Why Every Law Student Should Seriously Rethink Social Media View this email in your browser Why Every Law Student Should Seriously Rethink Social Media As I was scrolling through my Twitter feed this past weekend, I repeatedly seen the hashtag #MSULawSM. Intrigued from the many posts, I decided to explore further and to my surprise it was a social media conference being held for law students and lawyers at Michigan State University.   This innovative conference highlighted the importance of social media as it relates to career development, and incorporated techniques that lawyers and law students could effectively utilize LinkedIn, Twitter, and Facebook.   When most of us came to law school, one of the first things that we were told was to censor our social media accounts, and create a barrier of privacy from potential employers and the legal community. However, this esoteric notion has been completely shattered by the students at MSU Law.   As law students, we should break down these barriers and effectively use social media to our advantage. Connecting with legal professionals after networking events via LinkedIn has outdated the traditional exchange of business cards. Using twitter to engage the legal community and connect with lawyers and legal educators in your field of expertise can be a powerful tool in expanding your professional network. Blogging about relevant legal topics in a certain field can demonstrate your writing ability and allow you to stand out as a law student.   Kevin O'Keefe, CEO of LexBlog, which helps lawyers develop blogs and connect online, was the featured speaker of the conference. I first met Kevin after he gave the keynote address at the Up Global Legal Innovation Start Up Weekend last year. His message then, was reiterated at this past weekend’s conference of how critically important it is for lawyers and law students to actively engage their audience through blogs and social media. Kevin is a pioneer in the legal innovation and social media space, boasting nearly 22,000 followers on twitter and one of the premier legal blogs in the country.    Here are some easy ways that you can began to effectively use social media to you advantage as a law student. LinkedIn- Keep your LinkedIn profile updated. Also connect with professionals via LinkedIn after networking events. Post professional content and also comment on others content. Twitter- Follow legal professionals in the area of law that interests you. Create lists that allow you to segment users and content related to a specific area of law or topic. Actively engage with your followers. Blog- Create a blog in an area of law that interests you. Generate content of the latest news, innovations, and thoughts regarding that area of law. Engage user to build up your subscribers.  Create social tags that allow others to share your posts. Thanks for reading and hope you found this article useful! For more helpful articles please check out the "Not Your Average Law Student" Blog. Miguel Willis Founder & CEO of CaseBooker SELL YOUR OLD CASEBOOKS?  CLICK HERE Copyright *|CURRENT_YEAR|* *|LIST:COMPANY|*, All rights reserved. *|IFNOT:ARCHIVE_PAGE|* *|LIST:DESCRIPTION|* unsubscribe from this list    update subscription preferences  *|IF:REWARDS|* *|HTML:REWARDS|* *|END:IF|*

10 Awesome Tips To Survive Your Legal Internship

10 Awesome Tips to Survive Your Summer Legal Internship View this email in your browser 10 Awesome Tips to Survive Your Summer Legal Internship Congratulations! You no longer have the stress of finals lingering over your shoulder, no more sleepless nights wondering what gig will hire you over the summer. Hopefully, you secured the dream position you've always wanted this summer, and the optimism that you first entered law school with is recharged about what this summer entails. For some of you, this will be your first real practical legal experience. For others, this will be another opportunity to lay the foundation for permanent employment in the future.  I want to help you get the most out of your summer gig, so for your benefit, I have assembled some super awesome tips on how to survive your legal internship this summer.   1.  PUNCTUALITY IS KEY - Yes, you have heard it all year from your legal writing professors, and CPD staff,  but is often time overlooked in practice. Make sure you have met all deadlines, submit a high quality work product, and ensure you are proactive in logging in all of your work hours.  2.  BEING ON TIME IS OLD NEWS - As a summer intern you want to leave a lasting impression on your employers. Try to show up 15 minutes earlier and leave 15 minutes late. This will cement your strong work ethic that you so gloriously boasted on your cover letter. 3.  FIND MENTORS IMMEDIATELY - Co-workers, managers, colleagues ... look around and find people who share similar values and whom you admire. It's never too early to build a personal board of advisors ... this will be your very own cheer squad, who will be there to help you navigate difficult decisions and explore your interests as you continue on with your career. 4.  DRESS THE PART -  You will not likely need to show up everyday in a three piece suit like Harvey Specter. Dress professionally. Most office dress codes will range somewhere between business casual to business professional. Learn the culture of your office's dress code, and dress accordingly. If you are unsure, it won't hurt to ask.  5. PROFESSIONAL RESPONSIBILITY -  You will likely receive a lecture on professional responsibility during the first week at your gig, but it's worth repeating. Use common sense. Do not ship your amazon purchases to the office. As crazy as this may sound, this actually happened.  6. SOCIAL MEDIA - If your social media accounts are public, or you plan on friending your colleagues, please make sure you censor your activity. Each social network has security settings that allows you to restrict your content to a specified audience.  7.  STAY OCCUPIED -  There will undoubtedly be times that you finish your assignments early, do not get into the habit of  being idle and drifting off into the social media or texting abyss. Make sure that you follow up with your supervisor and ask for more assignments to work on. 8.  THERE WILL BE BOOZE - I can assure you that there will be a ton of social functions during this summer, and its no secret that attorneys love to drink. However, resist the temptation of using these functions as a green light to get excessively wasted. I'm not saying that you shouldn't enjoy one or two drinks, but make sure that you stay focused on the goal of these events, which is to network, and meet other attorneys.  9. IMAGE IS EVERYTHING - Maintain a professional image and avoid gossip and office politics. Maintain a positive and professional image both inside and outside the office. Maintaining professionalism while interning also means making efficient use of your time by avoiding the use of company time for personal phone calls and emails.   10. BE ENTHUSIASTIC  - Show your enthusiasm and motivation and ask to be included in meetings and professional workshops. Enthusiastic interns tend to rub off on each other and have a positive impact on the organization as a whole. If you're looking to be hired in the future after your internship ends, exhibit the qualities of an enthusiastic intern during the short time you have to make a positive impact on both your fellow interns and supervisors. Hope you found these tips useful. Good luck, and enjoy your summer! Founder & CEO, Miguel Willis NEED TO SELL YOUR OLD CASEBOOKS?  CLICK HERE Copyright *|CURRENT_YEAR|* *|LIST:COMPANY|*, All rights reserved. *|IFNOT:ARCHIVE_PAGE|* *|LIST:DESCRIPTION|* unsubscribe from this list    update subscription preferences  *|IF:REWARDS|* *|HTML:REWARDS|* *|END:IF|*