiences by seeking information about a specific time you encountered difficulty or managed a heavy work load or showed whatever skill the employer is looking for. Reports are starting to arrive that law firms have begun to rely on behavioral questions more in order to confront a growing applicant to position ratio.

Many businesses adopted this practice years ago, and the trend applies to the public sector as well. I once participated as part of a panel interviewing candidates for a state investigatory position, and behavioral questions were among the bureaucratically generated questions we had to ask in an identical manner of each applicant.

So, what should the hopeful interviewee do? As always, prepare. Prepare to answer questions about planning and organizing skills, decision making and leadership, taking calculated risks and sometimes failing, and effective communication and working with people from disparate backgrounds.

While you are at it, pay attention to how your answer is formed. The more specific you can be the better; employers are looking for an example of an event that happened to you and not a broad overview of best practices. Focus your attention on the context, your actions, and the results, or if you like the word what: what was going on, what you did, and what came of it.

Keep in mind that some behavioral questions ask for situations where things did not go your way. It is important with these questions about negative situations to end with a positive; there is always a lesson to be learned, and if you find that lesson, even a story of a bad experience can be an example of building character and skill.

For more information, check out the ABAJournal story and follow the link in that article to a 2005 reprint from the NALP bulletin.

So you want to volunteer, are you missing the postings?

If you are looking for volunteer opportunities and you did not receive the latest pro bono listserve email, here is what you are missing:

Hello Pro Bono List People,

Two volunteer opportunities to publicize today:

1. The Washington County Circuit Court Family Law Facilitators Office
has its posting up for volunteers to help file family law cases. This
is a great opportunity to learn some of the basics of family law, to
see how civil practice works, and to gain experience with client
contact. Open to all levels from 1L through practicing lawyer.
Shifts are flexible and the commitment is minimal. Mandatory training
is this Friday the 9th 2:30 to 4:30 at the law school in Seminar
Smith. Email me at wcpenn AT lclark.edu by 4 pm Wednesday the 7th if you
are interested.

Full Posting:
The Washington County Circuit Court Family Law Facilitators Office
operates in the Washington County Courthouse in Hillsboro. This
office helps people who are filing family law cases pro se (meaning on
their own without an attorney). The court facilitators direct clients
to the correct paperwork and answer non-legal questions about the
process of filing a case. Students who volunteer with this project
assist the facilitators in assisting pro se clients following the
guidelines set in ORS 3.428.

Staff facilitators rely heavily on Lewis & Clark volunteers. If you
have any interest in family law, or on working on client interaction
skills, this is the project for you! The Courthouse is about a 40
minute drive from campus, but there is a MAX stop only a couple of
blocks from the courthouse. In the past students have coordinated
their shifts and carpooled.

2-4 hour shifts either weekly or bi-weekly for the Semester or the
year. Scheduling of shifts is VERY flexible (anytime that the
facilitation office is open). There is a mandatory two-hour training
scheduled on Friday, October 9th from 2:30 to 4:30 pm on campus in
Seminar Smith in Wood Hall.

Indicate interest by 4 pm Wednesday, October 7, 2009 to wcpenn AT lclark.edu



2. The Health Law Section of the Oregon Bar is looking for students
to write articles. Writing for bar section newsletters can be a great
way to meet people who work in a particular area of the law and can be
a great way to get your name in front of lawyers across the state.
Sections are always looking for people to write, and there are
sections in many areas, check out the list of sections at:
http://www.osbar.org/sections.

Full posting:
We are providing students the opportunity to publish short articles on
different areas of health law- whatever they are interested in or want
to write about. We ask for at least 2-3 paragraphs, but not a
multipage article. We will not edit the articles, or check cites, but
we could see if someone would be willing to mentor if that is an
issue. The articles will be published on the website with the
student’s name- and this could be a great opportunity for students to
get their name out there. If students are interested, need more
information, or want to submit something, they can contact Amy
Vandenbroucke: vandenbr AT ohsu.edu.

Best regards,

Bill

Signup for the listserve today. You can either send an email to majordomo@lclark.edu with "subscribe probono-list" in the body or email wcpenn AT lclark.edu and ask to be added. Volunteering, it is a great way to get experience, a great way to give back to the community, and a great way to remember the reasons why you came to law school.