Are you willing to choose such an industry?, 20% of people earn 80% of their money, lawyer | profession | industry

If 20% of people make 80% of the money in an industry, would you still choose that industry?

In a live broadcast on filling out college application preferences conducted by Guoshi Direct Bus, the term "28 major" caught the attention of netizens. Xia Rongrong, a university English teacher and master of education from the University of Edinburgh, reminded during a live broadcast that this means that 20% of people will monopolize most of the opportunities in this industry, and choosing majors such as law and finance should be carefully considered.

It seems difficult for non industry practitioners to make a judgment on whether there is an extremely uneven distribution of resources in a certain industry. Taking the lawyer industry as an example, is it common to have elite lawyers with an annual salary of millions in political and legal dramas? What is the real industry employment situation? From the perspective of the legal profession, what should ordinary people do to explore the "28 professions"?

The lawyer industry "cannot say '19' too much"

The latest data shows that the number of lawyers in China has exceeded 677000 and there are over 39000 law firms. "When I entered the industry, there were less than 300000 people, but now it has doubled," said Zhang Zihang, a lawyer at Beijing Dejun Law Firm, to China News Service's Guoshi Express.

In December 2017, Zhang Zihang obtained his lawyer's license. As a lawyer who has been in the industry for five and a half years, he heard about the distribution of industry resources in middle school and felt it was very unfair at that time. "20% of people take away 80% of the benefits, and the remaining 80% of people divide the remaining 20% of the benefits. Isn't this 80% of people who can't eat enough or wear warm clothes?" Out of the naive concept of his youth, he believes this is inappropriate.

However, after Zhang Zihang entered the industry, he found that the "28 theory" may not hold water in the legal profession. "It is not an exaggeration to say that the lawyer industry is a '19 theory', as 10% of lawyers take away 90% of resources and 90% of lawyer fees."

Zhang Zihang recalled seeing a report in 2018 that showed an average annual income of 780000 yuan for lawyers in Beijing, which was far from his income at the time. Talking with colleagues from the same period, I found that everyone has such doubts.

"At that time, we were the 61st batch of interns from the Beijing Lawyers Association, with 300 people in the first batch. One time, we gathered and 22 people came. At that time, 2 people admitted that their income had reached this level, while the other 20 people did not reach the average annual income of 780000 yuan." Zhang Zihang said, from a mathematical perspective, if we could bring the average income to 780000 yuan, there must be someone with a particularly high income.

Is breaking the "19" feasible?

The big lawyer gains both fame and fortune, while the small lawyer is struggling. Why has no one ever proposed breaking the "19 theory" in the face of extreme distribution phenomena in the industry? Will setting upper and lower limits on industry income make the legal environment "fair" for lawyers?

In Zhang Zihang's view, personal strength cannot break the "19 Theory", and even the entire industry cannot achieve it.

Zhang Zihang explained that for example, it is stipulated that each lawyer cannot be less than 30000 yuan per case, which will directly lead to clients giving up on hiring lawyers in many cases because the prices are too high.

The lawyer's quotation actually reflects their ability, reputation, status, experience, etc., and is a very personalized and labeled comprehensive reflection. "To break the income inequality, what lawyers can do is to improve their professional skills and enhance their bargaining power."

Zhang Zihang suggests that what lawyers can do is choose a profession and a track. There is no such thing as a general practitioner lawyer, but one can be a civil and commercial lawyer, an intellectual property lawyer, or an IPO lawyer for a company going public. In short, if you do well in a field, there will naturally be customers looking for you. No matter how high the cost is, customers will agree and even if they bite their teeth, they will sign you.

"It can be seen that even extreme '19 distribution' is not unfair, it reflects the benefits brought by a lawyer's ability, reputation, experience, and various comprehensive qualities in the past."

Cui Jintao, a sophomore student at Peking University Law School, also believes that instead of emphasizing "average income", it is better to strive to improve oneself and establish one's reputation, in order to attract more cases.

"My parents are both legal professionals, and when I chose this path, they had already fully informed me of the difficulties of studying law." Cui Jintao said, "In fact, the learning and application of law are very different because the reform of the legal system is very rapid, and my parents' learning experience is basically unable to provide me with help.".

In Cui Jintao's view, there is no convenient way, only learning and practice. There are basically no easy or less responsible jobs in the employment prospects of law majors, and the only way for individuals to do it is to improve their professional abilities.

It must be said that there are some "unfair" phenomena in the lawyer industry. Zhang Zihang believes that what needs to be cracked down on should be behaviors and individuals who violate the lawyer's law and professional ethics, and use illegal and unethical means to squeeze into that "one". "As long as you work diligently on one project after another, your reputation is in place. Even if it's priced at 10 million or 20 million yuan, the industry not only doesn't dislike you, but also admires you."

What should I do if I choose the "28 major"?

"To be honest, the '28/20 phenomenon' is not just a phenomenon that exists in a few industries, but a common situation in the entire society." Chu Chaohui, a researcher at the China Academy of Educational Sciences, frankly stated in an interview with China News Agency's Guoshi Express that in the market environment, as long as it involves screening for excellence and inferiority - that is, when service recipients can be selected - such a phenomenon will exist.

He further explained that, especially in the Internet era, there is a characteristic that the best exists and the second best is eliminated. With the development of information technology and the increase in channels for obtaining information, users all hope to find better choices.

During the college entrance examination application season, Chu Chaohui reminds that candidates do not need to panic when facing so-called "28 majors". "Ultimately, finding one's strengths and potential is the key."

"Every industry is a process of big waves washing away sand, some come and some go." Zhang Zihang suggests that young people who are full of aspirations for law should boldly try it out. Obtaining a lawyer's certificate does not necessarily mean that one must work for life. Having received legal training and education can also help individuals engage in other industries.

For students who have already chosen the so-called "28 major", Xia Rongrong believes that they should face reality and not be confused by the glamour of certain industries in film and television. "In the early stages, one should maintain a good mindset and approach learning with a mindset that may lead to sitting on a 'cold bench' for a long time. Regardless of the industry, one needs to be down-to-earth in order to ultimately reach their ideal heights."

Chu Chaohui suggested that society also needs to establish a fair, just, objective, and benign management and evaluation mechanism to curb the strong "28/20 phenomenon" in a certain industry or field.