Letter to an Anxious Law Student

Dear Danny,

Congratulations on making it into law school! Whether you just got in, or whether you’ve been here for a while, it is a really huge accomplishment, and you should be very proud of yourself for pulling it off. After all, you put in a lot of hard work trying to get here. And you have every right to feel happy about what you have done so far. So be happy. Congratulations, and welcome to the club.

Soon enough, you will find yourself in my position. You will be finishing up your second year of law school, and you will be anxious about what lies ahead. You will be trying to find a job, and you will be praying that you land something. Anything.

The job will come at some point. I think you know this deep down. But it will always make you anxious to think about it. And that's something I understand because I had the same fears. I still do.

You might be wondering why you're receiving this letter now. After all, I'm not even finished with law school yet. Wouldn't it be better for you to hear some wisdom about everything I've learned in law school once I've actually finished it?

I'll admit that option has some merits, and I debated about putting this letter off for a little while until I was actually done with law school. But, if I am being honest, I know you're scared. I know you don't want to admit it, but you have some very bad imposter syndrome at the moment. You're wondering what you are going to do in the small world that is law school, and in the slightly bigger world that is the legal profession. You're wondering whether somebody like you actually belongs in a profession that , at one time or another, ?seemed so far away. You're wondering whether you should step in the door that is right in front of you.

Simply put, I'm writing this to you now because this could not wait. I'm writing this to you now because you needed to hear this from me. Not eventually. Now. Because, believe it or not, at some point you are going to need to hear this advice again. So, I might as well start telling you now.

First, I know you're scared. Law school seems so intimidating. It's not like undergrad, or even your other master’s program. You're worried that people won't like you. You're worried that you won't have friends. After all, you see on TV that all lawyers are just looking out for their own interests. The television can't be wrong, right?

You're worried that you won't belong into this elite group that you mistakenly seem to have gotten an invitation to. You're worried that everyone will find you out and think you are a fraud.

As it turns out, the television is mostly wrong, if not completely. In fact, the only thing that it seems to get right is that law school, and the law profession itself, can be quite stressful at times.

But you belong. You belong here. You belong in the profession. And, if you are patient, and just let everything happen as it will, you will be a lawyer just like all your peers.

You belong.

You belonged ever since before your first day of class. Before classes even begin for the fall semester, you will decide to go into the law building. It's the one building you have never been to, despite the fact that you've been at the same campus for the better part of a decade. You will try to find your way around the building, and you'll try to find where your classrooms are. As it turns out, all of your classrooms will be on the same floor, so there's not much to explore.

However, you will get sidetracked. You'll notice an old photo hanging on the wall. The photo is from the 1950s, or some other decade from long ago. And that photo will be surrounded by a bunch of others like it. A bunch of photos showing the classes that have gone before you. A bunch of photos showing distinguished individuals- individuals whose footsteps you want to one day follow in Individuals whom you want to one day emulate.

One day, you want your photo to hang on that wall of distinguished individuals. But that one day is far in ?the future, and you find yourself wondering if that future will ever come for you.

You will get sidetracked again because you will notice that there are a bunch of offices where you are. Offices of your professors. You have an idea to try and find one of your professors. Someone, anyone. You want to get this notion out of your head that they are more than just a name on the wall. You want some indication that they are not just enigmatic figures.

You want to find out that they are just like you.

A few doors down, you will manage to find your writing professor. Her door is open, which surprises you. You'll come to find out that it's her policy to have her door open most of the time. You’ll decide to introduce yourself. After all, you are going to be with her for the duration of the entire academic year, so you might as well let her know who you are. You end up talking to her for a little while, and you find her to be very open and inviting. Before you know it, a bit of time has passed- maybe about 20 minutes or so. And you’ll get the sense through talking with her that, even though she does not really know you as a student yet, she understands you. She knows where you come from. She understands your trepidation about starting this new thing, about taking this new, giant step in your life.

You’ll get the sense that she is the first one to show you that you belong here, that you deserve to be here. And you’ll get the sense through talking with her that no matter what happens, you will be able to figure things out. You will be able to see that eventually things will be okay.

You’ll get the same sense in talking to your criminal law professor. Like your writing professor, you’ll find him to be very inviting. Pretty soon into the conversation, you'll surprise yourself by admitting to him out loud that you don't know what you're doing. And he will tell you that it's fine. He understands because he was like that at one point as well. And you’ll walk away from that conversation feeling that you'll be able to convince yourself that things will be okay. Maybe, you'll be able to figure out what you're doing.

I hate to break it to you, but there will be a lot of days where you won't know what you are doing. But, the best news is that many of your peers won't know either. We are all just doing our best to try and survive. And if we happen to know what we're doing, that's great. Most of us may not know what we're doing at various points, and that is okay too. And at the end of it all, you’ll discover that, whether you know what you're doing or not, you are growing. You are changing.

You are on your way to becoming a better lawyer. Each day, you are on your way to becoming a better lawyer then you were the day before.

You are growing into who you are, and that is a very good thing. You are growing, and that is the point.

And the best part is that you are not growing alone. There are people who are growing with you, growing beside you. And these people are by your side through it all.

There's Kavi, the first law student in your class that you will ever meet.

?When you meet him for the first time, the first thing you'll try to do is to make him laugh. You will succeed, and you will know from that day forward that he is your friend. Every single day that you go to class, he will be with you- whether it is to get something you need from your backpack, or just to check in on how you're doing before your 8:30 AM classes.

There's Chris and Jared- two people who will never fail to say hello to you each morning, and whose sense of humor will always make you laugh.

There's the people that you will share meals with- Anthony every Sunday and Josh every Thursday.

There's Lili and Ashleigh- two people who you will always try (and gloriously fail in) making plans with. But that’s okay because their personality and sheer joy never fail to rub off on you, and you always find yourself smiling from ear to ear when you are with them.

?There’s Allison and Jonathan- people who will always seem to know just what to say when you need to hear it the most.

?And then there's Sean, who you will find yourself opening up to in ways you did not think were possible.

These people, and many others, are your biggest supporters. Keep them close, and remember that they are there for you. These are the ones that will stay with you through thick and thin. These are the ones that make the world that is law school, and the legal future ahead of you, entirely manageable.

These are the ones who will show you that you belong.

And then there are other people who are just a year above you- the people who make sure to watch over and protect you. There's Gabby, there's Amy, and there's Zach and Maddie, and you'll find that they'll go out of their way to make sure that you are keeping your head above water. They’ll go out of their way to impart their wisdom on you- go out of their way to show you that the world maybe isn't as scary as you think it is. They will serve as guiding lights for you, and they will give you permission to forge your own path.

But of course, you won't need permission. Because you'll find that law school allows you to take some chances that you would have never considered otherwise. On a whim, you'll enter some competitions, and each time you'll be paired with some amazing people, whether it's Olivia, Joseph, Mariana, or Maddie. And each time, they will remind you to have fun. You’ll bond with them over the experiences, and at the end of it all, no matter how you do, you'll remember the joy that you shared with each of them- the joy that comes when you go through it all together. ?So chase after it. Go have some fun.

And even still, you will explore some areas of the law that you did not think you were going to touch. You'll get the opportunity to see an appellate judge up close and personal, and you'll get to watch some real life court proceedings. These experiences, for the first time, will allow you to realize that maybe the things you learn in law school do make sense after all. And you’ll get the sense that maybe, just maybe, you can do it too.

?And at some point, you will decide to take some classes on trial advocacy. You will get paired with Bianca, and you will realize the two of you operate on wavelengths that are so similar that you will laugh every time you think about it. And it is through that laughter that the two of you realize that everything will be fine. And for the first time, you will have a little confidence in your ability as an advocate.

?Above all, your workshop will be run by a lawyer who you feel really pushes you to reach your highest potential as an advocate. He will see that potential in you. He will be tough, but he will give you what you need. He will give you the guidance you need to take the next bigger step. And when he feels it is warranted, he will tell you that you have made great progress from where you first started.

Believe him. He is right. You will soon do more than you ever thought possible. In fact, you've already started.

That is not to say that things will be easy. You will have regrets, and you will make mistakes. Some will be small, and some will be rather big. Some may haunt you for a long time to come. But at some point, you'll realize that just because you've made an error, it does not necessarily mean the end of the world. And at some point, you will just have to pick yourself up and move on. It’ll sting, sure, but sometimes life does that. You’ll live.

There will be many nights where you wonder if you really can do all that you set out to do.

Spoiler alert: you can.

Many people will tell you that, including your close friend who practices law in Wisconsin. and including one of your best friends who will call you at 4:00 AM when you are in the middle of a little breakdown. They will set you right, but more importantly, you will also right yourself again. There will still be tears, plenty of them, but you will realize that pain does, and will, pass. There will be hard days, but on those days, you will find yourself repeating one phrase in particular:

For today, I am okay.

Say this often enough, and you will start to believe it. Say this often enough, and eventually, it will be true.

And through it all, you will find your voice. One day you will write something that will make everybody notice you for the first time in a long while. And it will reach farther than you ever expected. And a little later after that, you and Bianca will conduct a full trial by yourselves. And that voice will continue to come back to you- a voice that might not be fully developed yet, a voice that still has some kinks around the edges that need to be fixed, but a voice nonetheless.

It is your voice.

It is the voice of a lawyer.

It is you. It is who you are, and who you will be.

Use it. Use it to your advantage. I promise you that people will hear you. I promise you that people will listen to what you have to say.

All you have to do is use your voice. Use it the way you know how.

I'll leave you with one final thing. You might not know what you're doing right now. And you might not feel like you may ever do anything that rises to the level of your peers. But there is something you should know.

You have already done so much.

Do not stop what you are doing.

Keep going. It might not feel like anything is working right now, but I promise you that it is.

You just might have to wait for the results.

And know this. I am very proud of you. I am very proud of who you are. I am very proud of what you have done. I am very proud of who you will become. And I cannot wait to see what you will do.

So have no fear. Go out there and change the world. You can do this. I believe in you. And now it is time for you to believe in yourself.

So believe. The world is out there waiting for you. Go forth and conquer.

Sincerely,

-Danny