With the semester over...

I really have no idea of what to do with myself. I submitted my final paper for my management class a little after 10 last night. I feel asleep soon after that so I didn't have to worry about what to do last night. I was on my own as of 9:45 tonight. I read for a little while before coming downstairs to drink the rest of my beer (Legend's Octoberfest, I bought a 40 of it at the grocery store today). I've been poking around the internet since then.

I went back and checked on one of my old favorites, the top law school forums. I read one thread about what to read before starting law school. It's the same stuff that people were writing about when I was following the threads more closely. The farther away from my law school decision I get, the better I feel about not going. Law school is the easy choice for somebody who wants a fancy job and a little prestige. As I found through my experience, it's not really all that difficult to get in to a decent school. Once you're there, the path to success is laid out nice and clear for anybody with the guts to put in the study hours. Get good grades, get good summer job, get hired, work like crazy, lots of money. Follow the leader all the way to the big paycheck. The hard part seems to be more about your willingness to forfeit a life for your profession rather than any real individual skill.

I like my job when I make a contribution that only I can make. The routine stuff bores me because it's all about following the procedure and checking the boxes. Yawn. I'm quietly coming to realize that this trait is both my biggest asset and a big liability. It helps me when I'm in the right situation, but I could do better about doing top work on the routine stuff. I'm too quick to dismiss it as boring and irrelevant. I'm hoping to make a stronger shift into management type of problems this year. That's a new challenge so the more routine aspect of things won't be boring. If I don't take another MBA class again, my management class was worth the trouble just for the perspective it gave me on what management really means.

The end of the year is coming. That means it's time to assess where I am with my resolutions. All in good time.