Make sure you love what you’re doing

Make sure you love what you’re doing

By Bob Garon
TODAY Newspaper
Tuesday, November 16, 2004 1:22 AM


Dear Mr. Garon: I am a law student at Saint Louis University, Baguio City. I started my course in 2002 with such great vigor and enthusiasm that, at the start, my name was one of those that led the dean’s list.


Now that I am in my 3rd year, I got bored of the usual schedule of reading endlessly, which is the chief requirement in law school. I got so tired and extremely exhausted, so much so that during the final exams in the early week of this month, I simply set aside the books and had a good sleep and rest. I have not known the results but to be sure, of my 8 subjects, I have a failure.


How can I cope with stress? What shall I do to save myself from the tension that is life-threatening due to the routinary, monotonous and tight lifestyle brought about by my being a student of law?


—Jose Franco M. Valentin



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First, I need to ask if you truly want to be a lawyer? If so, then you need to be willing to pay the price. Law is a very tough course. It requires, as you say, a lot of reading.


All learning is boring if there isn’t much interest in the subject matter. I hate math and never did even reasonably well in it. I am totally bored with math, so I stay away from it and I’m very happy to do so. No regrets whatsoever.


Now, if you truly want to be a lawyer, you will have to do a lot of reading even after you pass the bar. If that stresses you out so much that you can’t handle it, then perhaps law isn’t for you.


If, however, you do like what you’re studying, you might need to pace yourself better, eat a more balanced diet and exercise more. Remember that boredom is something that we all have to deal with sooner or later in every profession.


Since you have been on the dean’s list, seems like you have a good mind for law. Still, what’s needed is a love for what you are doing. If so, then you need to be willing to pay the high price in terms of pain for getting through law school.


Beware also of those moments we all have when we sometimes feel like throwing overboard everything we have worked so hard for. It is as if we experience a moment of madness and feel like dumping what, in truth, we hold dear. In times like this, it’s important that we hang in there, continue to work like crazy until the moment passes. I have had a number of these experiences during my lifetime. What I had to do was dig in and hang in there for a while. Soon enough, there would be new enthusiasm and I would be off again pursuing my goal. Good luck!