I am Suffering from Burnout Forum

[LjakW]

1L, second semester. I got around the median in my first.
At least in my first semester I was motivated; now, I can barely look at a book. I have finals in about three weeks and I have done zero work so far and cannot start studying (I can't even think of how to begin).
I know I have a problem but I just don't know what to do. Any help, please?

[jarofsoup]

1L, second semester. I got around the median in my first.
At least in my first semester I was motivated; now, I can barely look at a book. I have finals in about three weeks and I have done zero work so far and cannot start studying (I can't even think of how to begin).
I know I have a problem but I just don't know what to do. Any help, please?

Do something fun.

[LjakW]

Do something fun.

That's all I've done for the last 4 months.

[macattaq]

Do CALI lessons in bed or listen to law school podcasts and take notes.

[SteelReserve]

Get on your horse. You have 2 more years of this stuff, and 2L is much much harder in terms of work load.

[270910]

Get on your horse. You have 2 more years of this stuff, and 2L is much much harder in terms of work load.

I don't doubt this, but what makes people say it? The answer is obvious if you make law review, but since 90%+ don't... what makes it so brutal?

[1ferret!]

I got a perspective on this from a 2L at my school...
Three categories:

If you are in the top third, you've gotta really pour gas on the fire after first semester because you really want to stay up there within striking distance of the top, and know that a bunch of people who slipped first semester are gonna be hot on your heels. Lots of work, and lots of stress.

If you are in the bottom third, you've gotta really step up your game because in all probability, the rest of the class either put in considerably more effort or you are simply outmatched by your class-mates. Lots of effort required to outwork your industrious classmates, and lots of stress to keep yourself from getting kicked out and in all likely-hood wasting a ton of money just to fail.

If you are in the middle somewhere, you can likely relax. You recognize that whatever effort you put into the first semester was good enough to beat out a lot of your classmates and so you aren't scared of failing out, and likewise, you aren't likely going to recover and get to the top of the class. You can rest assured that it won't be your grades getting you that job you want so you can kick up your feet and coast a little. The least stressful place is the middle of the pack.

Don't really know if I buy it, but an interesting perspective regardless.

[270910]

I got a perspective on this from a 2L at my school...
Three categories:

If you are in the top third, you've gotta really pour gas on the fire after first semester because you really want to stay up there within striking distance of the top, and know that a bunch of people who slipped first semester are gonna be hot on your heels. Lots of work, and lots of stress.

If you are in the bottom third, you've gotta really step up your game because in all probability, the rest of the class either put in considerably more effort or you are simply outmatched by your class-mates. Lots of effort required to outwork your industrious classmates, and lots of stress to keep yourself from getting kicked out and in all likely-hood wasting a ton of money just to fail.

If you are in the middle somewhere, you can likely relax. You recognize that whatever effort you put into the first semester was good enough to beat out a lot of your classmates and so you aren't scared of failing out, and likewise, you aren't likely going to recover and get to the top of the class. You can rest assured that it won't be your grades getting you that job you want so you can kick up your feet and coast a little. The least stressful place is the middle of the pack.

Don't really know if I buy it, but an interesting perspective regardless.

That makes great good sense second semester, I'm wondering about second year.

[reverendt]

Get on your horse. You have 2 more years of this stuff, and 2L is much much harder in terms of work load.

I don't doubt this, but what makes people say it? The answer is obvious if you make law review, but since 90%+ don't... what makes it so brutal?

1st semester of 2L was my heaviest.
I took 5 substantive 3 credit classes which meant 5, 3-hour in-school exams to study for instead of the 4 each semester we had in 1L (we also had legal writing).
Plus I'm on a journal...it's not just law review, but and other journal will keep you busy, doing cite and sources and writing my note.
This semester is a different story. Still had the journal stuff, but only 4 substantive classes (plus trial advocacy), and 1 of them has no reading to speak of. I've actually started picking up some part time research work.
Bottom line....there IS a light at the end of the tunnel....you just can't see it yet. Put your head down and plow through the next month and then enjoy the summer!

[nealric]

If you are in the middle somewhere, you can likely relax. You recognize that whatever effort you put into the first semester was good enough to beat out a lot of your classmates and so you aren't scared of failing out, and likewise, you aren't likely going to recover and get to the top of the class. You can rest assured that it won't be your grades getting you that job you want so you can kick up your feet and coast a little. The least stressful place is the middle of the pack.

Horrible advice. I'm convinced would have been shut out at OCI if I had followed it. A top 10% 2nd semester can catapult you from median to top 1/4- making a huge impact on your job prospects.

[SteelReserve]

I don't doubt this, but what makes people say it? The answer is obvious if you make law review, but since 90%+ don't... what makes it so brutal?

Disco,

I guess to some extent I just assumed anyone on this forum would be journal or moot court bound. Either one has basically become an essential to get an entry-level job, let alone a paying job or 'good' job.

That said, Law Review is really not much more work than a secondary journal, and yet the value of it greatly exceeds the value of a secondary journal. Either way you have to write a comment/note of a certain length, do the proper sourcing and bluebooking to get certified, and have to do at least some edits on others' notes/comments.

So really anyone on secondary journal or moot court (going out to competitions, writing the briefs) will be doing a similar amount of work as Law Review, just with less benefits.

Also, another difference btw 2L and 1L is OCI. If you go to a T14 or are high in rank at other schools, you're going to do a hell of a lot of interviews. These involve research on each firm, actually going to the interviews, doing callbacks, added stress, etc.

Finally, if you're the type that didn't do a journal or get LR, your goal would certainly be to jack up your class rank during 2L just so you at least have a shot at a state-level clerkship, and thus you're gonna be busting your ass!

[270910]

That said, Law Review is really not much more work than a secondary journal, and yet the value of it greatly exceeds the value of a secondary journal.

Source? This contradicts everything I have ever heard on the subject. Are you a 2L? What activities do you do?

From talking to people at my law school especially, I get the impression that LR is hours and hours per week while secondary journals involve occasional bursts of work spread throughout the semester.

I don't want to challenge you too much; maybe my impressions were just wrong.

[SteelReserve]

It's fine to challenge me!

I am a 2L on Law Review at a non-T14. The thing about whether it's LR or Journal, you have to write a lengthy, well-researched, well-edited, well-bluebooked comment. That is the bulk of your journal responsibility. Secondary journals at my school still have to do editing work on notes/comments that will be published, just like we do on LR. I suppose LR has more editing work in terms of hours, but again, the source of the stress and effort will be your comment, which you write regardless of secondary or LR status.

In sum, say in theory you got onto both LR and a secondary journal. In my opinion, it would be madness to take the secondary journal since the workload would not be that much less yet the value of LR well exceeds a secondary journal.

Feel free to ask any other questions.

[BetterCallSaul]

Clearly you aren't motivated by grades at this point. Can you come up with any other motivation to learn?

Examples: not sucking at your summer job, John Grisham novels, JUSTICE, being a lawyer one day, etc.

[rando]

In sum, say in theory you got onto both LR and a secondary journal. In my opinion, it would be madness to take the secondary journal since the workload would not be that much less yet the value of LR well exceeds a secondary journal.

Credited madness to take secondary journal. The workload isn't much less, secondary journals just publish less so the editing is less intensive. But writing the comment is really the brunt of your 2L work. Well.. maybe it's more split. Either way, secondary journals still had their fare share of bb'ing, cite checking etc.

[themillsman22]

I am a 2L on LR at a T-14. The workload is immense. I can only speak to the LR here, but the note is a secondary consideration compared to other responsibilities. Furthermore, every student I've spoken to (here) on secondary journals has indicated their editing workload is substantially less. I would say you are pretty accurate in your assumptions disco. Steel is correct though that the value of LR is going to well exceed a secondary journal.

[SteelReserve]

I am a 2L on LR at a T-14. The workload is immense. I can only speak to the LR here, but the note is a secondary consideration compared to other responsibilities.

That's really interesting, are your primary duties then bluebooking, attribution checking, and text-editing?

For me, I'd say it's not just the workload but the general stress and effort the comment requires over editing.

Editing is very cathartic for me and I almost enjoy it at least compared to writing the comment which requires researching every nook and cranny, analysis, creation of work product, etc.

By contrast, editing, while time consuming, is rather relaxing. I can power up the ipod and just get to work having a definitive end-goal, which can be rewarding!

[mikeytwoshoes]

There’s a girl from my UG at my LS; I never knew she was a bottle blonde. She’s on a secondary journal. I ran into her the other day. She has somewhere between 4 and 6 inches of un-dyed “roots.” Suffice it to say, secondary journal work is time consuming.

[Leeroy Jenkins]

1L, second semester. I got around the median in my first.
At least in my first semester I was motivated; now, I can barely look at a book. I have finals in about three weeks and I have done zero work so far and cannot start studying (I can't even think of how to begin).
I know I have a problem but I just don't know what to do. Any help, please?

oh hai have we met?

[steve_nash]

I think that the main law review is more work than a secondary journal, but work really shouldn't be part of the equation here. Either the main or secondary journal will add on your workload, but the value of what you gain from the journal makes it worth it, imo. And take the main one if you can get it. Regardless, 2L spring semester will be better unless you get an executive board position on law review.

[King]

What you should do is break your leg and get hospitalized during finals week. Then you can be exempt from the test. You can delay graduation by a semester.

[sophie316]

1L, second semester. I got around the median in my first.
At least in my first semester I was motivated; now, I can barely look at a book. I have finals in about three weeks and I have done zero work so far and cannot start studying (I can't even think of how to begin).
I know I have a problem but I just don't know what to do. Any help, please?

I don't have any advice really, but I am in the exact same place. I stopped caring about law school in week two of this semester and have processed approximately 20% of my classes...maybe less for admin. Blergh.

[LjakW]

I don't have any advice really, but I am in the exact same place. I stopped caring about law school in week two of this semester and have processed approximately 20% of my classes...maybe less for admin. Blergh.

Well since we're in the same section, this does help.
I guess we'll be right next to each other on the curve.