Be Your Best Advocate, No One Else Can or Will Be

By: Jeffrey Yoham 

  Since beginning law school, I’ve learned lessons not just from my courses but from navigating the environment and the experiences interlaced within. Now, in my third and final year, one truth has been reinforced every semester to varying degrees—though my first year made it clearest of all. The truth is that no one will advocate for you. Only you can truly champion your cause through your choices. Others may offer support or easy votes of confidence, but when the hammer falls and you miss the mark, you alone bear the burden to better yourself. I believe law school, especially at the beginning, is a zero-sum game. No matter the gestures of companionship or comforting language, where you land depends on the decisions you made. 

  In light of this, be sure to make those decisions based on what is best for you in the circumstances. Don’t take courses, join activities, or forego responsibilities simply because others are free to do them and you don’t want to feel left out. They are not taking your courses and therefore should not dictate your schedule. If it’s something that you may regret, that doesn’t improve your experience, or align with your goals, learn the power to simply say no. That single word can save you from regret, reneging on decisions, unnecessary stress, and wasted energy. Whatever setbacks or failures result from following someone else’s lead won’t be shared by them. At most, they’ll offer compassionate words that you’ll get through it, but they then move on to their own stressors, tasks, and obligations. Encouragement costs nothing, and most give it freely—but it won’t lighten your burden. Don’t let one misguided choice be the reason for months of stress. 

  Of course, pressure can push you to improve and grow, but not all challenges are worth accepting. When you’re already carrying heavy loads, discernment is as important as discipline. Craft a law school experience that fits your goals—not what others claim will be easy or look good on a résumé. Law school is its own crucible: enter it, endure the process’s triumphs and losses, satisfy all requirements, and emerge stronger. It is rigorous enough without being thrown off course by someone else’s ambitions, interests, or persuasion to do something. Do your own research. Come to your own decisions. Mark your own path because soon only you will be walking down it.  

  Most relationships in this environment are temporary and transactional, fading once their shared purpose ends. Don’t rely on others to be your crutch or compass, even if they seem to invite it—that signal can unfortunately often be a one-sided or a fruitless endeavor. No one will hold you accountable, make you learn, or provide you with discipline. Not your classmates, professors, or advisors. You may forge lifelong friendships, valuable connections, or even find your future partner, but law school doesn’t reward you for the friends you made along the way. It rewards you for staying the course, understanding the material, and enduring the process. 

  Once you learn to stand as your own advocate here, you’ll carry that strength into advocating for your clients or fighting for your cause.