Fail Your Way to Success

Once upon a time I took the Bar exam right after law school and failed. I took two years off, as I became the mother of an adorable little girl. The second time around, it took me a few months of early bar prep and a lot of family support to get back into study mode. This time I had a fresh set of eyes that had more real world experience then my post law school grad self. I was able to see the bar exam for what it was …a minimum competencey test and I told myself everyday the bar is a minimum competency test and I am more than minimally qualified to be an attorney. If you do not pass this time there is always a next time; life is not a race and there are far more worse things that can happen in life than failing the bar exam.

This time around I had less time to study and more responsibilities as I have a child. Therefore, I had to strategically approach this exam, be a sheep, and pick up points where I missed them on my first try. The key to my success was sitting in an envelope, my failed bar exam results. After spending several days analyzing my scores, I determined that I lost major points on the MBEs which I still remember being super confusing. All the answers seemed right!

I contacted classmates that had recently taken the exam during the pandemic to know what to expect and what resources to consider. I had done Barbri the first time around but it did not appeal to my personal studying style so I did not use it the second time around. I only listened to the lectures in the background while doing chores.

I had the decision of choosing a new bar prep program, private tutor, or both. This required some soul searching on how much hand holding do I feel I need. I knew I had the tools, time, and was familiar with the overall grueling process of bar pre; but, I just needed someone to point out my weaknesses. Similar to a personal trainer checking my form and my current work out and diet plan…I needed a professional that knew what they were doing and could help pin point my areas of improvement. Thus, I went with a private tutor this time around. As a repeat bar exam taker, I feel that since I had an idea of what I needed to improve on because I had my failed bar exam results in my arsenal. In the end the second time around, I failed my way to success…

On an upcoming post, I will list all the resources I used and tips that made a huge difference to my bar prep this time around.