Performance, Pressure, and Perspective: What Competition Taught Me About Law School

I recently had the opportunity to compete for a week in the Mounted Games Competition at the Gothenburg Horse Show in Sweden, a competition I have been working towards for nine years. With only 15 riders selected to go from England, it is extremely difficult to get a spot, and many of the people who have been going for years know the organizers, what to expect once there, and the logistics of getting the horses from England to Gothenburg. When I was offered a place, I didn’t hesitate to say yes, despite being in the middle of the second term of my second year of law school.

Before going over, I prepared as well as I could. I asked the questions I could think of, listened to conversations happening around me, and had help from some of the competition ‘regulars’. But despite this, I was still unprepared when the week of competition came around. There were things I hadn’t thought to ask about, things the ‘regulars’ are so used to that they forgot to tell me about, and completely new hurdles to overcome, including: 

• Needing to adapt and build a toolkit for handling unfamiliar pressure. 
  • I realized that, having grown up competing in Canada, where the sport is smaller, I didn’t have the same experience performing in high-pressure environments with large crowds and tightly scheduled events that many of the ‘regulars’ had developed, having been competing in big shows with large atmospheres since they were young. After the first session, I didn’t understand why I felt like I’d been hit by a truck as the adrenaline wore off, and everyone else was laughing and full of energy. 
• Balancing academic responsibilities while competing and staying involved. 
  • I was one of the only university students there and was balancing coursework alongside competition. Tech issues and a limited internet connection meant that, in our spare time, I was busy watching lectures on my phone and taking notes on my laptop in the common space, while others were playing games and enjoying a week off from work. 

While I knew I was welcome in the group and incredibly lucky and happy to be there, I was also comparing myself to the people around me. It was difficult to see the differences in experience between everyone else and me. I felt like I wasn’t doing enough to prepare, connect, stay caught up with uni, or compete; however, I reminded myself to step back and look at the bigger picture. Recognizing that I was starting from a different place allowed me to shift my mindset. Instead of measuring myself against others, I focused on what I could control: my preparation skills, my time management, and my ability to adapt. I recognized that I was doing the best that I could in the circumstances, regardless of what was going on around me. 

This experience mirrored what I have often felt in law school, and maybe you have too. I know that comparing yourself to others, feeling ‘behind’ everyone else, feeling out of the loop, and even feeling guilty about having these feelings, especially in the middle of an incredible opportunity, are not experiences unique to competing in Sweden. It’s hard not to compare ourselves to others, especially as we come up to assessments and the summer, when some friends will have finished the assessment you haven’t even started, and some will have legal work experience lined up when you’re going back to last summer’s job. Sometimes it’s hard to remember, but let this be a reminder to both of us; everyone is starting from a different place and is on a different path, regardless of what it looks like from the outside. While it may be inevitable, comparison is the thief of joy, and it rarely reflects the full picture. However, if we acknowledge and celebrate our individual wins and successes, we will perform better, the journey will be far more enjoyable and fulfilling, and this mindset is what I aim to carry forward in my studies, legal career, and life beyond.