How to Survive Your First Year of Law School: Staying Happy

So I had a little bit of time to reflect on my life this morning and I realized something beautiful: When I don't like things in my life, I just get rid of them. For example, I don't like it when my closet is full of clothes I never wear. So what do I do? I get rid of them. I also don't like it when my purse/backpack is full of paper and garbage that I don't need anymore. So what do I do? I get rid of it...

What makes this important in my life is that I tend to do this with my emotional problems as well. If something is causing me angst, I tend to rid myself of whatever that thing is. If it's a job or a person, I carefully remove myself from that job or that person...if it's a negative thought or a bad habit, I simply put those things out of my mind and instead fill myself up with happy thoughts and new goals.

Over and over again I've done this...when I was done with my undergrad I realized that my life in Provo did not bring the same happiness and joy that it had brought for the previous four years, so I picked up and found something else to do.

I've had several jobs that I couldn't stand...and let me tell you it did not take long for me to quit working at those places...

I think the most important thing that I've been able to learn is how to surround myself with healthy people. I look at all my friends and my family members and all of them are people that I would be proud to be. They are moral, strong, ambitious individuals that are a great support system for me. I have come across some unhealthy people in my life, but they usually don't last long because I realize that they are not the type of people I want to know.

Some might think that it's unhealthy that I get rid of my problems as opposed to facing them head on, but honestly, I think that is how I do face them head on. I look those issues in the eye and say, "I don't want this." And then I move forward with my life.

Here is a list of things that make me happy when I don't feel so great:

FRIENDS AND FAMILY (They are one in the same to me.)
Ice cream
Laughter
Good music
Sunshine
Baby animals (disgusting I know; I'm ashamed to admit this is true)
Watching other people fall (just little falls, folks...come on, you know it's funny.)
Running/Exercise
Being outdoors
Reading
Dancing by myself
Singing in my car
Playing the piano

Feel free to add to the list. :)

How to Survive Your First Year of Law School: Contracts

1. READ YOUR HOMEWORK ASSIGNMENTS. The problem with this is that even though you do the reading, upon entering class you will still appear to be unorganized and uninformed. Whatever knowledge you thought you may have had will completely dessert you and you are left at the whim of a stern, little man with windswept hair and thick glasses. When you are absolutely forced to answer a question, most likely you will hear a negative WRONG that will resound in your ears for the duration of the period. Good luck.

2. DO NOT ASK: "CAN YOU REPEAT THAT?" This will only confirm your confusion and lack of intelligence to the professor...and he will see right through you and know that you a) have no idea as to what is going on in class, and b) that you have not done the reading.

3. DO NOT DRAW UNNECESSARY ATTENTION TO YOURSELF IN ANY WAY. This will only encourage ridicule and public humiliation. You are a 1st year law student who does not even deserve the right to a first name. This should help you to realize that anything you think is intelligent that you can add to class is most definitely NOT intelligent and consequently you will be called out for your lack of intelligence. Hopefully by now you have learned to laugh at your own misfortune.

4. DO NOT THINK YOU ARE SMARTER THAN YOUR PROFESSOR. You most definitely are not. And you will be told so. In class. In front of 50 of your peers who are attempting to compete with your intelligence.

More to come...