I’m Pivoting

“A pivot is a change in strategy without a change in vision.” -Eric Ries

I’ve spent more than a decade creating and spreading stories through theatre as an actor, deck manager, and stage carpenter in what I took to be a service to “the community.” Recently, I learned that service requires consent. It requires conversation. It requires learning about the people you claim to be serving—how they live in relation to you and others and how their lives are shaped by the institution they inhabit. It requires asking (1) do you need help, (2) can I help you, and (3) how I can help you? If you claim to be engaged in service to a community but have only had that conversation with yourself or your colleagues (or not at all), then there’s a good chance you’re giving in places and ways that are not lining up with the actual needs of the humans you claim to be helping.

Now, instead of blindly offering what I took to be a service, I’m returning to school to gain a better understanding of the advantages and disadvantages of different communities and to learn how to listen—how to engage with others on their terms and at their discretion. To that end, on May 27th, 2021, I began an accelerated course of study targeting a fresh bachelor’s degree in philosophy with a focus on public policy and social inequity. Upon completion, I plan to apply to law school and continue this path by learning how to “think like a lawyer,” as it is often said—how to engage in solving problems rigorously, analytically, and effectively.

Turns out it’s not that big of a shift. Think about the broad skills that will transfer:

• discipline
• empathy
• communication
• service to others over self
• confronting a weakness until it’s a strength
• leading a team through inconceivable deadlines
• shifting seamlessly between member and leader of a team
• being as available in your 11th hour as you were in your 1st

None of that is getting left behind. These skills also transfer exceptionally well:

• note-taking
• research
• active listening
• critical thinking
• problem-solving
• improvising
• perseverance
• delivering under pressure
• convincing a room full of people to follow what you say
• seeking excellence every second of the day

Why this path? Why now?

I have long felt underutilized—like I was capable of doing more for others. Much of the gap that I felt, as it turns out, was from my above-mentioned failure to listen to the communities I hoped to serve. That dissonance led me to give everything I had to every job I’ve held, trying to find that place where I was maxed out and could go to bed knowing I had done all I could. For years, I exhausted my body and the hours in the day but never went to bed feeling that I had done enough.

What’s the timeline?

Thanks to expanded distance learning spurred by the pandemic, I’ll be able to spend the next year working from home on two years’ worth of transferrable classes while seeking transfer admission to complete my bachelor’s. I’ll take the LSAT in the summer of 2023 and apply to law school that fall.

What’s the plan after law school?

I’ve got so much to learn before I can predict the specific work in which I’ll be engaged, but there are plenty of avenues from which to apply the skills I have and the many more I stand to gain. Whether that’s in the realm of policy, litigation, or an area outside the direct practice of law, I can’t know until further down the road. What I know for sure is that I’ll keep at it every single day for the next five years (and beyond) until I’m fully tapped out when I hit the pillow at the end of the day. That, I can promise!