We’ve made it to the end of the month and it’s time for a February Q&A! This month I got some questions about law school life, influencing, and some tips for getting into wigs as a first timer. Be sure to check out previous Q&As to see if I’ve answered a question you might have. Let’s get into it!
“Do you want to influence full time or practice law?”
I gave some reasons for why I don’t have plans to become a full time influencer here, but the short answer is I’d like to practice law while maintaining my social media presence in some way. I’ve come to realize that I have many interests and will likely have various sources of income that reflect those interests. Additionally, law school is expensive, and I would not recommend going to law school if you know for certain that you’d rather be a full time influencer. But if there is anything that I hope I’ve shown, it’s that you can do both!
How do you start influencing?
Great question. When I started I did not even have it on my mind to become an influencer. I just liked to take pictures and write captions. That’s truly how I started. Creating content. That’s still my primary goal and I’m grateful that I don’t have to rely on brand partnerships to generate an income since it’s not my full time job, because I truly do prefer to create organic content. But I shared tips for starting your journey in this post.
“What are your thoughts on dating in law school?”
Dating in law school doesn’t seem much different from what dating in any other non-law school circumstance would be like. What I mean by that is law school didn’t “kill” my dating life—the pandemic did that (but that’s true for a lot of people right now.) On top of that, it’s not like I came into law school thinking that I would find a spouse. Does it happen for some people? Yes. But dating isn’t as pressing of a matter as it felt like in college. It’s also important to keep in mind how closely connected the legal profession is, especially for Black people. The people around you in law school are going to bee your future colleagues so the messiness of college would have greater ramifications if it were transferred to a law school context.
If the question is about whether one should or should not date in law school, my answer is to do you. For many children of immigrants we know too well how fast family members and unofficial aunties go from “don’t date it’s a distraction, read your book” to “when are you getting married?” I wouldn’t let that sway you. If you feel like dating would distract you from your goals, I guess don’t date then? But you’re also always going to have goals so at some point you’d have to figure out how to balance that with a relationship. School is time consuming, so that can certainly have an impact on your dating life. But my mindset has always been you make time for what you care about.
But yes, it can still go down in the DM, or while you’re out and about if your school is in a major city, or any other place that people meet their partners. I’ve never felt like I don’t have options. The “issue” is just finding options that I like. But I’m quite literally in no rush. In short, dating in law school is what you make it.
How do you balance content creation with a whole law school curriculum?
The short answer is: by the grace of God. (But actually.) The long answer is here in this blog post!
“If granted the opportunity again, would you choose Columbia Law?”
Probably. But I have to admit it may not be for reasons that have to do with the school as much as it would be about things that are personal for me. For example, by staying in New York for law school, I was able to continue growing my blog and Instagram presence. Staying in New York also came in clutch once the pandemic hit because had I moved out of the state for law school, I likely would have moved back home at the height of COVID, and don’t get me wrong I love my family, but I really wouldn’t have had an optimal work environment at home in the way that I have one in my on-campus apartment.
Those reasons are personal to me, but as for things that might apply more generally, I’d probably choose Columbia again still. For one, the BLSA on campus is very strong. I also have to acknowledge that the ranking of a school is worth something in the legal profession.
I haven’t been too satisfied by the experiential learning options at Columbia. For example, I would have liked for there to be a clinic on housing and evictions, especially considering that New York City is a prime place to deal with those issues. On top of that, right now there is no clinic devoted to criminal defense or mass incarceration work. I believe that is supposed to change soon, but no word on that yet. Other cons about the school aren’t really unique to Columbia as much as they are issues with law school culture as a whole.
But when I get my degree in 2022, I’ll be grateful to have it.
How can you get into wigs as a first timer?
I love this question because funny enough once upon a time I said I’d never wear wigs. Look at me now. If I could boil down my tips into a few points I’d say:
- Watch a lot of Youtube videos and do you research. Before you buy any wig check out if it has any reviews on YouTube to see how it actually looks and what you might need to do to make it more wearable.
- Try to do as much as you can to customize the wig on your own. A stylist can and will do a better job but that costs money and is higher maintenance. This video and this video were what I followed to learn how to customize my favorite units. And here is a video of me applying those techniques.
- Consider starting with the brand MyFirstWig. The units are a little more pricey that one might like, but they are quality and easy to adjust to. It’s the brand I went to for my first wig!
When are you throwing a dinner party so I can attend?
This may be a joking or rhetorical question, but I’ve actually been itching to get into event planning and hosting. It’s something I love to do and I was even supposed to host a trip to Jamaica last year but we know why that didn’t happen. I’ve been thinking about hosting a safe outdoor brunch or picnic this summer so this question might be the push I needed to get started on that. Stay tuned!
That’s it for this month’s questions! Thanks for reading!Check back in April for my next bi-monthly Q&A.
“The Lord will fight for you; you only need to be still.” Exodus 14:14
