Oh my! Leigh is asking us for articles for the SUMMER issue of the Summons?!?!?! It is hard for me to wrap my head around summer when I am still wearing my winter coat and snow is still on the ground! But, hey – that’s Mother Nature in North Dakota, right?
As I look around, I do see the signs of summer’s promise. The snow doesn’t stay too long and melts off pretty quickly after it falls; the sky is filled with the sounds and flight of thousands of geese soaring toward their summer home; the pheasant roosters are in brilliant color and flashy display as they try to attract a mate; and, if you look hard enough, there are actually buds starting to show on the trees!
You may have also noticed the increased emails from NALA talking about the upcoming conference in St. Louis. If not, let me give you a “head’s up”! The 2018 NALA Conference & Expo will be held this year in St. Louis, Missouri, from July 11-13. Registration is open on-line and everyone is welcome! You don’t need to be a NALA member or even a CP to attend. And you think our seminars are good? You should check out the national conference!
The NALA Conference and Expo is an experience that will rejuvenate and renew that initial excitement you had when you first started working as a paralegal. The courses, ranging from basic to advanced level learning (as well as CP review sessions) cover a wide variety of topics and are taught by top notch speakers from around the country. Even if you don’t need the CLE credits, the Conference offers you an opportunity to take in a lecture and learn a little bit about a lot of things you otherwise wouldn’t even consider because “it’s not pertinent to my job”.
Then there are the “other” aspects of the Conference that boost your enthusiasm and encourage you to go further, do more, and strive harder. The Expo exposes you to country-wide vendors who offer services you haven’t even considered or have struggled to accomplish on your own. The Affiliate Showcase gives you a glimpse of other Association activities from around the country. The Affiliated Meetings and Annual Meeting demonstrate the depth and dedication paralegals from around the country provide to our organization – on both a National and Affiliate level.
Finally, and by no means the least important, is the networking that occurs at the conference. Networking is a very important aspect of being a paralegal. Meeting and interacting with other paralegals provides the opportunity to learn how things are done in other parts of the country, compare the challenges we all face across the nation, and make lasting friendships spanning the states. You never know just when or how you may benefit from this type of networking!
I have learned that being a paralegal is not just my job – it is my career. I have also learned that you get out of something what you put into it. The NALA Conference and Expo is well worth the experience. Complete information can be found on NALA’s website at nala.org. Consider attending … if not this year, maybe next!
Alice Johnson, ACP
WDALA NALA Liaison