by Georgia Morelli & Ambika Sinha
I’m a burgeoning lawyer, what good would sport do on my resume? Think again my little athletes; here’s some hot tips to get you back outside and back on the field. Call up your old footy team from childhood and register for next season, because getting that blood pumping might be more relevant to law school than you think.
- You’ll need the help of others
Performing as an athlete is definitely not a one-person job. You rely on your teammates on and off the field, as to win you need cooperation and some (healthy) criticism when it’s required. See those people around you in the law building? Those are your teammates! Cheer them on every now and then, and discuss strategies to get yourselves to the finish line, together (but no plagiarism please). Your Torts or Fed Con coaches have years of experience behind them, ask for help! And most importantly, give your parents a hug – they’re the ones who drove you to practice every Wednesday afternoon.
2. Dedication and perseverance are more important than talent
Athletes don’t become world champions by skipping training or neglecting a healthy sleep pattern for Netflix. It takes consistent dedication to perform well in sport, not those long arms or quick legs you were fortunately born with. Now, we know every law student is a smart cookie. But getting into UNSW law is only the first hurdle in the long 400m to the finish line. Put in some serious dedication, however, and you’ll reap the benefits. Champions weren’t born great; likewise, no one passed the Bar exam without a little sweat and tears.
3. An essential part of your success is your health
Keeping both a healthy physical and mental mindset is essential to ensuring that you are able to be your best self. As well as physical exercise, it is important that sleep is prioritised as that is the first step to a healthy lifestyle! If you take care of both physical and mental health, they’ll become your biggest assets in law school!
4. Your attitude is everything
Be positive! An important part of sport is maintaining a positive attitude and cheering on your team mates. Sometimes your own negative thoughts can be the barriers preventing you from being your best self. Set goals and expectations for yourself and always approach them with a positive attitude. A positive attitude is essential to your success as a law student!
5. Sometimes you don’t always win
An important lesson that you learn in sport is that you don’t always win. You can sometimes experience feelings of disappointment, anger, shame and more. However, in not winning you learn the life lessons of growth, improvement and how to overcome challenges you face. This is an important lesson to learn as a law student as you won’t always win every argument, Moot, Negotiation or class discussion. However, it is the times that you don’t win that will build you as an individual trying to navigate the world of law!
7. When you do win however, it’s because you have earned it
You don’t always succeed on the first go but that’s because success doesn’t happen overnight! Each win demonstrates practice, hard work and the ability to learn from your failures and grow from them. In law school, it’s about putting in those long hours of readings and research for assignments because those that succeed are the ones who put in the hard work day after day!
Wellbeing at Law School 
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