From the time I won the “Master Debater” award (haha!) in my debate class in 10th grade, I knew I wanted to be an attorney.
I completed my Bachelor’s degree in Legal Studies at the University of West Florida and took the LSAT during my final year, scoring well enough to be competitive.
Several schools reached out to me, but I didn’t apply.
Balancing school and working full-time while pursuing my undergraduate degree was exhausting.
A stint at a firm during my last couple of years in college where I could see a not-so-bright future laid out in front of me had left a sour taste in my mouth regarding the profession as a whole.
I wasn’t 100% sold on law school, so I didn’t attend right after college.
Instead, I worked at a local design firm where I fell in love with design. My path later shifted towards real estate and I began a career in property management and sales.
I loved everything about real estate!
The people, the properties, the possibilities, the CONTRACTS – everything was fun and interesting.
Delving into the world of real estate allowed me to see that there were more ways to practice law than what I had experienced, and exposed the concept of a transactional practice.
Fast forward 5 years and the age of 30 was quickly approaching.
Life had stalled a bit and the thought of attending law school weighed heavily on my mind.
The quote by F. Scott Fitzgerald resonated with me then, and continues to now:
“For what it’s worth, it’s never too late, . . . , to be whoever you want to be. There’s no time limit. Start whenever you want. You can change or stay the same. There are no rules to this thing. We can make the best or the worst of it. I hope you make the best of it. I hope you see things that startle you. I hope you feel things you’ve never felt before. I hope you meet people who have a different point of view. I hope you live a life you’re proud of, and if you’re not, I hope you have the courage to start over again.”
I brushed up on my logic, took another crack at the LSAT, and applied to a few law schools.
I was again assured that I was on the right path when, roughly one month later, I opened a letter from one of my choice schools containing a sizeable scholarship offer.
If I was going to go, the time was now.
Was it easy? No way.
Packing a 1,700 square foot house, two dogs, and moving 5 hours away all by myself didn’t give me nearly as much anxiety as the thought of being cold called in class by a professor.
Leaving behind my twin sister, family, friends, a reliable income, and essentially starting over at nearly 30 was absolutely terrifying.
Similarly, we have many clients tell us that they procrastinated meeting with us because the thought of contemplating their own demise is just too scary.
We get it, I promise we do.
However, we also see the relief on our clients faces at our final meeting after they’ve made the tough decisions and their affairs are organized.
They have endured the hard stuff and put into writing their wishes for themselves and their assets after they’re gone.
Their families won’t have the added burden or expense of making these decisions, and for that they will be so thankful.
They all say the same thing, “I don’t know why I put this off for so long.”
Sometimes the biggest, scariest decisions that you think you can’t possibly face end up being the most liberating.
Making the choice to go back to law school is still one of the best decisions I ever made.
I loved law school. I absolutely love my job now. I wouldn’t trade a second of it.
When you schedule an appointment to discuss your own Life and Legacy Plan with one of our skilled attorneys at My Pink Lawyer®, we will make talking about the “scary” stuff as fun as possible.
Don’t believe me? Check out a few reviews from past clients here.
Amanda “I Loved Every Bit of my Quarter-Life Crisis” Lynch Elliott
