By Sharon Ann
“By every usual standard, I was the biggest failure I knew.” – J.K Rowling
We all know J.K Rowling, the famous author who wrote Harry Potter. But we only know her success and not her struggles. Her journey was not at all easy. She loved reading books since she was a small girl. After conceiving the idea of Harry Potter, she began writing but immediately pulled away from her work by the devastating death of her mother. She ceased working on the book and sank into deep, grieving depression. Then she took a job in Portugal as a teacher. There she used her time off to continue working on her book. But she failed to make progress in her first book. Not only that, but she also ended up having a failed marriage and a baby daughter she now had to raise all by herself. She now had no job, no finished project, and two mouths to feed. She had hit rock bottom. She resumed work on her book in cafes while her daughter was asleep. Despite numerous setbacks, she found solace in what she loved- writing. When she finished the first three chapters, she sent the manuscript off to many publishers, but everyone rejected thinking that she was a woman and wouldn’t get success. But fortunately, one publishing company agreed to publish her novel and that was the beginning of her success.
J.K Rowling went from being a jobless single mother living off unemployment benefits to one of the bestselling authors of all time. But it didn’t happen overnight. She faced rejection and constantly strived for success. She worked hard at her craft before anyone noticed her. That practice, along with strengthening herself against rejection, was what made her work unforgettable.
Just like in the video we saw “Today is the first day of the rest of your life” is the kind of mindset that everyone should have. You need to improve your skills, make yourself capable and your skills must be helpful for others. Just like J.K Rowling’s novels content was so good that it attracted everyone, meaning it added value in other’s life. Yes, you need to increase the number of people you add value to, that’s how you earn more money. When you want something badly it’s hard to achieve with a short cut so don’t underestimate yourself. Obstacles are necessary, they’ll come obviously but without them, there’s no fun in anything. Obstacles are the reason that keeps you pushing to reach your goal.
If you have a dream or a passion and you keep getting rejected or running into failure, don’t let that stop you. If you’re going through a tough time in your life, but working on something you really believe in, don’t give up. If you do, you’ll never know what could have been. Who knows, you might end up breaking records. Thankyou.