have a steady income

it’s steady but pretty low. i’m still barely making ends meet. next i need to focus on raising this steady income of mine.

very soon, in august, i will have steady work for one year. that’s really great. really, really. but i need to make sure i’m set up for when my little firm job gets taken away. plus, the firm is hardly paying anything. i think the paralegals, who didn’t go to law school or spend two miserable months studying for the bar, will earn more than me. not that they do not deserve great pay, i’m just saying that i will not be pulling in the traditional lawyer salary. not yet.

so! i was thinking that i should get my freelance hustle on asap so that in one year’s time, i will already have some kind of set up to fall back on and maybe even earn a little extra in the shorter term.

i’m thinking that some sort of freelance writing/editing schtick could work. i could promote myself as a legal writer to law firms and solos looking for contract attorney work, but i can also reach out to grad students who need editors for their academic papers, professors or others needing research assistants, or even people working on more creative projects.

i like this freelance writer/editor idea because it is related enough to my legal career that i won’t feel like i’m losing focus, but it can also get me into more diverse and interesting work when the legal work just isn’t there or when i just need a break from it. i’ll need to keep brainstorming this idea out, but i feel good about it so far.

my firm has said that for the first year after i graduate i can have as much work as i want. that’s really, really great because it’s a great firm and i will learn tons working there and the work is very satisfying. unfortunately, i don’t think i’ll be getting a raise. they might throw in some financial perks like pay for my bar dues and some professional memberships, but that could be about as snazzy as it gets.

no matter. it will be a steady income. it is a great learning opportunity and it will lead to better paying opportunities. i have no doubt that it will be only the beginning of a fulfilling career.

:)

i’m not marking this goal done until after i take the bar and start working full time. nothing’s really steady streaming until then. but that will be soon!

!!!!!

the firm that i work at now finally set me up with my own office email account. all year i used the generic “frontdesk” email and now i have one that is my very own name!

well, that they set it up for me just when i’m graduating is a great sign that they plan to continue my relationship with them in some way. whether it’s part time or full time and whether i will get a raise once i pass the bar is yet to be seen. it will be something though, i suspect.

i spoke to an attorney who is active in family law here about work after graduation. he said that his firm didn’t have any positions open but he said that if i email him after i take the bar he would throw some work my way.

then i talked a judge and asked her what she knew about court appointments for dependency/abuse cases. she said that if you get on the list you can get appointed fairly frequently. they pay per hearing, i think.

that should guarantee me at least some kind of income while i try to hustle up some clients for myself.

i think i can do it.

i have not really had a solid discussion with my supervisor about my continuing on with the firm i’m at now after graduation. i would love to work out some way of staying there, even on a temporary basis. i know that they like and value me there. i’m just not sure what they would be capable of offering me. i am flexible though. i could certainly use more mentoring before i go out on my own. or even if i had to go ahead and start my own practice right away, it would be nice if they could use me as a contract attorney while i build my own client base.

i’m setting up a mentoring lunch with my supervisor. if she can’t offer me what i’m looking for, i’m sure she can help me look into finding another firm who could.

success will be mine!