Neal Kumar Katyal

Ben coaches sports legends, Andre Agassi, Olympians and the like.

His whole thing is about game day, that moment when everything you've been preparing for either shows up or it doesn't.

Ben's first question to me

What are you afraid of?

Now, look, at that point, I argued 52 cases.

I'd saved the Voting Rights Act.

I'd struck down the Guantanamo military tribunals.

But Ben forced me to admit a truth I'd buried from myself.

Every time I walked into the court, I looked at those portraits on the walls and thought, they don't look like me.

I don't belong here.

Imposter syndrome doesn't care about how many cases you won.

It cares about only your doubts.

Ben didn't dismiss this.

He worked with it.

He had me write down five adjectives and visualize them every day before a pretend court.

About 18 hours before the argument, Ben says to me, he calls and says, how are you feeling?

And I say, honestly, I'm terrified.

I've got to do a great job.

I've got to remember 500 things.

I've got to deliver an argument for history.