5 Reasons Law students should travel more often

  Sulaiman Rameez

1.     You think broader

Travelling in general means that you have to step out of what’s familiar and start exploring new places, people and experiences. Although most don’t realize it, interacting with various people and experiences with different ways of life helps you look at things in a much broader perspective, because you will understand cultures better when you’ve been a part of it and also because you literally realize how big the world out there is.

2.     Winding down

As law students, we often have to finish a large amount of work in an extremely short period of time and this can often lead to stress. You being stressed out is bad for those around you as it is for yourself. So taking a break once in a while might give you the time and space to recalibrate your pace and figure out how you want to tackle what’s next. Although taking a break at home might be the convenient thing to do, your brain is hard wired in recognizing your living space as a place where you get work done and eventually the source of your stress. This is why a change of environment is extremely important, so make it happen even if it means going to your friend’s house down south.

3.     Understanding People

As lawyers to be, we will often spend a lot of time dealing with people in consultation rooms and with time, after dealing with people’s grievances day in and day out, are empathy might unwillingly be numbed out. While people say that lawyers aren’t supposed to be bringing emotion to the table, I think it’s very important to be human first and a lawyer second. That way you are aware of how important the case might be to your client and perhaps prevent you from identifying him or her as just another name on the book. Travelling and observing people in their daily routines helps you understand that everyone is trying to make it through life and that there is always a human being with a need behind the name on your book.

4.     You can network better

Travelling, unlike several years ago has become extremely accessible to most, which means that people you meet at meetings and events would have traveled to different countries and places too. Being able to relate to another’s experience is one of the most rewarding ways to get to know someone. It also indicates that you balance your work-life well enough to see the world once in a while.

5.     You have the best stories

Us law students are social animals, in fact it’s a very necessary skill to be a lawyer. When you do meet up with fellow professionals, would you rather listen to a crazy story of a colleagues’ or be relating one of your own. What’s better is if you travel with your “people”, that way you can enjoy a laugh of the good times together. Plus, having a very cool story might to a question, might give you the extra edge at an interview.