You Can Always Make a Comeback

I recently read an interesting statistic. This year, law schools have more applicants than ever before. Even the admission officers are surprised at how many people want to go to law school now.

There’s a few theories for why this is happening.

Some people think it’s because the LSA changed, a court order eliminated the notorious "logic games" section in favor of additional reading comprehension. Other people suggest technological factors, AI writing tools and streamlined application processes supposedly make it easier to apply to multiple schools simultaneously. However, these arguments fall when you consider the economics, each application costs around $100, making a wide application strategy cost thousands of dollar unlikely. Moreover, law school is puts everyone into 6-figure debt, it’s a serious decision.

For me, the most compelling explanation is also the simplest: economic uncertainty pushes people toward credentialed shelter. Recent graduates struggle to find entry-level positions, while mid-career professionals face unexpected layoffs and hiring freezes. Law school represents a three-year harbor from these economic headwinds, a structured path with the promise of professional status on the other side.

My own experience confirms this pattern. During the last recession, I joined thousands of others seeking refuge in legal education.

Historical data shows this is a common pattern. There are huge surges in law school enrollment during the late 1970s recession, the post-9/11 economic downturn, the 2008 financial crisis, and even a noticeable uptick during the brief COVID contraction. And now:

There is a blue collar version of this as well. Military recruitment consistently rises during economic downturns. The military provides stable pay, comprehensive healthcare, housing benefits, and job security, all increasingly rare in the volatile private sector.

Current military recruitment numbers are trending upward, mirroring the law school phenomenon. This pattern has repeated throughout American history, from the Great Depression through the post-9/11 years and the 2008 crisis. Conversely, during economic booms like the late 1990s and the pre-pandemic period, the Pentagon regularly struggled to meet recruiting targets.

In the background, artificial Intelligence looms over the economy, and it is getting better and better every year. No one is sure what’s going to happen and if it will take jobs. It’s already eating up school.

I’m not sure a recession is here or if one is coming. But you can feel something is coming. It may change our economy or you yourself may have to change. Something is in the air these days. We may all have to think about going through a change soon.

Know Yourself Before Changing Your Life

As someone with a large social media presence, I often receive messages from readers asking for personal advice. Typically, they're from young people starting their journeys or older people who feel they've strayed down the wrong path. Like this message I received recently:

The same pattern keeps popping up. People aren't aware of what their true preferences are and they end up vulnerable to drifting into habits that undermine their happiness, like substance use or unfulfilling careers.

But the person’s message above identifies something important, he realizes he has been moving against his own nature. Going into therapy when it didn't feel right, staying when it didn't fit, and now using substances to cope with that misalignment. It’s a common problem.

This challenge of self-knowledge is as old as civilization itself. "Know Thyself," the famous inscription at the Temple of Apollo in Delphi, had already been ancient wisdom by the time of Socrates. Yet this timeless question remains: how can we truly know ourselves?

But how can we truly know ourselves? We need to access a different kind of intelligence: biofeedback. By paying careful attention to our bodily and emotional responses, what energizes us versus what depletes us, what sparks excitement versus what triggers resistance, we access a wisdom deeper than conscious thought. I wrote a little about bio-feedback in the past.

This is important because if we are going to reinvent ourselves, we should know who we are before going down a different path.

In This Newsletter

1) Reinvention is Hard in Other Countries. Educational and labor market systems around the world create rigid career paths that are difficult to change.

2) American Culture is obsessed with Reinvention. American culture uniquely embraces reinvention and second chances as core cultural values.

3) Becoming a More Interesting Person. You become a more interesting and resilient person by going through highs and lows. There is something about people who make a few changes that give them depth that others do not have.

It’s Hard to Change Your Destiny Outside of America

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