Stoicism & Law School

“In the meantime cling tooth and nail to the following rule: not to give in to adversity, never to trust prosperity and always take full not of fortune’s habit of behaving just as she pleases, treating her as if she were actually going to do everything it is in her power to do.” – Seneca in Letters from a Stoic

People deal with law school differently.  Some hole up like  library moles.  Others drink.  A lot.  Some have a strict schedule with each hour of the day.  Others make it work by being flexible.

Any way you deal with it, can be a sobering experience.  Most students are Type A personalities who grew up “gifted” and are used to living feasting near the top of the curve.  It can be a shock to find out that you are no longer the smartest person in the room.  For some people this is no big deal.  But others cannot tolerate their grades marking them as average.

I’ve never been a huge philosophy fan.  I liked the few courses I took in undergrad but never considered any further study.  In the last year I’ve learned more about stoicism.  It appeals to me because it seems much more practical than the other schools I had studied.  It’s a constant battle to remind myself to apply its tenents but I’m getting better.

Ryan Holiday wrote a guest piece over at Tim Ferriss’ site which could serve as a nice primer to some of this subject matter.

One practical exercise Holiday talks about is called Turning the Obstacle Upside Down.  Holiday explains it

The Stoics had an exercise called Turning the Obstacle Upside Down. What they meant to do was make it impossible to not practice the art of philosophy. Because if you can properly turn a problem upside down, every “bad” becomes a new source of good.

When applied correctly, this exercise turns obstacles into opportunities.  Not making law review is a chance to focus all of your efforts on moot court.  Landing in the middle of the curve is an opportunity to develop humility and patience.

If you feel like you are just “spinning” bad news than you aren’t getting it.  Spinning has an external focus.  Turning the obstacle upside down is internally focused.  It may affect other people’s perceptions of you, but that isn’t really the point.  Stop seeing obstacles as roadblocks.  They are integral parts of your journey.  That’s when you know you are getting it.

In the words of the great Marcus Aurelius “Get rid of the judgment, get rid of the ‘I am hurt,’ you are rid of the hurt itself.”