Transcending Failure – Lessons from Harry Potter and His Creator
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| Image 1133804 courtesy iStockphoto.com |
I have had several conversations lately with women who have expressed a longing for . . . something more in their lives. I've spoken with some who are considering change of one type or another, but who hesitate, held back by a fear of failure. I understand that feeling. Many of us are at a crossroads of one sort or another, perhaps facing a change in the season of our life, or contemplating a new direction that both excites and scares us. The prospect of failure (or the memory of a past failure) in a role that matters deeply to us — motherhood, a profession, a new business venture, or whatever it might be — can be paralyzing, holding us back from taking the next risky step.
My former Thompson & Knight colleague, Dr. Cindy Pladziewicz, coaches and consults with attorneys and other professionals on, among other things, career development matters. (Learn more about Cindy and her fabulous professional coaching services at her website.) Cindy recently published a brief but inspiring blog post about transcending failure. In her post, Cindy summarizes lessons learned from J.K. Rowling's brilliant 2008 Harvard commencement address. I love Rowling's inspiring and eloquent speech; I recently posted a link to it on my Facebook page. I actually was thinking about writing my own blog post on this topic, but Cindy beat me to it and did such a good job that I thought I'd just point you to her. I encourage you — especially the women who read my blog — to read Cindy's short blog post, and then listen to Rowling's speech.
Check out Cindy's blog post by clicking here. Watch the video of Rowling's commencement address by clicking here.
I would love it if, after you've done so, you would come back here and leave a comment, letting me know what you think and what, if anything, you learned from it. Is fear of failure (or guilt over past failure) holding you back from the next step in your life? Can we encourage each other to move forward?
