Wright: Reflections on what I wish I had known in law school

Like most things in life, law school is a learning experience filled with trial and error. Each year of law school brings new experiences. Little by little, law students tend to find what works for them and what does not. However, there are some lessons that are not learned until after law school is over.

I’ve been out of law school and a practicing attorney for a little over one year now. While a year does not seem like much, there are things I have realized as a first-year associate that I wish I knew while in law school. Here are a few of those things:

What works for other students might not work for you, and that’s OK

In law school, this lesson is most relevant to studying habits. On my first day of law school orientation, we were given a study schedule that a typical first-year law student “should” adhere to in order to keep up with classes. On the first day of classes, I chatted with my classmates and, inevitably, the topic of class preparation came up. It was the first week of law school and I already had a study schedule I felt I needed to adhere to and other students I compared myself to. I immediately felt like I needed to stick to the sample study schedule and do everything my classmates were doing to stay on track.

This mindset is something I struggled with throughout law school, as did many of my peers. It usually doesn’t take long to realize if a certain study habit or schedule is not working for you. However, it can take time for some students to realize that it is OK to have different study habits and a different study schedule than your classmates. For example, some students may be most productive studying at the library for hours after classes during the week so they can take time off for the weekend. On the other hand, some students may prefer to work more on the weekends rather than putting in long hours after classes. Additionally, some students may have families to take care of and aren’t able to spend every evening at the library. The point is that everyone’s schedule is different.

Comparing study habits and study schedules to other students is something that I saw happen throughout all three years of law school. I have seen that carry into my first year as an associate by comparing work habits to other associates at my firm as well as my law school friends that are practicing elsewhere.

Reflecting on my time in law school, I wish I had spent less time comparing my study habits and schedules to others and realized that it was OK to have different habits than my classmates.

Taking time off is an important part of time management skills

As a law student, you likely have a lot of responsibility to juggle that includes more than just studying for classes. After the first year of law school, many students participate in internships, externships, clinics, moot court, law review and various external opportunities. Given the large amount of responsibility that law students are required to balance, many law school faculty and staff emphasize the importance of time management.

When emphasizing the importance of time management, the focus is usually to ensure all work gets completed. However, the importance of making time for your life outside of law school is often overlooked.

Time management is certainly important to balance classes and other activities. It is equally important to factor in time for self-care, friends and family. In law school, it can be easy to push things like self-care and time with friends and family to the side because it doesn’t seem like there is enough time for it all. However, this mindset can easily transfer into your career after law school, as well, and it is not sustainable. Failing to set aside time for yourself can eventually lead to feeling burnt out. Burnout can often impact the quality of your work as well as make it difficult to get through your day-to-day responsibilities.

The relationships you develop in law school are just as important (if not more) as the material you learn in school

It is often emphasized to law students that networking is an extremely important part of law school. However, I thought that networking was focused on my relationships with other attorneys that I could learn from. I did not realize until a few months after graduation that the most important networking that is done in law school is the relationships you create with your classmates.

This lesson became clear to me when a friend from law school reached out and asked if I would be interested in a position at her law firm. I wasn’t actively seeking employment elsewhere, but it never hurts to meet new attorneys in the area, so I said I would be happy to explore the opportunity. I instantly clicked with the people that I interviewed with, and I received a job offer shortly after. If my law school friend hadn’t thought of me when a position opened at her firm, I never would have received the opportunity I did and I wouldn’t be at the firm where I am now.

Your classmates will move on to become leaders in the legal field, politics or academia. If you become a practicing attorney, your classmates will likely be on the opposite side of litigation, or maybe even the same side. It is very likely your paths will cross in some way. Developing relationships while in law school together will only benefit you when that time comes.•

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Alexandra Wright is an associate at Lewis Wagner LLP. Opinions expressed are those of the author.