“Light travels faster than sound. That’s why certain people appear bright until you hear them speak”- Albert Einstein. Public speaking is one of the biggest skills a person pursuing a career in law or even the justice system needs. Without the ability to conduct yourself in front of large groups or to give a speech, or even write one, you may be hopeless in the field of law. Being a lawyer, a law student, or a future law student gives you an excellent platform to make tangible change in so many areas.
Step one of achieving this is recognizing that if you are going to reach anyone, you have to not only be a confident person in general but also be able to articulate your ideas succinctly and passionately. I knew this to be an undeniable truth from a young age, and the unfortunate fact was…I sucked at it.
I had always been a very shy child, hiding behind my mother in public settings, refusing to introduce myself to strangers, and worst of all, I had a horrendous blushing disorder. This fact alone led me to decide that I simply wasn’t cut out to be a public speaker, that I would hide in the back of my classrooms and be the sweet, quiet one. Though I let my blushing hold me back, I always knew inside that I could be more, and eventually, I wanted to be a lawyer. My mom, sensing this disconnect, nudged me out of my comfort zone, encouraging me to interact with friends and strangers alike. Over time, I became much more social and communicative.
I still knew I could grow in the area of public speaking. My freshman year of high school was filled with small steps—I hid in the background of school theatre productions and only contributed during small, unmoderated caucuses in Model UN. By my senior year, I had transformed my approach. I took on lead roles in five class plays, served as president of Model United Nations, and faced my public speaking fears head-on. I decided to let my blushing fuel me rather than hold me back.
This determination carried into my higher education at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, where I became a university ambassador. I led ninety-minute walking tours of the campus, delivering a twelve-page script to groups of forty or more guests daily. I even spoke confidently to a crowd of three hundred graduate students. Without even fully realizing it, I had become an excellent public speaker and solidified for myself that I could thrive as a future lawyer.
Sometimes in life, you simply have to conquer your fears head-on to achieve a dream. In my experience, preparing yourself for a career in law and facing the justice system is one of the hardest things a person can do. There are so many obstacles to jump through, but once you know you can stand in front of a hundred people and speak your mind, you are well on your way.
