The Importance of Integrative Thinking

I can still remember when I got into McGill University as an undergraduate in the Arts program. I couldn’t switch my status from “undeclared” quick enough. I knew what I was going to study—I was going to major in psychology.

I had taken an AP Psychology (Advanced Placement) class in Grade 11 and had been itching for more ever since. Over time, many of my peers followed suit. In fact, in my year, for many students, psychology became that major you declared when you really weren’t sure what you wanted to do.

I remember asking my friend why he had chosen psychology, especially because the workload was nothing to shy away from. He replied: “Well, I figured, it could never hurt to REALLY understand people—how they think, their motivations, their fears and the like.” I also remember my snarky thoughts as he was saying it: “Well THIS is a well-thought out response...Not!” It was only years later that I would really learn how right he was.

Over the next three years of my undergraduate degree, I learned A LOT and I would be hard-pressed to say that I really didn’t love every minute of it! That being said, as I worked through my degree, I began to realize that perhaps psychology was not the career for me. Something just didn’t feel right. After much contemplation and countless hours weighing the pros and cons of moving away from a topic I was, and still am, so passionate about, I decided that my time could be equally well-served helping people in other ways. More specifically, my sights turned to law.

Growing up, I had always wanted to be a lawyer. From a very young age, I can remember idolizing my mother (well, I still do), a (superb) tax lawyer, and thinking to myself: “One day—that’s what I’m going to be.”

When I turned to psychology, I put law out of sight and mind. Nearing the end of my McGill University psychology degree, remnants of my childhood aspiration seeped back into my brain.

Over the years, despite having not thought about it, my reasoning had become sounder; I can assure you that, “I want to be a lawyer because my mother is a lawyer,” doesn’t bode well on personal statements or any part of your application for that matter. It may sound clichéd but I wanted to study law, and ultimately practice it, to do exactly what I had wanted to use psychology for—I wanted to help people.

Going into law at McGill University, I was now of a new mindset—one which was completely law-focused. The past three years of undergrad and the teachings I had learned there, much like my initial childhood aspirations, were put out of sight and mind.

And yet, despite my determination, my first semester of law school was impossibly hard—no matter what I did, I could not grasp the material; it all seemed so foreign to me. I had trouble understanding the rulings of various judges, as well as the purposes of multiple provisions and consequently, I had difficulty analyzing both case law and legislation. I felt like giving up. Little did I know, this all was about to change.

Integrative thinking and a joint degree

The next semester, a friend of mine, who was in the midst of her undergraduate degree and also majoring in psychology, asked me if I could help her work through some of the psychological theory. I was happy to oblige—after all, I needed a break from law for a change. She was learning about child development. Reading through a chapter about the development of our prefrontal cortex, the reasoning and decision-making center of our brains, it suddenly hit me. Somehow, I now perfectly understood concepts like consent and discernment. Simultaneous to that, I realized that I was going about law school all wrong—the best way to learn is not to compartmentalize, but to integrate. My psychology studies were not a means to an end—I can still hear my friend’s voice echoing in my ear: “Well, I figured, it could never hurt to REALLY understand people.” How right he was!

Now, as I pursue my joint law and MBA degrees at McGill University, despite my desire to ultimately practice law, I refuse to make the same mistake again. I know that, for years to come, my MBA studies will inform my legal studies and vice versa to make me a better-rounded attorney. This has become especially evident to me because of my interest in contract law.

In law school, contractual case studies often focus on worst-case scenarios; there has been a breach of duty or an unjust clause and the courts must decide what the appropriate remedy should be. Law professors admit that the flaw of teaching contract law is that students learn to use what they call the “pathological case”. Unfortunately, these cases only represent a small fraction of all business dealings that occur in real life and thus, provide an incomplete picture of actual business transactions.

Combined with my integrative thinking, my pursuing an MBA degree is already serving to round out my business savvy and consequently, has better prepared me for most of the work I am currently encountering in the workforce.

How an MBA degree helps a lawyer

Furthermore, with respect to contractual relationships and obligations, while a law degree allows me to recognize one’s right to take action, an MBA degree allows me to perform a cost-benefit analysis in order to determine whether an action should be taken.

Being able to recognize rights and then monetize those rights, allows one to be more pragmatic about the legal process. Moving from a morality/legality dichotomy into the realm of materiality reveals where a practicing lawyer should place emphasis by determining what’s worth fighting for.

By that same token, my legal studies up until this point, as well as my psychology degree, have already informed my MBA degree studies, in the form of a better understanding of business policy, corporate social responsibility and organizational behavior. My ability to move seamlessly from one past lesson or learning to the next has been invaluable to my success in the program, my appreciation for the learning process and ultimately, the knowledge I will retain and use in the future to inform and empower my clients. In this sense, my trained aptitude for integrative thinking has rendered me more certain that I can and will affect change.

Whether you are in an MBA program, a law program, both or any other professional program for that matter, you must never forget why you are there in the first place: You Are Different. Universities have a penchant for choosing candidates that will help round out and inform class discussions—unique perspectives do not hinder the class, they help it progress. Importantly, recognizing this simple fact will help you personally grow as well. I know I did. So, never stop learning, trust your integrative thinking and always remember that you are the sum of your past—so, use it!

About Alyssa Wiseman

Alyssa Wiseman received her BA in Psychology from McGill University in 2011. She is presently pursuing joint law and MBA degrees at McGill University. She is also a legal researcher for Define the Line, an interdisciplinary research project at McGill University exploring several issues surrounding cyberbullying, including legal literacy and digital citizenship, as well as a volunteer for Pro Bono Students Canada.