Lessons from law school that are nothing about law school.

Since my last post, I have begun really preparing for midterms, while simultaneously keeping up with my reading, assignments and writing for both the classes I do have midterms in and the classes I don’t. Law school.

Needless to say, I have had a lot to do in very little time. A few things have popped in my head throughout this week, so I thought my blog would be a good place to jot them down while they’re still fresh.

Law school teaches you about the law, obviously. Even in these first few months of school, though, I’m realizing the lessons span a lot farther than just the doctrines and the academic lessons. Law school has already taught me a lot about life. Here are the law school lessons I have learned that I can apply to life so far:

1.  Time is valuable. In law school, you don’t have time to finish everything. It’s not like undergrad or high school, where you have assignments and once you finish them you can relax and enjoy non-school things. No, there’s always something to be done, whether it be your actual assignments, reading cases, additional reading, help with a teaching assistant, attending an extra curricular meeting, meeting with a teacher, notecarding, did I mention reading? Anyway, you get it. You finish what you can in the 24 hours you're given. And you hope it’s enough. So law school has taught me how valuable even an extra 5 minutes are. How precious an hour is when it comes to sleep and how so very special two hours before bed can be when you have no assignments and you can work on your outline. Time is valuable.
2.  It’s not about what you do, but how well you do it. The time you spend studying is completely useless if it’s not done efficiently. The person who studies more doesn’t always study best. Planning is everything.  Strategy is everything. Focus is everything. As John Wooden once said: “Practice doesn’t make perfect, perfect practice makes perfect.”
3. You can’t let any one thing consume you. My grandfather always says “everything is okay in moderation.” And that’s an essential thing to keep in mind in law school, and in life. No matter what the other students do, no matter what my professors or mentors say, it’s not okay to only do law school. I have to make time for myself and for my family. At the end of the day, my family is what matters, and the things I love keep me happy. The hour I spend running might actually help me in my study! Imagine that. Keep everything in moderation, even law school.
4. Celebrate the good moments. I turned in my first memo on Tuesday and holy crap -- did it feel good. That moment when you hit submit and know you really gave it your everything and it’s all over.. it’s wonderful. I took a second and just smiled for myself. I did it! I have finished my first legal memo and I did it. Did I get a good grade? I won’t know for a couple of weeks. But I celebrated in that moment regardless, because I put forth the effort and I finished it. You have to celebrate the good moments, because it’s okay to celebrate yourself in life... even in law school.
5. Make everything you do fun. I had a classmate turn around a couple days ago and tell me “I figured it out! You just have to convince yourself law school is fun.” And while it may not actually be that simple, he is kind of right. You have to find little ways to make it more enjoyable. That comes with being prepared, and being curious. Ask questions! I’ve found if I sit down in a coffee shop with a great cup of coffee, I enjoy studying more. So, I sit down in a coffee shop with a great cup of coffee and I study. Period. It doesn’t have to be painful.

I could probably think of a few more, but these are the ones that come to mind right now. If law school teaches me nothing else, it’s taught me a lot about life in just a few short months. Now, back to those midterms…