{"id":15229,"date":"2011-10-10T21:41:26","date_gmt":"2011-10-11T02:41:26","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/law.marquette.edu\/facultyblog\/?p=15229"},"modified":"2011-10-10T21:41:26","modified_gmt":"2011-10-11T02:41:26","slug":"falling-leaves-and-rising-stress-levels","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/law.marquette.edu\/facultyblog\/2011\/10\/falling-leaves-and-rising-stress-levels\/","title":{"rendered":"Falling Leaves and Rising Stress Levels?"},"content":{"rendered":"

\"\"<\/a>The leaves are changing, the nights are cool, and there\u2019s a nip in the air in the early mornings.\u00a0 That means it\u2019s October, which means for most law students that school has been in session for nearly two months (for most students).\u00a0 It\u2019s around this time that the 1Ls perhaps notice an increase in workload.\u00a0 Now there\u2019s not just reading and briefing for class \u2013 which may be clipping along more quickly now \u2013 but probably assignments due in their writing classes.\u00a0 All along, in the background, 1Ls are hearing people talk about \u201cgetting those outlines started.\u201d\u00a0 Second years have hustled through the on-campus interview process, which seems more selective than ever, and some are working their way through call-backs.\u00a0 Others are frustrated that they aren\u2019t getting any call-backs.\u00a0 And likely most 3Ls are themselves working on getting jobs, knowing with that as each day passes, they are one step closer to graduation and one step closer to having to pay back those loans.<\/p>\n

Perhaps here is where the stress starts to kick in.<\/p>\n

Not all stress is bad; stress often gives us the kick in the pants we need to get things done, and we can return to \u201cnormal.\u201d But for law students, the stress can seem to be ongoing, weighing them down for weeks or maybe months.\u00a0 Is there any way for law students to avoid this stress?<\/p>\n

Yes and no.\u00a0 While law students, like anyone else, cannot avoid stress altogether, they can learn to avoid letting it become the focus of their lives.<\/p>\n

There are several sources of stress in law school, some of which are obvious and unavoidable \u2013 like a heavy workload and high debt \u2013 but others, says Professor Lawrence S. Krieger in his booklet Hidden Sources of Law School Stress:\u00a0 Avoiding the Mistakes that Create Unhappy and Unprofessional Lawyers<\/a><\/em>, \u201care so deeply embedded in the typical law school culture that you aren\u2019t likely to be aware of them.\u201d<\/p>\n

Professor Krieger lists seven law school stressors:<\/p>\n

Law school\u2019s heavy workload.<\/strong>\u00a0 This is an obvious and unavoidable stressor.\u00a0 Legal education demands a lot of from students, but students need to make sure they keep their priorities straight.\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 Rest, eating well, and social time with family and friends need to be near the top of the list.\u00a0 No matter how much you have to read or brief or write, if you\u2019re tired and fueled only by caffeine or junk food, you\u2019re not going to get it all done, or at least not done well.<\/strong><\/p>\n

False values.<\/strong>\u00a0 As I\u2019ve said before<\/a>, the culture of law school sometimes has the tendency to set a student\u2019s priorities, even if that\u2019s not what the student really wanted when she decided to go to law school.\u00a0 A student who came to law school to serve others in a public interest capacity suddenly decides to work in private practice at the area\u2019s biggest law firm.\u00a0 Is her choice really her own? Professor Krieger elaborates on false values by pointing out the most common fallacy among law students:\u00a0 \u201c[T]hat the road to happiness runs through the top of the class.\u201d\u00a0 That is, those who end up at the top of their class end up on law review, get their pick of plum private practice jobs at large law firms, draw six figure salaries immediately out of law school. But does this mean they are happier?<\/p>\n

Undeniably, it is true that the better one\u2019s grades, the more options that student has; however, those options may not automatically equal happiness and success for those students.<\/p>\n

Professor Krieger points out that nearly two decades of research has shown that chasing after extrinsic results and rewards (high salaries, affluence, fame, and power) often leads to an unfulfilling life.<\/p>\n

On the other hand, chasing and meeting intrinsic goals (achieving personal growth, helping others or having satisfying personal relationships) tends to make people happier.<\/p>\n

To combat this stressor, Professor Krieger recommends shifting goals and focus.\u00a0 If you decide that your goals are simply to do your best and to better your community in some small way, these are goals that are within your control and that you\u2019re likely to achieve.<\/p>\n

In contrast, if you need to be at the top of the class, out-perform other very intelligent students, get a certain job, etc., you will be stressed because these outwardly-focused goals are not readily within your personal control.\u00a0 Such outcomes are unpredictable, and will depend on what other people do and think as least as much as on your own actions.<\/p><\/blockquote>\n

Remember, too, that what you do with your life is your decision.\u00a0 Try to separate out\u00a0 what you believe your family or friends expect of you from what you expect of you.<\/strong><\/p>\n

\u201cThinking Like a Lawyer.\u201d<\/strong>\u00a0 If there\u2019s one thing we all agree that law school teaches students, it\u2019s to \u201cthink like a lawyer.\u201d\u00a0 What that actually means, though, may surprise you.\u00a0 The process of learning to \u201cthink like a lawyer\u201d often means students come unmoored from their long-held values.\u00a0 They may find that \u201cIt depends\u201d is the best and truest answer they can give, whereas before law school they would have answered unequivocally, \u201cThat is not acceptable.\u201d\u00a0 \u201cThinking like a lawyer\u201d is very definitely a professional skill, but it need not become a personal skill.\u00a0 For more on \u201cthinking like a lawyer,\u201d and ways to minimize this stressor, see here<\/a>.<\/p>\n

Fear of Failure (and the Illusion of Control).<\/strong>\u00a0 No one likes to fail, least of all students who have for at least sixteen years experienced nothing but the highest level of success in school.\u00a0 Students closer to graduation may think less of failing in law school and more of failing in practice.\u00a0 Everyone makes mistakes.\u00a0 Everyone<\/em>.\u00a0 The best we can do is to learn from those mistakes.\u00a0 As quoted on a sign in a colleague\u2019s office:\u00a0 \u201cGood judgment comes from experience; experience comes from bad judgment.\u201d<\/p>\n

Related to failing is the illusion of control.\u00a0 Most of us think we can control more than we really can (and thus avoid \u201cbad\u201d outcomes).\u00a0 What we must learn, however, is that we cannot control what other students do; we cannot control the law; we cannot control the facts as they come to us; and we cannot control what the other parties do.\u00a0 We will be less stressed if we realize sooner rather than later that our ability to control the outcome is limited.<\/p>\n

Partying and other Distractions.<\/strong>\u00a0 Everyone needs to unwind.\u00a0 However, Professor Krieger cautions against \u201cleav[ing] your common sense behind.\u201d\u00a0 Excessive drinking, partying, video gaming, overeating, overspending, or oversleeping (to name a few) will only add to your stress, not relieve it.\u00a0 As Professor Krieger notes, such behaviors often mask other more significant concerns (like depression or, perhaps, alcoholism).\u00a0 If you are using your \u201cneed to unwind from law school\u201d as the justification for any of these behaviors, you may want to seek professional help.<\/p>\n

Law School Debt.<\/strong> This is the other obvious and unavoidable stressor, but as Professor Krieger emphasizes, \u201cbe clear that debt should not drive your career choice.\u201d\u00a0 Take out only as much money as you will need to pay for school and avoid using borrowed money to pay for extravagances.\u00a0 When you do have to pay back your debt, you may be able to use a graduated repayment plan, where your initial payments are lower, increasing over time.\u00a0 Or you may qualify for a loan repayment assistance program, offered by many schools whose graduates go into public service jobs.\u00a0 For an example, see here<\/a>.<\/strong><\/p>\n

Lying.<\/strong>\u00a0 Professor Krieger\u2019s last stressor may be somewhat surprising.\u00a0 Unfortunately, the sad truth is that there are lawyers who do lie. (How do you think all those lawyer jokes got started?)\u00a0 Maybe they (or you) call it \u201cshading\u201d or \u201cstretching\u201d the facts of your billable time or of your case or even of your life, there\u2019s a point where you know it\u2019s neither.\u00a0 As a former student of mine said, she needs to pass \u201cThe Mom Test.\u201d\u00a0 That is, she decided that she had to be able to \u2018fess up to her mother anything she\u2019s done at work.<\/p>\n

Professor Krieger notes that lying will literally make you sick, both physically and emotionally, and can be a cause of significant stress.\u00a0 Maybe \u201cThe Mom Test\u201d works for you; maybe it doesn\u2019t.\u00a0 But find something that does work so you can avoid this stressor.<\/p>\n

I would add one more stressor to this list:\u00a0 Finding a Job.<\/strong>\u00a0 This is probably the third obvious and, these days, unavoidable stressor.\u00a0 Since 2008, particularly, it has become more and more difficult for even the highest ranking students to find a job.\u00a0 I cannot promise you that upon graduation you will find the legal job of your dreams.\u00a0 But you will find a job.\u00a0 Very few people ever land in \u201cthe\u201d job right off the bat anyway, so work hard and do your best at whatever it is you must do and plan how to get where you want to go.<\/p>\n

I cannot say that as a law student I was immune from stress or even from depression.\u00a0 At one point or another, I felt the weight of most of the stressors I list above, sometimes several of them simultaneously.\u00a0 Even as a law professor, some of these same stressors re-emerge.\u00a0 Simply being aware of them goes a long way in avoiding \u2013 or minimizing \u2013 them.\u00a0 Sometimes I remember the simple saying:\u00a0 This, too, shall pass.<\/em>\u00a0 And, eventually, it does.<\/p>\n

For more on being a \u201chealthy, happy lawyer,\u201d see Judge Patrick J. Schlitz\u2019s article<\/a>.\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 <\/em><\/p>\n

Cross posted at Ms. JD.<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

The leaves are changing, the nights are cool, and there\u2019s a nip in the air in the early mornings.\u00a0 That means it\u2019s October, which means for most law students that school has been in session for nearly two months (for most students).\u00a0 It\u2019s around this time that the 1Ls perhaps notice an increase in workload.\u00a0 […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":28,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"ocean_post_layout":"","ocean_both_sidebars_style":"","ocean_both_sidebars_content_width":0,"ocean_both_sidebars_sidebars_width":0,"ocean_sidebar":"","ocean_second_sidebar":"","ocean_disable_margins":"enable","ocean_add_body_class":"","ocean_shortcode_before_top_bar":"","ocean_shortcode_after_top_bar":"","ocean_shortcode_before_header":"","ocean_shortcode_after_header":"","ocean_has_shortcode":"","ocean_shortcode_after_title":"","ocean_shortcode_before_footer_widgets":"","ocean_shortcode_after_footer_widgets":"","ocean_shortcode_before_footer_bottom":"","ocean_shortcode_after_footer_bottom":"","ocean_display_top_bar":"default","ocean_display_header":"default","ocean_header_style":"","ocean_center_header_left_menu":"","ocean_custom_header_template":"","ocean_custom_logo":0,"ocean_custom_retina_logo":0,"ocean_custom_logo_max_width":0,"ocean_custom_logo_tablet_max_width":0,"ocean_custom_logo_mobile_max_width":0,"ocean_custom_logo_max_height":0,"ocean_custom_logo_tablet_max_height":0,"ocean_custom_logo_mobile_max_height":0,"ocean_header_custom_menu":"","ocean_menu_typo_font_family":"","ocean_menu_typo_font_subset":"","ocean_menu_typo_font_size":0,"ocean_menu_typo_font_size_tablet":0,"ocean_menu_typo_font_size_mobile":0,"ocean_menu_typo_font_size_unit":"px","ocean_menu_typo_font_weight":"","ocean_menu_typo_font_weight_tablet":"","ocean_menu_typo_font_weight_mobile":"","ocean_menu_typo_transform":"","ocean_menu_typo_transform_tablet":"","ocean_menu_typo_transform_mobile":"","ocean_menu_typo_line_height":0,"ocean_menu_typo_line_height_tablet":0,"ocean_menu_typo_line_height_mobile":0,"ocean_menu_typo_line_height_unit":"","ocean_menu_typo_spacing":0,"ocean_menu_typo_spacing_tablet":0,"ocean_menu_typo_spacing_mobile":0,"ocean_menu_typo_spacing_unit":"","ocean_menu_link_color":"","ocean_menu_link_color_hover":"","ocean_menu_link_color_active":"","ocean_menu_link_background":"","ocean_menu_link_hover_background":"","ocean_menu_link_active_background":"","ocean_menu_social_links_bg":"","ocean_menu_social_hover_links_bg":"","ocean_menu_social_links_color":"","ocean_menu_social_hover_links_color":"","ocean_disable_title":"default","ocean_disable_heading":"default","ocean_post_title":"","ocean_post_subheading":"","ocean_post_title_style":"","ocean_post_title_background_color":"","ocean_post_title_background":0,"ocean_post_title_bg_image_position":"","ocean_post_title_bg_image_attachment":"","ocean_post_title_bg_image_repeat":"","ocean_post_title_bg_image_size":"","ocean_post_title_height":0,"ocean_post_title_bg_overlay":0.5,"ocean_post_title_bg_overlay_color":"","ocean_disable_breadcrumbs":"default","ocean_breadcrumbs_color":"","ocean_breadcrumbs_separator_color":"","ocean_breadcrumbs_links_color":"","ocean_breadcrumbs_links_hover_color":"","ocean_display_footer_widgets":"default","ocean_display_footer_bottom":"default","ocean_custom_footer_template":"","ocean_post_oembed":"","ocean_post_self_hosted_media":"","ocean_post_video_embed":"","ocean_link_format":"","ocean_link_format_target":"self","ocean_quote_format":"","ocean_quote_format_link":"post","ocean_gallery_link_images":"on","ocean_gallery_id":[],"footnotes":""},"categories":[34,122],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-15229","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-legal-education","category-public","entry"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/law.marquette.edu\/facultyblog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/15229","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/law.marquette.edu\/facultyblog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/law.marquette.edu\/facultyblog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/law.marquette.edu\/facultyblog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/28"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/law.marquette.edu\/facultyblog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=15229"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/law.marquette.edu\/facultyblog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/15229\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/law.marquette.edu\/facultyblog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=15229"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/law.marquette.edu\/facultyblog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=15229"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/law.marquette.edu\/facultyblog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=15229"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}