I was finishing up my summer clerkship with Roberts & Stevens.  It was a great experience and a memorable summer.  I wanted to thank the attorneys that I worked with for the opportunity.  My plan was to knock on their doors, pop my head in, say “thanks,” and hopefully not tie up too much of their time or make it a bigger ordeal than it needed to be.  I was just a summer clerk, and by no means did I do anything to warrant a swan song.  Jack Stevens had given me some assignments, we had lunch together a number of times, and my office was near his on the 11th floor.  So, he was my first stop.  I knocked on his door, and he welcomed me in.  I was not intimated by him, but certainly understood my place, his place, and I had a huge amount of respect for him.  

“I just wanted to say thanks so much for the summer. This was a great experience, and I really enjoyed working with everyone.”  I got everything out, no stumbling, and felt pretty good at my last words.  

Mr. Steven’s response: “Well, what did you learn?” in a dry, but friendly tone.

I’m pretty sure he saw my head explode as I was not expecting his question.  The guy whose name was on the door wanted to know what I learned, opposed to just allowing me to move along with a rote “glad you had a nice time” or “good luck in the school year.”  I literally stood there for a second before coming up with whatever lackluster response that I can’t remember (or wanted to forget).  

Mr. Steven’s response to my departure, and his question stuck with me from there on out.  Rather than just move on from one thing to the next, I always try to stop and reflect, what exactly did I learn?  I have a notebook at my desk that is filled with “what did I learn” from each case, and my kids are sick of me asking them at the end of their practices and games “what did you learn?”  

It’s been 10 years since I founded Brian Elston Law – and it seems timely to take a moment to share, and pass along, what I’ve learned. Beginning 11/6/2025 and continuing over the next 10 weeks and timely ending with when the doors opened, I’m going to share 10 lessons that will hopefully either entertain, educate or enlighten fellow attorneys and friends. The lessons are intended to be big picture instead of how best to calendar deadlines. By no means are these lessons exhaustive, and the book by my desk continues to grow daily as I am still learning.