I write today to thank and recommend someone who helped and inspired me the most during my first year on LinkedIn.

John Espirian is my LinkedIn guru and overall favorite source of advice for marketing and business development (BD). John is humble, kind, and approachable—do follow him, but only connect if you’re willing to do some homework first.

Dear 2L,

My thoughts on how to stand out when you reach out to a lawyer by way of LinkedIn:

🔹 1: Read a little about the lawyer first.

What does their firm website say about them?

💫 Dear 1L - Spotlight

Today I introduce Michael Aronson, a 2L who started as a small-town, ice-hockey goalie with big-time plans: He’d someday become the star starting goalie for the Florida Panthers.

During long training hours with the team’s goalie coach, Michael ultimately seized a spot on a Junior-level team and was one big step closer to realizing his hockey-star dream.

✏️ Dear 1L Writer,

We need to have a little chat about “which” and “that.”

You are all using “which” WAY too much.

In today’s holiday (sort of) spirit and for Halloween, I dispense with formal grammar terms and all of the examples you can easily find online.

Dear 1L,

I know that Sunday is likely a “stay in & catch up on reading” day for you. I won’t add to your burden long. Just a thought from the mother in me:

Do try to get outside. It is so good for the soul. And the better your whole self feels, the better you will do your reading—the better you will perform overall.

💌 Dear 1L,

“Your analysis is not robust enough.” That is what law professors think about most of your essays on exams. I ultimately created these 10 steps to avoid that feedback.

▫️ The steps presume that you can identify the major issues that become Claims and Affirmative Defenses, so they are not a panacea, but they should help you write a thorough analysis of the issues.

💌 Dear 1L,

I wallowed. I wavered between angry disbelief and utter embarrassment.

I had done all the reading; I had attended every class. And I had studied SO much.

I knew the material by heart.

Dear 1L Writer,

When you write your very first legal memo, please don’t get discouraged by how long it takes you. There is nothing “wrong” with you. Legal writing just takes a very long time.

Everyone is in the same boat, too. It’s not just you.

Dear 1L,

When you write your first legal memo, you may feel like you understand (sort of) a legal analysis in your head, but you can’t seem to get it to make sense on paper.

The words just don’t flow.

If that happens, try this:

💌 Dear 1L,

There is a difference between a defense and an affirmative defense. Learn it before doing a law school exam.

—>See link in comments for part 1 of this primer, which describes Claims and Elements of Claims.

💌 Dear 1L,

With midterms on my mind, I write to share something that helped me on exams and learning about litigation more generally:

I thought about how a case starts in the real world. To understand that, I had to learn some terminology and the differences between and among:

Today Dear 1L spotlights retired chemical engineer Renee Austin — the first in her family to attend college or law school.

Renee started law school as a part-time student in Michigan, but she was also working full-time as an engineer. She quickly realized that institutional barriers and insufficient program resources meant no good opportunities for her as a part-time student. She withdrew after two semesters.

💌 Today is my birthday (53), so I’m feeling brave. Here’s a bit about me.

I am a mother and a wife. My daughters have always been my biggest source of pride, and my husband my biggest source of support. I am very lucky. But this September has been challenging.

▪️ Mom has really been aging.

▪️ This fall is also my first with an empty nest.

Dear 2L,

When you are just starting to “network” in the big, legal world, it may be a bit intimidating. You may feel like you’re asking for help, or for a favor, from the person you reach out to.

—Reaching out to anyone “cold” takes guts. You really have to put yourself out there.

Dear 2L,

You’re often advised to first choose where, geographically, you want to work. Then, make and invest in a networking plan. Although that order makes sense to me, if you’re struggling with your location choice, remember that your choice today very well may change.

It may feel like you are making a decision about where you will spend the rest of your life.