motivation letter

 Here is my draft motivation letter

Ladies and Gentlemen:

My desire to study law did not have a particular incident or a reason. I decided at the age of 14 that I wanted to be a lawyer. I am always flummoxed by the query inquiring as to why I chose law. My answer is a standard one. I chose law, because I believe I can excel in it.

I studied at the National University of Advanced Legal Studies. It took me 5 years to complete my primary legal education. At the end of four years, I sat and re-assessed myself. I had to choose an area I would practise in. Much deliberation followed, but in the end I chose tax. The answer to me lies in the subject itself. Taxation to me, requires refined intelligence. It requires application on a continual basis with constant upgradation of one’s understanding of the subject. In other words, I knew I would never suffer monotony of repetitive work which may not require application of mind.

 
When I announced my decision, most looked at me with a kind of look that they give to a person going to the gallows. They were further bewildered by the fact that I seemed to enjoy a subject that sometimes thrust the fear of God into the hearts of most. My tax professor however, told me that I would never regret my decision.

 
During my final year at college, I was recruited by Lakshmikumaran & Sridharan, a tax firm primarily dealing with taxation matters. The firm was perfectionist in execution and anything less was inadequate. I was baptised in fire and quite literally so.

 
I do not know what tomorrow holds, but I do know that I enjoy my work as a taxation lawyer, as of now. Every new financial year results in new interpretations for an ever changing taxation law. It requires application of mind on a continual basis. Taxation may be one of the few areas where a month of absence would render you obsolete in the market. My work lets me deal with a variety of persons from different business background with a common request. Help them plan their taxes and thereby increase their profit margin. Poor tax planning can take a toll on a company’s profits especially if the company is a large one.

 
My firm encourages continuing education. We have weekend classes to upgrade our knowledge of case-laws, changes in law, etc. They emphasise that free time is for reading on subjects that one is not familiar with. During my free time, I started to read international taxation. It was mostly to familiarize myself with the subject not dealt with by most, or dealt to a very minimum by most. What started then as a past time, evolved into a quest. A quest I believe can only be complete by undertaking a thorough study of the subject.

 
With the thirst for knowledge egging my mind to apply itself to fulfil the thirst, I researched on the most appropriate institution to quench my thirst. The decision was unanimous. Leiden University got its dedicated Int’l Tax Chair in 1986. It is a university with 340 odd years of experience in education. As with most, my mind told me that this is where I should go. It should be at Leiden that my quest for my LLM in International Taxation should be taken to. I do not know whether my decision is right, but I do know this, what ever decision I have taken so far has stood me in good stead.

 
Unlike earlier, this decision does not require attempting to pin the donkey’s tail blind-folded. Where it was required I did, and the tail was stuck at the correct spot. No credit can be given to me for having succeeded. Today, I am very focussed on my goal. My goal can be simply stated thus,

“I desire to educate my self thoroughly on international taxation. Leiden is the most apt and best qualified to help me achieve my goal. Therefore, my current goal is to study international taxation at Leiden University.”