Passing the bar exam literally changes your life.
Dilara shared with me her story of how she passed the July 2023 California Bar Exam.
💬 “I’m a foreign attorney (Turkish) who passed the California Bar on my first attempt without a U.S. JD or LLM, after studying full-time for three months.”
💬 “I am not a native English speaker. I passed the California Bar Exam on my first attempt after studying full time for approximately three months in July 2023.”
Yes, 2023. She randomly reached out two years later to tell me.
The part that stood out to me wasn’t that she stayed on my newsletter (like many other passers). It was that she had avoided taking the exam for 8 years!
💬 “English is not my first language, and I was so scared of this exam that I avoided taking it for eight years, thinking I would fail!”
Sometimes the biggest obstacle holding us back is ourselves. Our mind. Our own fears.
Our hearts are the engines that drive us. You CANNOT ignore the emotional and psychological aspect of bar prep. Bar preparation is emotional preparation.
“The mind is 50% of the exam.”
You could have a perfectly fine body that won’t get up if you’re overwhelmed, devastated, or broken down inside your chest.
This is why I send my newsletters consistently and spend hours on them every week (I rely on you to get the word out). It’s why it makes my day to get messages from readers saying how these case studies of successful passers inspire them.
💬 “This exam is also psychological warfare, and getting encouragement during this process is so important.”
I say this every time, and I’ll say it again:
Build belief from seeing others win. I give you a different perspective and framework every week. It’s proof that it’s not impossible for you.
Dilara was at rock bottom and surviving off gigs after coming to the U.S. until she had a change in heart.
💬 “I was going through a heartbreak, thinking that I messed up my career, having financial difficulties, depression, concerns, mental breakdowns, questions, and “what ifs” . . . In mid-April 2023, while driving for Uber, I met an attorney from Spain who was admitted to the New York Bar. He encouraged me to take the bar exam as soon as possible, and that conversation changed everything. . . .
So I took a financial risk, got a loan, quit my job, didn’t go on dates, made a weekly meal prep, and devotedly studied every single day for three months.”
Like generals of times past, she burned her own boats to instill total commitment in herself.
💬 “Quitting was not an option because I knew I could not go back to where I was, at my lowest.”
Once again: It only takes a moment of strength for the lifetime privilege of calling yourself an attorney.
💬 “When people ask me about the bar exam, I tell them that it saved my life. It really did. A few months of sacrifice changed my life.”
I see MTYLT alumni on LinkedIn who have gone on to become influential. General counsel, law firm partners, 200k followers on social media, etc.
When I think about Dilara and the caliber of people I work with, it reinforces the high standards I hold for readers like you who expect a lot from themselves.
This is a pivotal moment for you. What do you want your life to look like one year from now?
💬 “But the most important question I kept asking myself was: “Dilara, do you want to live this same life 6 months from now?”
The answer was undoubtedly: NO.”
Resources Dilara used to pass the California Bar Exam
💬 “I used [them] to recognize and remember rules. I even took them with me to the bar exam for quick review while waiting and during breaks.”
Emanuel’s Strategies and Tactics for the MBE
Mary Basick’s Essay Exam Writing for the California Bar Exam
Barbri
💬 “He also sends random questions and encouraging stories, which I think is highly underestimated and incredibly valuable. This exam is also psychological warfare, and getting encouragement during this process is so important. I truly appreciate that Brian takes the time to support and motivate students in this way and he provides all of this support at very affordable prices.”
Here’s what worked for Dilara.
Total commitment
Dilara burned her ships so that there would be no return. She gave herself the time necessary to get this done.
💬 “I studied approximately 7–8 hours a day for 3 months. I took a loan and did not work during this period. I know it’s even harder to do it while working full time, so I took a risk.”
Track study hours
They say that people don’t actually work 8 hours a day. It’s actually just 4 or fewer hours.
Dilara made sure that she was actually studying the 7-8 hours.
💬 “I used a stopwatch while studying every single day. It was my neurosurgeon friend’s idea and it worked incredibly well.”
💬 “Some days I realized I was just sitting at my desk and not truly studying, so the next day I studied for longer. I stopped it whenever I checked my phone, used the bathroom, or got distracted.”
If you treat your time like you’re billing it to a client, you’ll want to make sure you’re capturing every 0.1 hour.
You are your own client.
Use a bar review course for structure
Bar review courses are there to support your self-learning.
💬 “Barbri is good for black-letter law and making sure you cover all the subjects. It helped me stay on track. Some lectures were very good, and some were just okay.”
It’s just one measuring stick. It may not reflect your actual standing.
💬 “I scored 50% on Barbri’s mock exam, which was very discouraging, but I did not give up the fight until the last second of the exam.”
Learn and understand (not just study and memorize)
In undergrad, I gave a classmate my cheat sheet listing equations for our engineering midterm. She got the lowest score because she didn’t know how to use the equations.
The bar exam is similar. Know the “equations” and also how to use them. People mess up when they stop at the first part.
💬 “I tried to learn instead of memorize. I made sure I understood the reasoning behind every rule and exception.”
Dilara approached MBE prep that was very similar way to mine (and many successful bar takers):
💬 “I answered approximately 2,500 MBE questions. Emanuel’s Strategies and Tactics book is the best.”
💬 “I carefully reviewed every explanation to fully understand the rules and issues instead of relying on luck. When I got answers wrong, I made sure I understood why the correct answer was right. This felt slow, but it saved me time in the long run because I was learning, not memorizing. After finishing Emanuel’s book, I went through it again and redid all the questions. My correct answer rate was about 70–75% per subject. I also revisited the Barbri questions I got wrong.”
Keep yourself motivated and supported
Bar prep takes a toll on you mentally, physically, emotionally, financially, psychologically.
It’s not a constant and comfortable simmer. You will see volatility in your mental market.
💬 “I had ups and downs almost every single day while studying. That is normal. I made sure I talked to my loved ones daily and took a 45-minute walk every day. Emotional support is a very important part of this journey.”
You can’t rely on motivation to strike, but when it does, do something with it.
💬 “I wrote motivational notes on my desk and read them every day. When I started daydreaming, I stopped my thoughts, read my notes, and went back to studying.”
Revel in your success
It’s all for that one moment on stage where you receive a standing ovation at the end.
When you put in the right effort, you’ll deserve to celebrate the ultimate reward.
💬 “When I saw ‘PASS’ on my exam results page, I was so scared that it was a mistake and that it might disappear, so I took several screenshots of it, lol. I refreshed the page several times just to make sure it was real.”
💬 “It is truly worth the effort.”
Full story
Hi Brian,
I’m a foreign attorney (Turkish) who passed the California Bar on my first attempt without a U.S. JD or LLM, after studying full-time for three months. English is not my first language, and I was so scared of this exam that I avoided taking it for eight years, thinking I would fail! I also used your flashcards. Thank you again, and feel free to share my story if it might help you or other takers.
All the best.
Cheers,
Dilara.
—
Hi Brian,
Here is my story. Feel free to share it, and summarize it if necessary.
My name is Dilara ___. I am admitted to the State Bar of California, the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of California, and the Istanbul Bar Association in Türkiye. I do not hold a U.S. J.D. or LL.M. degree. I am not a native English speaker. I passed the California Bar Exam on my first attempt after studying full time for approximately three months in July 2023.
I went to law school and became an attorney in my native Turkiye, but after immigrating to the U.S., I had to leave all of that behind and start over. When I finally decided to sit for the California Bar Exam after being afraid of it for eight years, I was at rock bottom. Many people discouraged me because I do not have a U.S. J.D. and I am not a native English speaker. I was going through a heartbreak, thinking that I messed up my career, having financial difficulties, depression, concerns, mental breakdowns, questions, and “what ifs”… I was originally planning to take the bar in February 2024, but in mid-April 2023, while driving for Uber, I met an attorney from Spain who was admitted to the New York Bar. He encouraged me to take the bar exam as soon as possible, and that conversation changed everything.
But the most important question I kept asking myself was: “Dilara, do you want to live this same life 6 months from now?”
The answer was undoubtedly: NO.
So I took a financial risk, got a loan, quit my job, didn’t go on dates, made a weekly meal prep, and devotedly studied every single day for three months.
When people ask me about the bar exam, I tell them that it saved my life. It really did. A few months of sacrifice changed my life.
The screenshots are from one of the days I studied. I wanted to see how many hours I was truly studying per day. I would set my stopwatch as soon as I started studying, pause it when I took a break, made coffee, or even texted someone, and then restart it. That’s how many hours I studied that day and it was like that almost every day. Even the day before the exam, I studied for six hours. After the MBE portion of the exam, I went back to my hotel and read essays for about two hours to prepare for the next day.
That’s what it took. I didn’t have any other chances. Quitting was not an option because I knew I could not go back to where I was, at my lowest. When I saw “PASS” on my exam results page, I was so scared that it was a mistake and that it might disappear, so I took several screenshots of it, lol. I refreshed the page several times just to make sure it was real.
What Worked For Me (Study Tips)
• I studied approximately 7–8 hours a day for 3 months. I took a loan and did not work during this period. I know it’s even harder to do it while working full time, so I took a risk.
• I used a stopwatch while studying every single day. It was my neurosurgeon friend’s idea and it worked incredibly well. It was the only way to track my real study hours. Some days I realized I was just sitting at my desk and not truly studying, so the next day I studied for longer. I stopped it whenever I checked my phone, used the bathroom, or got distracted.
• I used Barbri. Barbri is good for black-letter law and making sure you cover all the subjects. It helped me stay on track. Some lectures were very good, and some were just okay. I scored 50% on Barbri’s mock exam, which was very discouraging, but I did not give up the fight until the last second of the exam.
• I answered approximately 2,500 MBE questions. Emanuel’s Strategies and Tactics book is the best. Make sure you have it. I wrote my answers on a separate sheet of paper instead of marking the book and kept the answer sheet inside the book. I carefully reviewed every explanation to fully understand the rules and issues instead of relying on luck. When I got answers wrong, I made sure I understood why the correct answer was right. This felt slow, but it saved me time in the long run because I was learning, not memorizing. After finishing Emanuel’s book, I went through it again and redid all the questions. My correct answer rate was about 70–75% per subject. I also revisited the Barbri questions I got wrong.
• Mary Basick’s essay book was a lifesaver. I wish I had it from the beginning. I got it one month before the exam, and it truly saved the day. I was studying Professional Responsibility essays the night before the exam, and the essay on the actual exam was very similar to one of the essays from that book, which possibly saved the day for me.
• I tried to learn instead of memorize. I made sure I understood the reasoning behind every rule and exception. When something didn’t make sense, I googled it and read rules from different sources. Cornell Law’s online library was really helpful. I made my own flashcards by cutting small papers and writing rules and exceptions for challenging subjects. I used different colored pens to make them easier to remember.
• I used Brian Hahn’s “Make This Your Last Time” [Magicsheets] to recognize and remember rules. I even took them with me to the bar exam for quick review while waiting and during breaks. He also sends random questions and encouraging stories, which I think is highly underestimated and incredibly valuable. This exam is also psychological warfare, and getting encouragement during this process is so important. I truly appreciate that Brian takes the time to support and motivate students in this way and he provides all of this support at very affordable prices.
• I wrote motivational notes on my desk and read them every day. When I started daydreaming, I stopped my thoughts, read my notes, and went back to studying. Sometimes I allowed myself a couple of minutes to breathe, then got back to studying.
• I had ups and downs almost every single day while studying. That is normal. I made sure I talked to my loved ones daily and took a 45-minute walk every day. Emotional support is a very important part of this journey.
So, yes, you can do it.
Please don’t give up. We are all in this together, and it is truly worth the effort.
You’ve got this.
Best,
Dilara.
—
Yes July 2023 and yes Magicsheets!
Thanks again for all your help for the bar takers. I sincerely appreciate it.
