And Something About the Recruit
If nothing else, after this week, we will be able to talk about something else. When this issue hits shelves, many of our 2L colleagues will be halfway through a racking week of recruitment. And while this will mark the end of the formal 2L recruit, it will only be a punctuation mark for others, because only some students will receive job offers on Wednesday.
Your Obiter Editors believe this week does not matter nearly as much as what you do over the next few months. If you are going through in-firm interviews, you may feel this week could make or break the biggest deal you have struck with the legal profession yet. Others may feel more reserved, because they may not have interviews this week, or their in-firm hopes may have crashed down on Monday. We have a reflection for each of you.
After your anticipation, anxiety, and exuberance turns to exhaustion, spend the rest of this reading week thinking about your commitments. Friends, school, family, loved ones, and work — these are all good places to start.
First: if you accept a job on Wednesday, resist the urge to overshare. Your great news does not belong on social media tomorrow. Your friends may not have been so lucky.
Second: suppose your phone is silent on call day. It is alright to struggle to find the excitement to support someone who you feel may have taken something from you. But remember, there are many great opportunities to come, and this is not the only avenue for employment. Successful careers start in many different ways.
Third: you worked hard to get here. Whatever your recruitment result, this week is a chance to regroup, rest, and begin preparing for your final exams. Your school commitments are not over yet. Even if you accepted a job, you have promised to continue being the exceptional student that your employer recognized and hired. Accepting a job is the easy part. It is the start of a new journey, and you have the next six months to prepare for that.
Fourth: this recruit may have opened up distance between you and your family, or your loved ones (or both). Conveniently, you now have reading week to start making up the distance. For anyone outside of the law bubble, the 2L recruit is a bizarre, expensive ride that defies explanation. Among those close to you, open up about it.
Fifth: focus on your wellbeing. This process probably ran your internal monologue off-track, and at this junction, you have an opportunity to re-centre. After this week, we all will finally be able to talk about something else. The world will regain its colour, and hopefully, you’ll look around and realize that the world never stopped turning, no matter how much it felt like it did.
Good luck, and take care of each other.