Rapier Wit
O! To sharpen the mind!
For Gray matter, fast on its feet.
For Noodles, sharp and deadly.
For Brains, powerful and lithe.
O! To sharpen the mind!
Okay, I just made that up so it's not exactly Pulitzer material but I had to come up with some kind of a hook. And since you're obviously still reading this, it was a brilliant success. :)
But yes, I have committed and engaged myself into a personal mental crosstraining routine. The past weekend has flown by in part because I have spent time attacking, consuming and absorbing logic puzzles. I've started in putting my brain through a veritable obstacle course in mental dexterity. It has been a number of years since I last been inside a classroom, absorbed a lecture or conquered an exam. It is now time for me to shed the fat and apathy of the recent slovenly years. My mind will reform into a machine, a machine that knows no upper bounds to its prowress!
Well, maybe that last bit was really a little sensationalistic but hey, it's always been my policy that if I'm going to shoot, I aim high. :) The next logical question to all of this is why? Why the sudden fire? Why the intensity? I suppose the simplest and quickest way to answer the question is just to say that I am planning on taking the LSAT.
... And the immediate response is "LSAT?! Why the LSAT?" Which is exactly what my parents and the few other people whom I've discussed my decision with over the past few days have said to me. They all would have expected GMAT or GRE (pursuing an MBA or MSCS respectively.) Just to note, I did take the GMAT once before (and scored pretty decently - though I'm sure I could do much better given another try at it.) But the reason for the LSAT is actually not because I've always dreamed of being a lawyer, rather it's because of the LSAT itself.
That's right. I want to take the test because of the test. If there is one thing to say about me, it's probably that I'm logical and reasoning. I've always been good at logic and to be honest, I love logic. Add to that the fact that I've always done *very* well on the verbal part of any standardized exam and it becomes clear why I want to take the LSAT. The entire test consists of Analytical Reasoning, Logical Reasoning and Reading Comprehension. If there is one test out there that I can do well on, this would be it. Plus, I actually think those things are fun!
So my plan is to take the LSAT and see how well I do. If I score very well, I'll pony up the money and apply to a few law schools. If I get in, I'll go to law school and work to be the best corporate/IP lawyer I can be. I know it's a sudden and dramatic shift in my career path, a path that I've always figured to be set with engineering in mind. A path that everyone else has always figured to be set on engineering as well. But what can I say, sometimes you just wake up and the world is different. But, I have yet to take the test, and could very well score terribly and end this foray into the shadowy world of litigation abruptly. So I'm making sure I don't get my hopes up and let my mind run away from the task at hand.
Right now that means I'm conditioning. I don't even consider what I do studying, even though it would seem that way to any casual observer. When you study, I believe that implies you're learning something and what I'm doing now isn't to learn any new subject matter or material. Like I said, I've always been good with logic, reading comprehension and reasoning. Right now, like a person training for the Olympics, I'm working to get my times down. Arguably the fact that you get such little time for each section in the LSAT is a bigger challenge than the questions themselves. I have got to find a method and rhythm so I work quickly but expertly as well.
I just decided and started on this journey not even a week prior, but I can already feel a difference and see a difference. Ever since I graduated from college I've been working, doing what I love to do - programming - but it has been a listless and frustrating experience. I've never felt I actually had a career, always just a job. In the end, I do admit I have been fortunate, I am paid well to do something I love. But I just don't feel that magic, and I want to feel that magic. So I'm excited about this, I really want to do well on this exam. Because this new road still runs along something I love to do and am good at, and I will be able to use my background in engineering as well along this new adventure. So really, it's like having a Diddy Reese cookie and a Krispy Kreme donut at the same time - combining two loves. :)
The interesting thing about this is that when I was very young ( pre-school / early elementary school,) I remember being told quite a few times that I should be a lawyer when I grew up. In growing up, I never gave it any thought (along with my mother's designs to make me a doctor,) since I've loved computers from an early age. I wonder if my life is really shifting. Is this what will light the flame of my passion? For now, I pray I do very well on the LSAT. It just might save my life.
For Gray matter, fast on its feet.
For Noodles, sharp and deadly.
For Brains, powerful and lithe.
O! To sharpen the mind!
Okay, I just made that up so it's not exactly Pulitzer material but I had to come up with some kind of a hook. And since you're obviously still reading this, it was a brilliant success. :)
But yes, I have committed and engaged myself into a personal mental crosstraining routine. The past weekend has flown by in part because I have spent time attacking, consuming and absorbing logic puzzles. I've started in putting my brain through a veritable obstacle course in mental dexterity. It has been a number of years since I last been inside a classroom, absorbed a lecture or conquered an exam. It is now time for me to shed the fat and apathy of the recent slovenly years. My mind will reform into a machine, a machine that knows no upper bounds to its prowress!
Well, maybe that last bit was really a little sensationalistic but hey, it's always been my policy that if I'm going to shoot, I aim high. :) The next logical question to all of this is why? Why the sudden fire? Why the intensity? I suppose the simplest and quickest way to answer the question is just to say that I am planning on taking the LSAT.
... And the immediate response is "LSAT?! Why the LSAT?" Which is exactly what my parents and the few other people whom I've discussed my decision with over the past few days have said to me. They all would have expected GMAT or GRE (pursuing an MBA or MSCS respectively.) Just to note, I did take the GMAT once before (and scored pretty decently - though I'm sure I could do much better given another try at it.) But the reason for the LSAT is actually not because I've always dreamed of being a lawyer, rather it's because of the LSAT itself.
That's right. I want to take the test because of the test. If there is one thing to say about me, it's probably that I'm logical and reasoning. I've always been good at logic and to be honest, I love logic. Add to that the fact that I've always done *very* well on the verbal part of any standardized exam and it becomes clear why I want to take the LSAT. The entire test consists of Analytical Reasoning, Logical Reasoning and Reading Comprehension. If there is one test out there that I can do well on, this would be it. Plus, I actually think those things are fun!
So my plan is to take the LSAT and see how well I do. If I score very well, I'll pony up the money and apply to a few law schools. If I get in, I'll go to law school and work to be the best corporate/IP lawyer I can be. I know it's a sudden and dramatic shift in my career path, a path that I've always figured to be set with engineering in mind. A path that everyone else has always figured to be set on engineering as well. But what can I say, sometimes you just wake up and the world is different. But, I have yet to take the test, and could very well score terribly and end this foray into the shadowy world of litigation abruptly. So I'm making sure I don't get my hopes up and let my mind run away from the task at hand.
Right now that means I'm conditioning. I don't even consider what I do studying, even though it would seem that way to any casual observer. When you study, I believe that implies you're learning something and what I'm doing now isn't to learn any new subject matter or material. Like I said, I've always been good with logic, reading comprehension and reasoning. Right now, like a person training for the Olympics, I'm working to get my times down. Arguably the fact that you get such little time for each section in the LSAT is a bigger challenge than the questions themselves. I have got to find a method and rhythm so I work quickly but expertly as well.
I just decided and started on this journey not even a week prior, but I can already feel a difference and see a difference. Ever since I graduated from college I've been working, doing what I love to do - programming - but it has been a listless and frustrating experience. I've never felt I actually had a career, always just a job. In the end, I do admit I have been fortunate, I am paid well to do something I love. But I just don't feel that magic, and I want to feel that magic. So I'm excited about this, I really want to do well on this exam. Because this new road still runs along something I love to do and am good at, and I will be able to use my background in engineering as well along this new adventure. So really, it's like having a Diddy Reese cookie and a Krispy Kreme donut at the same time - combining two loves. :)
The interesting thing about this is that when I was very young ( pre-school / early elementary school,) I remember being told quite a few times that I should be a lawyer when I grew up. In growing up, I never gave it any thought (along with my mother's designs to make me a doctor,) since I've loved computers from an early age. I wonder if my life is really shifting. Is this what will light the flame of my passion? For now, I pray I do very well on the LSAT. It just might save my life.
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