Honestly, it’s just not my nature to want to be a judge. When I was at the beginning of my career, I was being tracked into management training and I pulled back from that, too. I don’t like being the one who has to decide. I have never regretted it even though I would make more money as a boss. I am a trial attorney - I prefer to take a side and advocate for it than to have to weigh things and be fair and impartial. I like picking apart weaknesses and inconsistencies. When I was a journalism major working on the school paper, I much preferred to edit other people’s work than to write my own.
I find that many judges of my acquaintance are political hacks. That may not be the case in other places but it is where I am. Please don’t get me wrong - there are many fine judges and they do excellent work. It’s just not a job I aspire to.
It really is a personal thing. It’s the same way that I knew that I would be a horrible teacher or that I would rather never have gone to college than have followed my parents’ directives to study computer science. Some things people just know or learn about themselves. When I was your age, I didn’t know I wouldn’t want to be a judge. It wasn’t until I began going to court and trying cases regularly that I realized that I had no interest in it. Likewise, with being a boss. I found that I had zero interest in interviewing people for jobs, although I do enjoy mentoring one on one. I also have zero interest in firing people or disciplining employees.