First Year in Law School

I started this blog before I entered law school. My eyes glimmered with excitement as I wanted to take the first step to becoming a lawyer. It has been a year since I entered the gates of hell law school and so much has happened since then. It still amazes me how a person can change in just a year.

I have always been busy in law school (and life) that I didn't even bother with this blog until now (since I'm still on vacation. I learned so many things as a first year law student. To name a few, here are the most important things:

The sky is the limit.

Everyone is aware that law school is hard. Law school is torture. Law school is every horrible thing you can imagine. Those are only partly true. It is true that law school is hard, and law school horror stories do happen. But what many people don't get to realize is that human beings have unlimited potential. And given proper parameters, one can go a longer way than one has thought. It is mainly a matter of perspective and I learned this the hard way .

Here's an anecdote:

For some reason, I ended up entering a competition in law school. Each class had to pick three speakers and argue on a given topic, against another class. To give you an overview why that is tasking  for me, I am an INFJ.  It would have been better if the competition happened in second semester rather than the first when we were still getting to know people and adjusting to law school. It takes me some time to be comfortable and only once I really settled can I speak my mind. I wasn't even that interested in the topic so I was just doing my "best" for the class.After tears, hard work, sleepless nights, emotional instability, and self-esteem issues, we won. But the day of the competition wasn't, for me, as important as the night before that.

During that time we had a mock competition with another class (not our opponent for the contest). There were so many unknown faces in the audience. I did the introductions, which was great. I still maintained my composure then. But when it was the time for me to argue, I could barely breathe. I worried if I was going to cause our team to lose. I worried if I was going to screw up. I worried if our coach was going to be disappointed with me (he was a top student of the graduating class). I worried and lost faith in myself. I knew my speech like the back of my hand and I did research enough to rebut anything. But I worried. I lost my confidence. And in turn, I lost my voice. I couldn't speak. I couldn't breathe. And I nearly cried. I was grilled while standing on the podium. They kept asking me questions which I could barely answer because I was too nervous. After the mock competition, the coaches talked to me and told me to relax. And they made me realize that it was not the end of the world. I just took everything seriously and broke down. After everything, I cried on my way back home. I cried for almost an hour. I realized how pathetic I was. I considered my part  as a heavy luggage and I kept thinking it was so hard. I forgot that it was only an extra-curricular activity that I should enjoy. So on the day of the competition, I discarded all my negative thoughts. I ceased to care so much. I just did what I had to do: speak and become an advocate. I forgot how tasking the competition is. I forgot that there were other people in the hall. I forgot about my worries.  And then we won.

There are more instances in law school that made me realize that I can go beyond my previously-held limits. In the end, I realized that there is no limit. You might find this ridiculous but I found this to be true.

I think the main thing that "limited" me from doing things is that I was afraid to fail. But what is failure? Is it losing? Is it disappointing yourself? Does it really matter that much? Does it still matter when you have learned so much after trying so hard? Does it still matter when you have already become a better you?

I'm not sure if I'm still making sense (I'm just typing the first things that pop in my mind). But what I really want to say is that there will be times when we think we can't and it's hard, during those times we are actually limiting ourselves, and focusing on why we can't. How about if we just do it? Stop worrying and just do it. :)

Contrary to popular belief, there are 365 hours a day. You can do so much!

The volume of readings you can actually read and understand will shock you when you enter law school. Every day, it was as if I was preparing for a do or die oral exam. The readings would be 1-3 inches tall per day (depending on your professor) and you should be prepared to answer anything related to what you have read.  You will be surprised how many you have accomplished each day and how you were able to go through that.

Time management and efficiency is a must in law school. In order to cram  everything, you not only have to study hard but also study smart. Know the most efficient way for you to learn everything. You should also be able to manage your time. Give yourself mini-goals and deadlines.

In the end, you'll realize that despite your busy schedule, you can still have time for family and friends. You can still hang out with them once in a blue moon  every once in a while. Not as often as you used to, but you can still see them. It's just a matter of time management and setting your priorities straight.

Keep yourself motivated and inspired (WHY is the most important question).

You're lucky if you entered law school on your own volition. Some law students I know were forced by parents. Can you imagine how hard that is? Going through hell for something that you don't like? So when you enter law school, be sure that you really want to become a lawyer. And when you enter law school, keep yourself motivated every day and remind yourself why you want to become a lawyer. Law school is tough so it helps to remind yourself why you put yourself in such a tough situation and why you should go through with it.

Physical and emotional health are of UTMOST importance.

Number one tip for law school: SLEEP. Law school requires critical thinking so you should sleep as much as you can. Otherwise, reading all those cases and annotations will be for naught because you won't be able to process everything during recitations. So sleep! I make sure to sleep 4-6 hours a day. In undergrad, there were many times when I did not sleep and went to class (and even took exams). But that doesn't work in law school. So grab the opportunity to sleep whenever you can.

Emotional health is also important so you should always look for positive reinforcements. In my case I always read "Invictus," "Desiderata" and Dr. Seuss' "Oh! The Places You'll Go!" I also give myself a break when I need it (and deserve it). So far so good. I'm still sane, I passed all my first year subjects, and I'm enrolling next week! Time sure flies fast!