It was not even a week after I took the bar examination that I wrote my first blog post about attending law school. My first paragraph in that August post ended with a quip - I would be lucky if anyone would read it.
Now look at my blog. It has been viewed by over 1,300 people. Yet, I still must admit that I believe some of my close family and friends are the one's responsible for that number - a rabid mouse click on the website over and over.
Nevertheless, this political and legal blog has given me an outlet to write something other than a petition for writ of habeas corpus. Do not get me wrong; I thoroughly enjoy what I do. I just find that it is therapeutic to write on a topic that does not have a court mandated deadline.
Yes, I write legal documents for a living. And argue; I can't forget that I argue for a living. But when I was thinking of a topic for my 20th blog post, I thought that I would touch upon a more personal subject. Over the course of a few months, I have been practicing law as a solo practitioner in the Los Angeles Valley. I thought that I should share some of my experiences.
Having a small law firm is not just writing and arguing. When you run your own practice, you have to become more than just an attorney. You have to think like a businessman, market like a Mad Man, and socialize like a crazy man. There are a myriad of things that a solo practitioner must do to pay the bills. Let me explain.
It was probably only a couple of days after the bar passage mania that I realized that I would have to come up with a plan. Fortunately for me, and by the blessing of God, I was working with two other attorneys as a law clerk. They believed in me and gave me work to do. With a steady stream of income coming in, I knew that I could open my own practice without having to worry about meeting my obligations. Having an office to work in also helped.
The lure of working for myself was an opportunity that I could not pass up. There is something special about being your own boss. It is also fantastic that I wear my gym shorts and Dodger t-shirt while I work from my home office. The main problem was making sure that I had clients and cases to work on. I began to work on that immediately.
With my associates providing me cases; an office; and advice, I began the process of marketing my practice. I paid for a website, wrote content, and had my beautiful fiance help me with the design. It truly was a remarkable feat when it was finally done, after having worked on it for days. That was just the website...
After creating my social media pages, I began to work on advertising and marketing. Frantic calls were made to the major legal directories that would give me an opportunity to gain more exposure. I forget how many search engine optimizers I talked to in the month of January.
With some of the basics done, I had to focus on the business of running a solo practice. I opened my business account; developed ideas for payment methods; and began the process of documenting my revenue, costs, and profit. Start-up costs were paid with the cases that I had already been working on; and luckily, from cases that I picked up from my own advertising.
Of course a solo practitioner has to "network." The 21st Century word bears new meaning. I began to attend Saturday conferences in downtown Los Angeles; marijuana defense seminars in Tarzana; and medical malpractice luncheons in Beverly Hills. I handed my card to anyone and everyone. I may have accidentally given my card to a mannequin at Versace of Beverly Hills.
It has already been a good ride. I owe a lot to Elizabeth, who has given me constant support and love. I cannot wait to marry her! And just like my blog post in August, I know it is just the beginning. I have already made mistakes and know that I may make more. I just hope that I am lucky enough to stay on the path. If not, I'll always have this blog.
Sunday, March 24, 2013
Saturday, March 9, 2013
Why Can't We Be Friends?
I do not have too many breaks during the day. But when I do, I try to keep myself informed of current events. Maybe it's not the best way to relax my mind while I draft a post-conviction brief, since, more often than not, I just want to get back to work. It seems the news has been the same for awhile now. Congress is dysfunctional and compromise is a thing of the past.
Social media is not much better. My conservative friends express disdain over how the President is handling things, and my liberal friends express their frustration with the majority opposition in the House of Representatives. We are deeply divided. That much has been represented by our elected officials when they accomplish little in our capital.
All of this partisanship rancor has got me thinking: how did we get here and how do we get out of it.
Believe it or not, there is strong evidence that income inequality has a direct correlation with political polarization. When there is a growing gap between the rich and poor, you can bet that there will be more ideological purists on capital hill. This bitter partisanship also undermines our national security; we have to try to do something about it.
Even with confronted with this evidence, I know that people of different political beliefs will interpret the facts differently and propose clashing policies in confronting our fiscal challenges.
Take for example, the financial news of the past week. One of our stock market indices, the Dow, reached its highest nominal amount ever in its history.
The employment numbers have also been improving. 236,000 jobs were added in February, which helped lower the unemployment rate to its lowest level since December 2008. The United States is creating wealth, but not everyone is sharing in the bliss. All of the positive gains in the economy are going to the wealthiest individuals.
Conservatives will still argue that the Government is too bloated and there needs to be "market-friendly" adjustments in the budget battles ahead. They will take the viewpoint that government dependency, via the national debt, is the main problem in decreasing the opportunities for low and middle-income people. It would be foolish to raise taxes again so that we can spend more, they will say.
I also know that liberals, and myself, will diametrically oppose these propositions. There can still be more government intervention in a responsible way to curb income inequality. For one, we could raise taxes on the wealthiest individuals and businesses because they can afford it. There are a number of fiscal policies that can be implemented to help everyone, rich and poor.
And now we are back at square one, two political viewpoints, which cannot be bridged.
The political scientists and sociologists may be right. Perhaps we are too different in how we perceive the world and how we think society should be structured. Some psychologists think that our political differences are ingrained in our brains, while others think that the beliefs are formed when our parents raise us in a particular way. It probably is a combination of the two.
No matter the foundation for how we form our beliefs, it does not help that we seek validation from people who share our beliefs, while drowning out opposing viewpoints. A University of Kentucky study showed that people will (1) tend to make a political judgment first, and then attempt to rationalize it. (2) Next, they will search for facts that will support that judgment; and (3) attack anyone's rationale if it challenges their assumptions.
The study stated that both conservatives and liberals engage in these unconscious biases.
Our country faces unprecedented political deadlock that will hurt our economy and our national defense. Income inequality is a real problem and it could be fueling the partisan divide.
Let's do something different when it comes to political dialogue. Let's reach out with less preconceived notions. Maybe our elected officials will do the same and solve our fiscal challenges ahead.
It's time to get back to work; I hope that the next time I read the news something will be different. Maybe compromise will be the way of the future.
Social media is not much better. My conservative friends express disdain over how the President is handling things, and my liberal friends express their frustration with the majority opposition in the House of Representatives. We are deeply divided. That much has been represented by our elected officials when they accomplish little in our capital.
All of this partisanship rancor has got me thinking: how did we get here and how do we get out of it.
Believe it or not, there is strong evidence that income inequality has a direct correlation with political polarization. When there is a growing gap between the rich and poor, you can bet that there will be more ideological purists on capital hill. This bitter partisanship also undermines our national security; we have to try to do something about it.
Even with confronted with this evidence, I know that people of different political beliefs will interpret the facts differently and propose clashing policies in confronting our fiscal challenges.
Take for example, the financial news of the past week. One of our stock market indices, the Dow, reached its highest nominal amount ever in its history.
The employment numbers have also been improving. 236,000 jobs were added in February, which helped lower the unemployment rate to its lowest level since December 2008. The United States is creating wealth, but not everyone is sharing in the bliss. All of the positive gains in the economy are going to the wealthiest individuals.
Conservatives will still argue that the Government is too bloated and there needs to be "market-friendly" adjustments in the budget battles ahead. They will take the viewpoint that government dependency, via the national debt, is the main problem in decreasing the opportunities for low and middle-income people. It would be foolish to raise taxes again so that we can spend more, they will say.
I also know that liberals, and myself, will diametrically oppose these propositions. There can still be more government intervention in a responsible way to curb income inequality. For one, we could raise taxes on the wealthiest individuals and businesses because they can afford it. There are a number of fiscal policies that can be implemented to help everyone, rich and poor.
And now we are back at square one, two political viewpoints, which cannot be bridged.
The political scientists and sociologists may be right. Perhaps we are too different in how we perceive the world and how we think society should be structured. Some psychologists think that our political differences are ingrained in our brains, while others think that the beliefs are formed when our parents raise us in a particular way. It probably is a combination of the two.
No matter the foundation for how we form our beliefs, it does not help that we seek validation from people who share our beliefs, while drowning out opposing viewpoints. A University of Kentucky study showed that people will (1) tend to make a political judgment first, and then attempt to rationalize it. (2) Next, they will search for facts that will support that judgment; and (3) attack anyone's rationale if it challenges their assumptions.
The study stated that both conservatives and liberals engage in these unconscious biases.
Our country faces unprecedented political deadlock that will hurt our economy and our national defense. Income inequality is a real problem and it could be fueling the partisan divide.
Let's do something different when it comes to political dialogue. Let's reach out with less preconceived notions. Maybe our elected officials will do the same and solve our fiscal challenges ahead.
It's time to get back to work; I hope that the next time I read the news something will be different. Maybe compromise will be the way of the future.
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