Mindset/Psychology | Page 5 of 13 | Make This Your Last Time

July 31, 2024September 4, 2024 - 3 Comments

What to Do After the Bar Exam to Live a Normal Life Again (21 Post-Bartum Ideas)

Weeks and months of insanity preparing for the bar exam while putting on life on hold.

The onslaught of psychologically tormenting questions.

It’s over.

The hard-fought battle has ended. The dust has settled. There’s nothing left. No rewards. Just palpable silence (filled only with “how do you think you did? oh wow”) and an empty space in your heart. What were you fighting for this whole time?

It’s hard to believe it’s over, isn’t it?

We get attached to the struggle.

Now yet another difficult part called “waiting” begins. It might be harder than the actual prep. After the shell shock that was the bar exam, what do you do?

What is “free time” again? Is it edible? Will life be the same?

Some people seem to be completely happy with this state of being, while others get post-bartum depression. Let’s recover from your mixed feelings and bring life back to normal.

Here are 21 ideas on what to do to stay sane (and a few things NOT to do) if you have post bar exam depression (ideas that have nothing to do with studying for the exam “just in case” even though the bar exam is over).

July 6, 2024June 21, 2025 - 4 Comments

Common Traits of Bar Passers & Why Mental Fortitude Is Important for Bar Preparation

They say knowledge is power (and you can never have too much power).

But why is it that with all the information out there, we don’t always get to where we want to go? Why do 80 percent of New Year resolutions fail by February? (Remember those? LOL)

“If more information was the answer, then we’d all be billionaires with perfect abs.”

Knowledge applied correctly is power.

Knowledge is potential energy. It’s what we DO with the knowledge, not the fact that we have them, not the fact that we declare our desire.

If you have the raw material but can’t bring yourself to make a sand castle, if you can’t turn that potential energy in your mind into kinetic energy, what’s the use?

But even then, the top differentiator that I’ve encountered with people taking the bar isn’t skills or knowledge.

It’s HOW they think. I lowkey hesitate to use the term “mindset” because it’s sometimes associated with impractical woo-woo things like visualization.

But the point remains: The hurdle is often internal.

"half of bar prep involves preparing oneself mentally"

"the bar exam is all about your mental fitness and your ability to retain a crap ton of information without going crazy. Take care of yourself this time around."

It’s getting harder to pass the bar exam…and that’s exactly why you should go for it now. And make this your last time.

It’s not going to get easier. But when the bar is set high, it’s actually an opportunity to stand out more.

How?

If you observe people who have passed the bar exam long enough, you will notice some patterns in their behavior:

June 7, 2024June 7, 2024 - No Comments

Passing the Washington Bar Exam (UBE) by Enjoying the Process and Moving the Needle

Roxanneh passed the 2024 February Washington Bar Exam (UBE) on her first try, with enough room in her score to spare.

💬 “I took the California bar twice unsuccessfully, and finally decided to go back to take it in Washington, where I went to law school. I passed Washington on my first try (and on a February exam) comfortably, with a score high enough to transfer to any of the UBE states.”

But she switched from another bar exam elsewhere (California), so she still brings the wisdom of a repeater!

Let’s see what she did to make her attempt at the UBE successful.

June 2, 2024June 28, 2024 - 28 Comments

How to Get Motivation Studying for the Bar Exam

You’ve seen all the euphoria from people who passed the bar exam.

You’re probably “inspired” and “motivated” when you look at bar exam success stories and accounts of people who excitedly announce they passed the bar exam.

When that happens, we say things like “if they can do it, so can I” (true). Or “I needed this today.”

Today?

That’s some “new year, new me” type energy. I’m not letting you off the hook like that.

Anyone can desire to pass the bar. Anyone can fixate on the goal and SAY they want it.

These are people who come to me desperate and lost… get “inspired” or gain “perspective”… and then return to the same old cycle looking for hits of relief.

May 28, 2024February 4, 2026 - 22 Comments

Myths of Memorizing for the Bar Exam

Many bar takers are obsessed with the idea of memorization for the bar exam.

Understandably, a lot of students naturally panic and have concerns about it. There’s a LOT to remember after all.

But panic mutates into paralysis.

They stay stuck thinking, “As long as I memorize this perfectly, I will be set for the bar exam.”

They end up bag holding theoretical knowledge they don’t know when or how to use, neglect the performance test in the process, and end up with a score that’s not terrible but not great either. After all, they still know enough to be familiar.

This is a common thought process, especially for those starting out. This may seem like a safe approach, but it’s actually reckless.

Maybe that’s why people are excited about the possibility of open-book bar exams in some states. I eagerly await their realization that it’s not just about having access to information—but whether they can use it properly. Removing the memorization requirement doesn’t really change the exam. In fact, it will probably hurt if you’re wasting time looking things up.

It’s not that I’m ragging on memorization. You should memorize to succeed on the bar exam—but not at the expense of learning how to wield the information.

Memorizing is simply table stakes. Everyone’s doing it. It’s a minimum requirement. Just a cost of entry.

So you do want to start memorizing as early as you can.

But I want to point out what bar takers miss when they get tunnel vision around memorization. Don’t miss the forest for the trees: