I spent the last 3 months traveling in China & India, got to Kuala Lumpur yesterday (great city by the way, lots of fun) and will be bumming around Southeast Asia till december, then back to real life again, probably back to my old job.
SamFisher, sounds like a cool thing to do. A bit similar to what I did with my trip around the world, except that you actually seem to be taking more time to get to know the people. With regards to law, I worked in a huge law firm for a while (Freshfields), then decided to work as in-house counsel for an Internet company (actually the first lawyer they hired there, so I built up the legal department). Later, I decided to quit the legal career track completely (sometimes you get that chance if you show while working in-house that you are also good at business development and have a general understanding of the business). Later, I got my MBA at the University of Chicago, got into strategy consulting and am currently working on setting up my own (Internet) business (the second dot-com boom has quietly been going on for a while already!). So, even if you studied law, the "classic" legal career track may not be your only option. If you realize you don't like it, there will always be alternatives.
one of my business partners did something similar. worked at a big firm downtown...left to start his own company..took it public and cashed out...went back to practicing law. good luck on your new venture, SJC!
the only three regrets I have are: 1. not having thought of it sooner 2. not doing it for longer 3. that more people don't get the same chance! I wouldn't trade a minute of it. Well, except for the two times I've had dysentery....
