The best and most fortuitous thing that has happened to me in my journey to becoming a lawyer has been finding a mentor. Finding a mentor who can help lead you through the maze of going from pre-law to 1L, and from law student to lawyer and beyond, is more of an art than a science, but the pay-off is huge.

For me, I was lucky enough to have this happen early on in my 1L year, without much planning. At a dinner for a school related event in the fall, I schmoozed and chatted with a number of Northeastern alums and others involved in supporting the school’s public interest programs. Although we weren’t seated at the same table, my favorite person to talk with turned out to be a lawyer named Neil Leifer. Neil, a NUSL alum from the 1980's, was relaxed and welcoming, and spoke enthusiastically with me about his work as a lawyer doing toxic torts litigation and public health work.

A few days later, I emailed Neil, telling him that I had enjoyed meeting him. Neil was kind enough to write back and invite me to visit his office. As I had yet to step foot in a law firm, I took him up on the offer. Since then, Neil has played an invaluable role in my law school career, giving me his thoughts on everything from class to co-op selection, looking over writing samples, encouraging me when the sometimes harsh world of the law has got me down, and generally being a role model for me, as one of the rare and elusive brand of lawyers who actually seem...happy.

A lot of my friends tease me about having a mentor and express confusion at how I struck up this relationship and why. I tell them, talk to people that you meet, ask them questions about what they do, see if you can come by and visit where they work. Most people will welcome this sort of genuine interest in the work and ideas to which they have devoted their lives. There is only so much you can learn in school, and there is so much to be gained from talking to people who are out in the field, have decades of amazing work under their belts, and are willing to be honest with you about the trials, tribulations, and rewards of practicing the law. I can’t guarantee success (Neil’s one of a kind), but I think it’s worth a shot.