I am still here. I knew I would not be on much during finals, but I thought I would blog shortly after the last exam. My how your plans can suddenly change.
After the last exam I had a short week break before the summer session started. I was extremely tired, but for a law student that has become an everyday thing in my life. Boy was I wrong. I went into the hospital with diabetes ketoacidosis. After 2 days in ICU and 2 more in a room I was allowed to come home to adjust to my new life as a Type 1 diabetic.
Law school, 2 jobs, and my family is enough on my plate. I really do not want to start giving myself 3 shots of insulin a day, but that is the life I now lead. I had all the symptoms, but had no idea I had diabetes. I have a great wife to help me cope diabetes. I hope my life settles down, but if not I will each day realize I am a blessed man whose cup runneth over.
Finals & Diabetes…that was a fun month.
Exam time! Tips for survival.
13 days until my first exam! The exams seem to get here so fast. I understand that all law students carry a heavy burden during this time of the year. The full time students are facing possibly 5 exams, and the non-traditional students are facing possibly 3 exams while working a full time job and trying to fit in a spouse and kids. We all have our own difficulties, and each of them will be hard to juggle during the next few weeks. Here are my tips for survival.
1. Keep your mind focused on what is important, Prioritize.
2. Do not forget to get some exercise on a regular basis. If you do not take care of yourself you will not be any good to anyone. Your family time will suffer and your grades will suffer if you are not 100%.
3. Study wisely. Focus on each exam with a plan for each day that finishes 2 days before the exam.
4. Have a nice dinner with the family or other students the night before the exam. Lasting relationships are more important then the grade you receive on the exam, and it will help you relax.
5. Pray, as long as there are test we will always have prayer in school.
I will see you again after May 5, 2009.
What advice do you have to survive?
Domain name purchase.
Today I purchased my domain names for my future law practice. Yes I know, It is at least 2 years away, but I would hate to wait 2 years just to find my name taken by another person.
The price of a domain name seem small compared to the cost of 3 or 4 years in school. It cost around $50 to buy the domain name for 5 years. That is just a drop in the bucket compared to just my books for one semester. I purchased 2 names because I could not decide which one I liked the best. In the end I will probably link them together.
Domain names get purchased every day. Chance are your first choice is already gone. In 2 years your 10th choice may be gone!! Do not hesitate. Spend the $50 so your solo practice name is waiting for you when you finish this journey and begin the next journey.
How often do you blog and why?
Blogging is new to me. I definitely can see it will be a great marketing tool in the future once I am out of law school. I think it will be a great way for me to get information to my future clients and really let them know who I am.
Today it is different. I have many questions about why should I blog. Practice, practice, practice. I know gaining experience is the best way to improve my blogging. Experience is one great reason to blog today. Another reason is hopefully, it will allow me to meet more of my future colleges in this virtual world we now live in. Why do you blog?
How often do you blog? I will say the past 2 years I have been reading different blogs trying to learn as much as I can about different areas of the law. During this time it really disappoints me when my favorite blogs do not post for a few days. Some have become my favorites because they post often and always have new information I can read. How often do you blog?
Should you really send that email???
Twice in the last year I have had an email come back to bite me. When I sent both messages there was nothing intended to stir up or make the other party angry. Both times that is just what happened.
When you send an email it is impossible for the receiving party to understand your tone of voice unless you offer some explanation. It may sound perfectly normal in your head, but if it reads “what are you going to do about that?” It may come across abrasive and cold. No, that was not the sentence in my email. You can insert your own sentence and easily see how things can be misunderstood.
I have started my own policy not to send email if i am upset. I will type the message and come back to it later. It is also wise to read your emails out loud to see different ways the message could come across. The main point is just think about who is reading your message and make sure you do your best to deliver the correct message. Do you have any email restriction on yourself?
Spring Break!
We wear many different hats as a non-traditional student. The full time job, part time job, school, and do not forget a husband and father. It is easy to let yourself become overwhelmed. Finally, spring break is here, and we get to take the student hat off for a few days.
I use the time to focus on some of my favorite things in life that I possible have been neglecting. I have played golf twice with my son. I have taken my wife out to lunch and dinner. I enjoyed watching my daughter in a high school golf match.
So my advice is to remember why we are doing this. Think about the family you have and the reason you are pushing yourself to achieve these extremely burdensome goals. Recharge, rededicated and renew your drive during spring break. Finals are only a few short weeks away!
Do you get stressed out by long term goals?
Some times when I think about opening my solo practice it seems light years away! It would be easy to think it may never happen, But I never get stressed over long term goals. The reason is I focus on short term goals. I focus on what is the next step without worrying about the long term goal.
I focus this week on just being prepared for class to the best of my ability. That will take me each week to the next short term goal of having a good semester. Each week and each semester will finally bring me to graduation in May of 2011. Then taking the bar and opening my office actually seem like goals that are not light years away.
Now you know I count in weeks to reach my long term goals. What works best for you? Please comment so we can all help each other.
First Post Ever- An Introduction
Hi everyone,
My name is Michael West, and I am a non-traditional student. I have a full time job, a wife, 2 teenagers, and I attend school at night. I attend Atlanta’s John Marshall Law School. I tend to make jokes about life constantly and try not to ever take life to serious. I am a 2L part time at night. I know everyone is thrilled SPU has finally opened its doors!
I have never posted a blog so, this is also a learning experience.
I am looking forward to getting to know everyone!
Hello world!
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