Studying to
become an attorney and eventually practicing as an attorney is a time and
energy consuming feat. Many
attorneys feel that they barely have enough time for family, friends and
general down time, let alone the time and energy to pick up another skill or
hobby. But developing your skills
in other disciplines can pay off enormously when you’re on the market for a
job. Below are a few examples of
how broadening your skills can impact your marketability on the job market:
Example #1 – Let’s say you have a passion for
working with disabled veterans and you’ve spent the last summer volunteering
with several veteran’s associations, that experience could give you an edge on
the competition if you’re applying for a job at a firm that specializes in
fighting discrimination against disabled workers.
Example #2 – Maybe you’re passionate about
motorcycles and have learned how to repair and maintain bikes in your spare
time, if you were applying for an in-house attorney position at a motorcycle
company your experience would definitely give you “brownie” points with the
hiring manager.
Example #3 – An attorney who has cultivated his/her
skills as a musician or an artist might be able to leverage that skill if they
were applying for a job as an attorney representing artists in copyright
infringement cases.
And those are
just a few examples to get your mind moving. Get out there and expand your skills in other areas because
you just never know how it will pay off in your law career.