Good magic is about misdirection. The right hand pulls off the trick because the left hand has grabbed your attention. This concept is no less effective in law school than anywhere else. Certain students or groups of students are going to attract an inordinate amount of attention. While they attract that attention, other students are going to use the relative anonymity they have to their advantage. So while you’re looking at the Gunner during class, The Robot—subject of today’s profile—is running away with the A*.
Characteristics: Quiet and industrious; At the law school seemingly at all hours; Rarely seen in social settings; Speaks only when cold-called in class; Finds it difficult to have conversations on topics other than law school; Rarely appears stressed about law school; Does not speak about grades or jobs.
Self-Identification: Your notes are always detailed and well-organized; You value efficiency and effectiveness over style or elegance; You find it possible to study under virtually any condition; Your clothing and grooming is consistent and neat; You are very good and/or very experienced at bottling up stress.1
Dealing with a Robot: Some people are just machines. You’ll find yourself saying that at least once during your law school career. It will seem that certain people always seem to get the job done. I have news for your: they actually are always getting the job done. The Robot is a law student who brings one quality above all else to law school: consistency. They can study for long hours on any given night. They plan out exams and follow through on those plans. They write well, they outline well, they read well, and they speak well (sometimes). They’re the quadruple threat of law school.
In terms of dealing with a Robot, you just don’t. They tend to keep to themselves, so they aren’t the subject of law school drama. The Robot might get on your nerves like the Gunner or Sandbagger will, but the reason the Robot gets on your nerves is that he or she has a single minded focus on law school that you envy a bit. If you can’t get there, it makes no sense to be mad at someone who can. So tip your glass to them and if you do see them out, try and draw them out of their shells a bit; there’s often a real person inside.
Living as a Robot: If you’ve wanted to be a Biglaw lawyer, federal judge, or clerk for a Court of Appeals or Supreme Court judge and you’ve positioned yourself at an elite law school, then more power to you. The only way to improve the odds of those goals beyond a total crapshoot is through superhuman effort. I’d only urge you to look around and ask yourself if those goals are really still worth all that effort and sacrifice.2
Because the game has changed over the last year or two. What was $160,000 and job security is now $140,000 and a looming axe. What was a big bonus after a year or three is now a holding cell where you wait for a job that might not even be there when you’re done.3 And while being a federal judge is great, it takes a lot more than a high GPA and a prestigious law degree. So think about what you’re missing out on by working yourself to the bone. Because law school is changing, what it means to be successful in law school is changing, and that means the routes to success in law school are also changing.
