Some people know they want to be lawyers. Others go to law school because a BA in Philosophy isn’t exactly marketable in this economy (if it ever was).
For countless college students, the decision to pursue law school can feel like standing at a crossroads — one path marked by stability and tradition, the other by uncertainty and possibility. Alexis Ohanian knows that dilemma well. Even if you’re not familiar with his name, you’ve probably scrolled through Reddit, the company he co-founded after stepping away from a future in law. Ohanian’s choice to leave legal ambitions behind didn’t just alter his own life; it ended up shaping how millions of people connect online.
Wahoos at WaHo
Before Reddit was a household name, before venture capital and tennis royalty entered the picture, Ohanian was just another college student with a plan. Well, a half-baked plan.
The son of an Armenian immigrant, Ohanian grew up in Maryland, surrounded by stories of hard work and sacrifice. “You have a tremendous responsibility to make the most out of what you have,” his aunt would tell him about their family surviving the Armenian genocide. Law felt like a way to honor his family’s journey and secure his own future. It seemed logical. But as anyone who’s ever stared down a stack of LSAT prep books knows, logic doesn’t always win out over inspiration. And for Ohanian, inspiration came in the form of entrepreneurship.
He’d prepared for the LSAT diligently, even taking a prep course. But twenty minutes into the exam, Ohanian realized he felt out of place and had no desire to be there. He walked out, went straight to a Waffle House, and decided to invent his own career instead. “If I wanted these waffles more than the LSAT, I probably shouldn’t be a lawyer,” Ohanian joked on NPR’s How I Built This in 2017.
During his undergrad at the University of Virginia, he lived with a fellow Wahoo named Steve Huffman. The pivotal Waffle House moment led him to team up with his former roommate to launch a business venture. Their first idea was “My Mobile Menu,” a mobile food-ordering app. That might seem derivative today, but this was twenty years ago.
From Rejection to Revolution
The idea was ahead of its time, to a fault; remember, smartphones weren’t ubiquitous back then, and so it wasn’t practical. That pitch was ultimately rejected by YC investor Paul Graham. But Graham saw something in Ohanian and Huffman themselves: “We don’t like your idea, but we like you guys,” he told them. If they were willing to pivot, he’d fund them. YC saw potential in the duo themselves and encouraged them to drop the original idea and work on something else — the spark they apparently needed.
Taking Graham’s advice, they built something totally different. “The suggestion Paul had was to build something people use every day,” Ohanian said in an interview on WIRED’s Uncanny Valley. “Don’t build something in a phone. Build something for a browser.”
They drew inspiration from sites like Delicious and Slashdot. Just weeks later, in June 2005, they launched Reddit. What began as a simple community forum quickly grew into one of the internet’s most influential platforms.
A Dropout and an Inspiration
Ohanian’s willingness to leave behind a conventional path in favor of entrepreneurship is often cited as an example for others facing similar decisions. His story underscores how self-awareness and courage can lead to innovative outcomes.
For anyone standing at their own crossroads, unsure whether to stick with what’s expected or take a leap into something new, Ohanian’s journey offers permission to reconsider what success looks like. Sometimes walking out of the LSAT isn’t just about abandoning one plan; it’s about opening yourself up to possibilities you hadn’t imagined.
We’re not discouraging anyone out there who wants to go to law school to tear up their half-bubbled Scantrons and walk out of the room. But for anyone facing dread of the exam or dread of a career in the law, remember: there is life after LSAT prep, and sometimes, it’s even better than you dreamed.
Related Resources:
- Survey Offers Insight Into the Thoughts, Concerns, and Fears of Potential Jurors (FindLaw's Practice of Law)
- Can the LSAT Stand the Test of Time? (FindLaw's Practice of Law)
- The Out-of-Bounds Sex Toy Shenanigans at the WNBA (FindLaw's Legally Weird)
