The Folly of Projecting Ahead

This post is inspired by frequent posts career on JDUnderground.com. http://www.qfora.com/jdu/thread.php?threadId=10893#post144413

The posts take the pattern "I hate occupation X (legal). I think I should goto occupation of (insert occupation: Nursing, Construction, Finance..." Because of a real or perceived shortage and currently available jobs.

This seems to be the trend. Posters/People stand here(today) and look there(tomorrow). The general problem is the landscape changes. When I was in high school there was supposed to be a shortage of accountants. So, when I went to college I studied accounting. The college powers-that-be took the requirement of Engineering Calculus away, then everyone flowed into accounting. By the time I got into the field there were no jobs. There was also a shortage in the legal field until they went from 100 to 200+ law schools in a 25 to 30 year period. Ten years ago there was a projected nursing shortage. To increase the nursing occupation's size: class size, online schools, schools, and nursing immigrants numbers were increased. I think the next bubble will be financial and construction workers. Don't goto a shortage occupation. By the time you get to "there"; it will be gone.

Recession Gets Worse

If you haven't had your hours cut, then congrats! Else, welcome to the new trend of cutting hours to the point that you have to quit to survive. Like you, I pay unemployment insurance, but unless I am laid off I can't use it. Cutting hours is a quick way for employers to get rid of employees without paying unemployment in most states. I my state you can get cut back beyond 20 hours for three weeks before unemployment cuts in.

Attorney Survival Skills

After reading EndofEsq.com column on Rainmaking, I thought about qualities that long-term lawyers who are not rainmakers possess. What I mean is a Lawyer who has stayed in this industry, going firm to firm, as a staff attorney, associate, or non-asset partner making a living via this career. With the legal market as saturated, as it is; what qualities do we see that can help us survive the short time we are in this industry:
a) Flexibility: The ability to change specialty. The ability to go from Associate to Doc Reviewer and not cry. The ability not to take this field too seriously.

b) Assertiveness: The ability to push! The ability to ask for what you are worth. Trying to undersell yourself leaves you with a perception of having a “low value” in employer’s eyes.

c) Tenacity: Constant fight to get what you need and want.

d) Optimism: This is tricky! To paraphrase Admiral SCOWCROFT: The POWs who were Optimists were weeded out fast. Unbridled Optimists hope, continue hoping, and furventively believe the best will happen sometimes against all reason. When the worst happens, they are let down; it’s like being hit by an anvil. An unbridled optimism can not deal with the fact things don’t always work.

e) Intelligence (Brains + Common Sense): If you don’t get it; get it.

f) Distancing Ability: The ability to step back and see the situation as if you are not a part of it.

g) Group Conscience: The ability to see what the group sees as true, apart from what the reality is.

h) Go with the flow Assimilation: (enough said).

i) Finding Meaning in Life: There is life outside of work.

j) Courage: The ability to get up every morning and do it all again.

Yours Etc
Screwtape