JK Rowling was Broke but not Broken!

Last week was a good busy week. I had a great meeting with a partner training company I am working with on a pitch we are putting together for a contract with an international organisation for Mental Resistance training. We won’t be the biggest company pitching for this contract, but we believe we will be as good as anyone out there.

I also had a telephone interview with a speaking agency based in Europe. They liked what they heard and I am hopeful that they will take me on and find speaking and training work for me both inside and outside the UK. They are opening an office in New York in October so who knows?

Today as I ponder this blog I have realised how far I have come since I was struggling to get even one client whilst I painted and decorated to pay the bills. They were very hard times and will feature in my next book ‘From Decorating to Dubai’.

Mental Resilience is a hot topic

Mental Resilience is something that many companies are currently looking for as part of their Wellbeing programmes. I am so proud to have developed a Masterclass, a keynote talk, and a coaching programme which develop the ability to perform better under pressure and handle stress more effectively. This in turn leads to the reduction of absenteeism and the ability to live a happier life.

Things are developing with the USA and I have just been booked to speak in London to an association of Solicitors. Things are going well but it has taken 7 years of which the first three were spent painting and decorating. I believe everyone who has succeeded in life has a story of hardship to share and JK Rowling is just one of many.

J.K. Rowling

‘J.K. Rowling had just gone through a divorce, was on government aid, and could barely afford to feed her baby in 1994, just three years before the first Harry Potter book, Harry Potter and The Philosopher’s Stone, was published.

When she was trying to get is published, she was so poor she couldn’t afford a computer or even the cost of photocopying the 90,000-word novel, so she manually typed out each version to send to publishers.

Rejected but not broken

It was rejected dozens of times until finally Bloomsbury, a small London publisher, gave it a second chance after the Managing Director’s eight-year old daughter fell in love with it.

Although Bloomsbury agreed to publish the book, Cunningham the Managing Director, says that he advised Rowling to get a day job, since she had little chance of making money in a children’s book.’

One of the key pillars of Mental Resilience

JK Rowling demonstrated one of the key pillars of Mental Resilience – Commitment, and the rest is history. What a great example of persistence and hard work and what a break she got with the daughter of the CEO!

She got the break – but she had to get the book in front of the daughter with sheer hard work. As the famous quote goes; “The harder I work the luckier I get.” She is now worth nearly £500 million and has sold nearly as many books.

Thoughts for the week:

1. What tough things are going through right now?
2. Do you want to give up on some of them?
3. There are times to give up on some things, and to keep going with others.
4. We need to be wise with what we give up and where we keep pushing.
5. If you have a real passion for something, this is often an area for success.

Well that’s it for this week. Have a wonderful weekend and keep positive.

Warm regards

John

Off the Wall – How to Develop World Class Mental Resilience available here
https://www.jdmindcoach.com/product/off-the-wall-how-to-develop-world-class-mental-resilience/ (Special offer. Put in code 10POUND when prompted to receive a signed copy for £10 including postage and packing – UK only)