From the age of 13, Jones knew she wanted to be a lawyer. Jones’s interest in law sparked from an early fascination with the Constitution and its enforcement, which slowly formed her ideal career of being a lawyer.

Addressing a group of Wayland students during Winter Week, Jones described the journey that led her to that dream and ultimately the position of assistant attorney general of Massachusetts. As part of her presentation, Jones polled her Wayland audience and found that few juniors and seniors had specific career plans in mind. Even fewer audience members shared her love for the supreme law of the land.

While Jones described her early commitment to law as “really weird and geeky,” her decisiveness allowed her to focus on her work and see high school and college as steps toward a clear goal.

The road to becoming a lawyer, however, was not an easy one. Jones faced competitive testing when getting into law school and the bar exam to qualify to practice law.

“Law school can be brutal,” Jones said, describing some of her classroom experiences. “Our professor would tell us to ‘get up and assume the position’ in the middle of class. We would have to answer a series of questions intended to be impossible, teaching us to think on our feet.”

Jones explained that creativity and quick-thinking are essential qualities for lawyers since no one can fully predict what witnesses will say on the stand during trials.

Jones also had to overcome a childhood fear of public speaking to achieve her dream of becoming a lawyer. Jones was shy in grade school and was never required to speak in front of peers. In college, Jones found public speaking difficult but viewed it as something she needed to master.

“It’s all about practice and doing it over and over again until you get it right,” Jones said.

Jones’s current job involves prosecuting white collar crimes within the state, particularly those related to labor and public construction law. As its own governing entity within the state, the attorney general’s office does not report to Governor Deval Patrick or any other agency but works on behalf of the state’s citizens.

While Jones also worked as a criminal defense lawyer, she prefers her current role as a law enforcer.

“You feel like you are on the side of the righteous and holy,” Jones said. “You can help the victims and take care of people who have been treated poorly.”

Miss an event from Winter Week 2013? WSPN’s got it covered.