Close Ad

J.K. Rowling: Don't Be Afraid of Failure
J.K. Rowling on failure: Don't Be Afraid of Failure
Goalcast Originals

J.K. Rowling: Don't Be Afraid of Failure

J.K. Rowling - Imagine Better

Harry Potter author J.K. Rowling discusses how her "epic" failure laid the groundwork for her to rebuild her life by pursuing her one true passion of writing.

Transcript:


"I had failed on an epic scale. An exceptionally short-lived marriage had imploded, and I was jobless, a lone parent and as poor as it is possible to be in modern Britain without being homeless. The fears that my parents had had for me, and that I had had for myself, had both come to pass. And by every usual standard, I was the biggest failure I knew.

"So why do I talk about the benefits of failure? Simply because failure meant a stripping away of the inessential. I stopped pretending to myself that I was anything other than what I was, and began to direct all my energy into finishing the only work that mattered to me. Had I really succeeded at anything else, I might never have found the determination to succeed in the one arena where I believed I truly belonged. And so rock bottom became the solid foundation on which I rebuilt my life.

"You might never fail on the scale I did. But some failure in life is inevitable. It is impossible to live without failing at something, unless you live so cautiously that you might as well not have lived at all, in which case, you fail by default. You will never truly know yourself, or the strength of your relationships until both have been tested by adversity. Such knowledge is a true gift, for all that it is painfully won, and it has been worth more than any qualification I ever earned.

"We do not need magic to transform our world. We carry all the power we need inside ourselves already. We have the power to imagine better."

Hot Stories

Why Jennifer Hudson Forgave Her Mother's Killer -- Life Stories By Goalcast

At the peak of her career, Jennifer Hudson faced a horrific family tragedy. Hudson's mother and brother were brutally attacked in their family home, and her seven-year-old nephew was kidnapped. What followed was a heart-wrenching manhunt to rescue her nephew and seek justice against the man who took her family. Hudson speaks from the heart in this video on what happened to her family and how she was able to move forward.

Celebrities
People smiling in unison united
Racism Quotes

Racism is considered the marginalization and/or oppression of people of color based on a socially constructed racial hierarchy that privileges another race. The term is applied in many areas of a society that perpetuates discrimination on the basis of race or strengthen racial inequalities in education, health care, income, and civil rights.

Ever since the 20th century, the concept of biological race is considered a cultural invention that has no scientific basis. The progress over the past half-century has been impressive, but the nation still has a long way to go to reach true racial equality.

Keep ReadingShow less
Everyday Heroes
hands are put together as part of community volunteer efforts
Photo by Hannah Busing on Unsplash

A community is so much more than people sharing a space. It's a living, breathing network of connections and shared experiences. While it's usually defined as “a group of people living in the same place or having a particular characteristic in common,” true community runs much deeper than that.

Diversity

Keep ReadingShow less
Quotes