The Question No Law Students Ask Me

Most law students obsess over individual study skills.  

How do I brief a case? 

How do I answer a cold call?

How do I take notes in class? 

While I understand these questions, they are not the best questions for students trying to achieve their academic goals.  And you can find the answers by searching around online anyway. 

I have answered these questions (and dozens more) in this newsletter, in my courses, on podcasts, and social media.  I’m happily out here answering these questions daily.   

Reflecting on these common questions, I’ve come to an interesting realization:   

Almost every question students ask me relates back to mastering one skill of many in the process of understanding the law.   

The Most Important Question 

But here is a question that no student has ever asked me: 

How do I learn the topics in my classes?   

See how that takes the focus away from individual study skills and points the attention directly at the entire process of learning? 

How do I learn the topics in my classes?   

That’s the million dollar question students should be asking.   

I don’t think there is another professor or coach on the internet who teaches law students how to learn by running every topic through a system, from day one to the final exam.  Everything I write, say and offer in my courses is about getting students to view studying as a wholistic, consistent process for every topic they learn.  

With the insane volume of information you are responsible for learning, you must chunk the material into manageable pieces and run those pieces through the same process.   

Yet so many students master one or two study skills, and then burn out or run out of time before applying the totality of study skills necessary to gain a deep understanding of every topic they will, without a doubt, see on their final exam.   

The order of operation is the other way around.  If you apply a study system, you will master the individual study skills necessary to achieve the understanding necessary to thrive on your final exams.

So, if you want to reach your academic goals, the best question to ask yourself daily is, how do I learn the topics in my classes?   

Figure Out How to Learn the Topics in Your Classes 

The most important thing you can do for yourself is to understand where you struggle in learning class topics, and then create solutions for yourself.  

To do that, you have to assess your study performance:  

Start with your first class. Identify what topics you are responsible for learning in that class.  Now, write down the individual steps you take to learn the topic. Be specific.  You don’t just read cases and then show up to the exam. From the moment you get your syllabus to the moment you sit to take the final, define your learning system.  

Talk to other law students, professors, upper-class students who have already had your professor, deans, or academic support professors to understand the totality of study skills they deem necessary to excel on the final exam.   

Based on the feedback you get, refine your system to your needs.  A great question to ask is, what do I need to do to feel confident talking about and writing these topics on an exam?  If you feel confident in your knowledge after running every topic through your system, you know you’re on the right track. If not, tweak your system. Repeat.   

Refine Your System Over Time 

The more you use your study system, the easier the individual study skills become.  I’ll bet it was hard to balance the first time you ever rode a bike.  But every time you get on that bike after the first time, it's easier to ride.  Now you hop on, even with years of not riding, with no problem.   

You will surprise yourself with how much less studying you need because, like the bike, individual study skills become second nature when you complete and consistently repeat them to learn every class topic.  

If you don't have a lot of time, consider employing my proven study system for learning every topic by purchasing a recorded or live course or signing up for a one-on-one coaching session with me so you can learn every topic and gain that confidence we all crave.