Surthriving Law School (and beyond...): An essential guide to surviving and thriving on your legal (and life) journey

Loved

I really like the focus of this new guide on tools and strategies that you can actually use (like the custom worksheets included throughout). It’s not necessarily a book that you read from cover to cover in one sitting (at least I didn’t) and some of the ideas are covered in similar books out there. But it’s great for practical advice and ideas addressing specific situations (like fall interviewing/firm recruiting) that’s presented in a way I haven’t seen or heard before (and all compiled into one place). The focus on wellness and well-being concepts is something that also stands out to me, as does the focus on advice for before, during and after law school. Overall the writing style is approachable and feels relatable — I think it’s definitely worth the price for what you get in terms of real world perspective.

Surthriving Law School is a great, easy read. It is technically a self help book but it distinguishes itself from the stereotypical self help style through its concrete examples and author W. Adam Hunt’s no nonsense style and willingness to share his relatable personal experience. The book contains strategies and advice that can be used not only by law school students or young lawyers but also other people in other careers or just for personal life, so it is a good buy for any and everyone.

Adam has great insight from personal experience and puts it all out in an easy to understand read. The guest contributors also added great insight! The chapter by Alison Maxwell was fantastic!

Great read - this book should have been written a long time ago. A lot of practical, real-world advice for young lawyers. I’m going to give copies to some of our associates.

A concise, highly motivational guide on life, balance, scheduling and being present in the moment. A must read resource in any phase of your life!

I read "how to be sort of happy in law school", by Kathryne Young which was very helpful when it came to the mental/relational aspects of law school + the day-to-day law school life.Adam Hunt covers some of those same bases while also filling in the blanks. These "blanks" consist of, budgeting in law school, interviews in law school, practical tips towards networking in law school, and the long-term outlook one should have in law school.Before I proceed I want to give Adam thanks for writing this book. My first semester of law school has gone decently but not great and this book has provided me with the tools I need to be great going forward, I was surviving but not "surthriving". It really has come down to "meh" study habits (habits that were hardcore in college but not so much in law school), and not deviating from my schedule. This kinda leads to the first pro this book has. Pros:1. Practical tools are provided:Adam provides you with a "surthrival toolbox" that you can apply to your law school journey right away. I love how the book touches on the importance of mental/Spiritual health via the #1 tool, meditation.Since I'm a Christian I perform a meditation of sorts in the form of prayer, and I can't emphasize how important it is to engage in this practice in some form or fashion. Prayer/meditation enables you to, as Adam illustrates, "pay better attention-that is be more mindful of your thoughts and actions for the rest of the day". I like how Adam provides reliable resources that you can rely on to learn about the different practical ways you can engage in this exercise. Furthermore, I really love how these resources are so various in terms of form...books...websites...products etc. are provided in the "Surthrival toolkit" section.In fact, what I love about this book is that it Adam leans on others/other resources in this book (as I will dive into in a later pro point of this review).Anyway, another helpful tool in this "tool box" is the budget tool. It provides a practical tool in YNAB that teaches you four rules:1. GIve every dollar a job2. Embrace your true expenses.3. Roll with the punches4. Age your money.Lastly, since I touched on my not up to par habits, I think the big question you have by now is if this book provided practical advice on how to address them.Answer: It did..... Adam introduces this made-up word called "habitizing" which is, "the process of creating a set of healthy habits that will help you surthrive in law school and life afterward. Within this idea, Adam introduces us to two separate sub-ideas, identity change, clear intention, and "habit trackers".In the "surviving in law school" chapter Adam introduces more practical advice, mainly as it pertains to finding a mentor/building relationships. One thing in particular that stuck out to me is this improv trick of saying "yes, and..." instead of "no".Here's an example Adam provides in the book "yes, I'd love to work on that, and I could definitely get to it after finals are over if that's ok?"2. Adam takes time to break down how you should approach your 1L year, 2L year, and 3L year individually. Quite a few books kinda couple all 3 together and give you generic advice, but Adam provides you with insight specific to each year of Law School.But if that's not incredible enough...Adam provides us with perspectives given by guest contributors that are currently in Law School. Like...instead of providing you with practical input from someone who's been to law school, Adam provides you with practical input from individuals that are currently 1Ls, 2Ls, and 3Ls.I also love how Adam was considerate that some of us, as I am, are currently in law school dealing with COVID-19. The 3L section of this book provides you with input on how to navigate this situation. This input is provided from a current 3L in pursuit of a career in "big law". I love how Adam goes out of his way to pair this with a current 3L non-big law track perspective, that way it helps the reader compare/contrast the advantages/disadvantages of each "track".3. Adam literally...and I mean literally takes time to break down the entire interview process in law school and beyond law school.Adam starts out with the "OCI" form of interviewing and even provides you with key interviewing ingredients+ a literal example of these ingredients in practice. This section is followed up with the top 10 questions you must be prepared to answer during law firm interviews, which was again, very very practical.Man...but it doesn't stop there, Adam shows you how to hand the 2nd round of the interview process (the call back interview). He breaks down how these interviews differ from the initial one and provides you with invaluable advice on how to handle interviews from Partners vs. interviews from mid-to-senior associates. Like it's incredible how much your approach should shift depending on if you're being interviewed by a Law partner or a Junior Associate.The ultimate takeaway I received from this section is the importance of knowing your story, but also a practical way on how to present it in an OCI. Adam proceeds to give advice on how to decide what offer to accept...which again was very practical and invaluable, and no this advice wasn't to "jump on the big law offer".4. Lastly, Adam provides advice on how to handle life after law school such as taking the bar, choosing a firm, lateraling (changing firms), and going in house. I love how Adam provides a practical"In-house visualization exercise" you can write on/download a free copy from via the surthriving Law website. In fact, Adam basically provides you with a plethora of resources you can write on/download online.But this section of the book would be incomplete without one thing....perspective, and Adam once again provides that in this section of the book. I was amazed at learning the day-to-day life of a Public interest lawyer who advocates for animal rights. I'm honestly not that into animals like that but it was amazing to learn what the day-to-day life of an animal rights advocate is like. I also love how each contributor in this section provided us with insight into how they got to where they are today (what they did in law school+prevoius job opportunities).But yeah...do you want a practical and insightful perspective on the life of a solo practitioner, In house attorney, Federal Lawyer, or Co-founder of a law firm? You get all that and more in this book.Cons:1. This isn't a major con for me...but I think a section on how perhaps minorities handle law school/the legal profession would have been an interesting perspective.

I absolutely, strongly recommend everyone in law school (or even those who are thinking about going to law school) read this book!I’m an anxious law student and although I ‘ve referred to multiple resources for career advice throughout my time in law school, the author offers unique insights as a true insider in the industry, which I found incredibly valuable. If I have to recommend only one book/guide on law school/legal career, it’s this book. The book is concise, straightforward without beating around the bush, and gives pragmatic advice with real-world examples.