[Verbatim below from 2.2.09. Will seem familiar to a few of you
The ability “to think like a lawyer” is about 10% of what you need to be an effective lawyer.
Lots of people finally acquire it. Some are famously better and faster at it than others. A revered Skadden M&A partner wrote years ago that, at a minimum, it requires thinking about something that is “inextricably attached” to something–but without thinking about that something to which it’s attached.
Legal reasoning is critical–but it’s never enough by itself to become an outstanding lawyer. The rest is frame of mind: energy, ambition, organization, logistics-sense, re-thinking everything all the time, a take-charge orientation, genuine people skills, and an urgent passion to solve tough problems. If you think you want to be a litigator or trial lawyer, you will also need Very Tough Hide–something which you can learn the hard way.
Finally, no matter what, you need Will, and Big Ones.
