TransformingYourCareerTransformingYourself

  A joke in comments to The Wall Street Journal coverage of the University of Michigan's eliminating freshmen letter grades is this:  "A puppy on every dorm floor." But actually that might do the trick of reducing the stress of adjusting to college. Experimenting with that, instead of tossing traditional grading, could improve mental health. What every pet parent has known for years has been documented by researchers at the University of Vienna. The results, published this month in the Cell Press Journal iScience , provide concrete evidence that the border collie 1) Can read human facial expressions, such as joy or sadness and 2) Respond appropriately. About the latter, if we are up, they share the elation. If down, they move in with comfort.  So, when we are with our dogs, we can unmask. Not take on the face which warns the world not to mess with us. A public display of unease could invite predators to pounce. Yes, exploit us in an infinite number of ways. But there...

A key metric for assessing where a law firm is and where it seems to be heading is its success in recruiting star lawyers.  They, not the brandname of the firm, are what brings in business. And with the talent war increasing in intensity and money spent, that's what the media, clients and members of the legal sector monitor.  Way back in 2021 in a Bloomberg Law  interview partner/rainmaker Brad Karp explained that dynamic. Especially how critical it was to the business of practicing law. Firms without the financial resources to do that kind of high-stakes poaching could collapse. That's because they wouldn't be able to grow.  Well, this signal of a law firm's overall health is flashing positive for Paul, Weiss right now. At least in its corporate department for capital markets. Law.com reports:  "Peter Byrne [is] joining from Cooley as partner, and Tristan Van Deventer, joining as a partner from Ropes & Gray ... both based in New York ..." This ability to...

The formal name for this growing problem in aging is "decumulation."  Essentially, that's the phase in aging when you begin to prudently withdraw from the funds you've saved/invested.  And for too many of us, even guided by a financial advisor, that generates existential angst.  Yes, it's a "good problem" but still a problem. As The New York Times documents bearing witness to the numbers going down bit by bit conjures up mindsets of worst-case scenarios: Will there be a stock market crash Inflation could get lots worse What about a healthcare event not covered by Medicare and its supplements Having to ask children to help out financially Not being able to leave anything to the next generation And, yes, winding up homeless. As a result, a lifestyle can be circumscribed.  For instance, you would like to join the current tourism trend, especially to Europe, but don't.  Everything in you screams that the LCOL (low cost of living) location you relocated...

  All around, the blind faith in satisfaction from knowledge work and how being very good at it can build wealth are becoming as out-of-date as having large families .  The Financial Times , Noema  and more document the necessary shifts in the way humans approach the requirement (at least until policy makers come up with something more realistic) that they have to support themselves by the sweat of their brow.  So, instead of pestering children with the dream of making a living doing what they love, from the get-go socialize them to put together a life through other values. Already, the successful white-collars who still have jobs are turning to pursuing hobbies and taking refuge in fantasies about disappearing.  Sure, driving that is the role of AI in reconfiguring jobs, as well as work in general. When I had been working full-time in communications I derived tremendous satisfaction from really digging to research the speech, article or ad.  Currently, muc...

As yet, the prediction markets aren't trading on Paul, Weiss. But suppose that starts. There could be monster implications for making money and gaining influence on the law firm. I focus on those possibilities in this post on Substack. Careers. Forget all that. It’s about earning a good living, no matter what. Complimentary consultation with Jane Genova, StreetSmart Coaching (janegenova374@gmail.com)

  A bright spot in the US economy is legal services . In July 2026, it added 1,000 jobs, bringing overall employment to 1,245,200. That was in contrast to the   jarring development that the overall economy lost 23,000 jobs. But all is not rosy in legal. As in many other sectors, darkness is overtaking the bottom rungs of the ladder. Among large law firms hiring of new entries was down 7.5% last year.  Demand is for experienced lawyers. Also, AI might be performing more and more of the grunt tasks fresh-faced JD graduates used to do.  In addition, the usual path to one of those plum jobs in Big Law - the summer internship - is become more narrow. Fewer summers are being recruited. Moreover, without that hands-on summer experience it will be more challenging to land a full-time job post-graduation.  Experience counts more and more. Less and less is being an associate the training grounds for being of service in a large law firm. Milbank wants associates to start ...