Many lawyers love food and wine — not wisely, but too well. Their stressful jobs cause them to develop unhealthy obsessions with eating and drinking. A fair number of lawyers end up overweight and out of shape or suffer from serious drinking problems.
It doesn’t have to be this way. Food and drink should be sources of health and happiness in one’s life. And they’re worthy subjects of intellectual interest as well; someone should start a museum devoted to them, don’t you think?
Let’s meet a lawyer whose love for food and drink has manifested itself in a healthy way….
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Today’s Stealth Lawyer, Peter Kim, is a lawyer turned executive director of the Museum of Food and Drink (MOFAD). After graduating from a top law school (U. Penn.), he joined an elite law firm in New York (Debevoise & Plimpton).
How did Peter make the move from Biglaw to the non-profit world — a jump we know many of our readers would like to make? He shares his story with Spencer Mazyck of Bloomberg Law:
[youtube http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=W7STrzXI1aw&w=600&h=450]
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Sometimes surprising career transitions look perfectly logical with the benefit of hindsight. Peter’s story seems to have at least three takeaways for people interested in life beyond law. First, think about how your pre-law-school experience — in Peter’s case, his work on hunger, poverty, and public-health issues — might translate into an alternative career. Second, try to make time for outside hobbies — in Peter’s case, his study at the French Culinary Institute — because those hobbies could blossom into a vocation. Finally, take advantage of pro bono opportunities — not just because it’s the right thing to do, but also because you might discover a job opportunity for yourself through pro bono work.
Congratulation to Peter Kim on his great new gig, and best of luck to him and Dave Arnold as they build MOFAD into a world-class institution in the field of food education. We predict it will be an amazing museum — and that, we dare say, is no bit of puffery.
Stealth Lawyer: Peter Kim, Food Museum Director [Bloomberg Law via YouTube]
Museum of Food and Drink [official website]
Puffed: The Magic of Cereal [New Yorker]