You are Never Fully Dressed Without a Pen (and Paper)
Last week my friend
shared the following piece of advice over on LinkedIn that I have been giving for years.If you’re a summer associate starting today, here is a favorite piece of advice that Randall Brater gave me on my first day as an associate at ArentFox Schiff:
Never walk into a partner or senior associate’s office without a notepad and pen. Even if you think it’s just a friendly chat, bring something to write with.
Thats the advice: don’t walk into a supervisor’s office without a pen and paper.
This is good advice for several reasons:
Bringing a pen and paper into a supervisor’s office shows the supervisor you are ready to take direction. Just like when a waiter takes out a pen and paper to write your order down, you have greater confidence they’ll get the order right.
When you have a pen and paper you are more likely to write down what the supervisor says which not only shows the supervisor you care but also helps you remember exactly what they said (don’t trust your memory—its far worse than you think).
A pen and paper is much less obtrusive than a phone or tablet or computer for taking notes because it doesn’t create a digital separation between you and your supervisor.
Talk soon,
Jonah