WEBVTT - Second Cup: How to be more persistent

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<v Speaker 1>Welcome to Before Breakfast, a production of I Heart Radio.

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<v Speaker 1>Good Morning. This is Laura. Welcome to the Before Breakfast podcast.

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<v Speaker 1>Today's tip is about a strategy you can use when

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<v Speaker 1>you're facing disappointment. Don't get me wrong, disappointment always stings,

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<v Speaker 1>but this is one exercise that can give you a

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<v Speaker 1>lot more perspective about it. I recently heard a speech

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<v Speaker 1>on this topic from novelist Camille Pagan. She was talking

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<v Speaker 1>about her career, which from the outside appears to be charmed.

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<v Speaker 1>She writes a novel a year, most recently one called

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<v Speaker 1>I'm Fine and Neither Are You. Her novels are almost

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<v Speaker 1>always at the top of Amazon's charts for women's contemporary fiction.

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<v Speaker 1>She has been optioned by major film companies. Definitely good

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<v Speaker 1>stuff for a writer. So when she said in her

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<v Speaker 1>speech that she wanted to talk about persistence and then

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<v Speaker 1>mentioned that her first novel, The Art of Forgetting, sold

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<v Speaker 1>for six figures at auction, I wondered where she was

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<v Speaker 1>going with this. This sounded more like a story of

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<v Speaker 1>constant success, not persistence, and maybe not too helpful for

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<v Speaker 1>the rest of us. But then, after telling us about

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<v Speaker 1>the six figure book deal, she shared this that first novel,

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<v Speaker 1>she said, sold a grand total of a hundred and

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<v Speaker 1>three copies. It turns out that what happened is that

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<v Speaker 1>she released this novel with big hopes, but she knew

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<v Speaker 1>little about promoting books, and various other things went wrong too.

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<v Speaker 1>With the publisher investing so much money in this book

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<v Speaker 1>and with so little to show for it, she was

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<v Speaker 1>going to have a very hard time getting anyone in

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<v Speaker 1>the publishing industry to take a chance on her again.

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<v Speaker 1>She tried. She wrote a novel and then decided it

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<v Speaker 1>wasn't any good, so she trashed it. She wrote another novel,

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<v Speaker 1>it also wasn't going to work. Finally, many years after

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<v Speaker 1>that first novel, she had an idea for a book

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<v Speaker 1>that was called Life and Other Near Death Experiences. Her

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<v Speaker 1>agents sold it to a different publisher for a much

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<v Speaker 1>much smaller advance than that first book, but something clicked.

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<v Speaker 1>It's sold like crazy. Her new publisher wanted more work

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<v Speaker 1>for her, and she is now a happily productive career novelist.

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<v Speaker 1>I asked Camille how she'd been able to keep herself

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<v Speaker 1>going through those years where she looked like she was

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<v Speaker 1>going to be a one hit wonder. She said that

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<v Speaker 1>she wrote five year plans, and she had a very

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<v Speaker 1>clear vision for her future. She always knew she was

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<v Speaker 1>going to be a successful novelist. What was happening now

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<v Speaker 1>was part of the story, but it was only part

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<v Speaker 1>of the story. It wasn't the ending. It was just

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<v Speaker 1>that low moment for the hero that any good novel

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<v Speaker 1>has to have, because otherwise the novel is boring. I

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<v Speaker 1>love this idea of having such a clear picture of

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<v Speaker 1>the stories later chapters that you can see that the

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<v Speaker 1>current one is only a plot twist on the way there. Indeed,

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<v Speaker 1>Camille and I later talked about how it might be

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<v Speaker 1>helpful for other people to try doing this exercise by

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<v Speaker 1>picturing themselves doing exactly what she was doing when I

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<v Speaker 1>heard her. She was up on stage giving a speech

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<v Speaker 1>about her life. She told the story of the setback,

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<v Speaker 1>but it was just a part of the story that

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<v Speaker 1>had a happy ending. So if you're facing some disappointment,

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<v Speaker 1>either professionally or personally, try to picture yourself several years

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<v Speaker 1>in the future. Picture yourself telling an audience your story.

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<v Speaker 1>Explain how this low moment was part of the journey.

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<v Speaker 1>Maybe you got laid off from your job, and your

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<v Speaker 1>future story you could explain that this stung, of course,

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<v Speaker 1>But while you were looking for something else, you began

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<v Speaker 1>consulting for a friend's small business on the side, and

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<v Speaker 1>then to gather you were able to make it so

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<v Speaker 1>big that you're now hiring tons of people, including some

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<v Speaker 1>of your favorite colleagues from your old company. Or maybe

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<v Speaker 1>you're going through a painful break up, but you could

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<v Speaker 1>picture yourself at your future wedding telling the assembled guests

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<v Speaker 1>about how, because things ended so suddenly, you were finally

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<v Speaker 1>amenable when your aunt offered to set you up with

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<v Speaker 1>one of the members of her running club, you had

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<v Speaker 1>an open mind. Good thing, because here the two of

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<v Speaker 1>you are exchanging your vows. I'm not saying any of

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<v Speaker 1>this will come true, of course, but probably something good

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<v Speaker 1>will happen in your future. By recasting this current moment

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<v Speaker 1>as just a twist in a larger narrative, you can

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<v Speaker 1>make yourself more resilient. You can open your mind to

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<v Speaker 1>possibilities and open your heart to see what's next. In

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<v Speaker 1>the meantime, this is Laura. Thanks for listening, and here's

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<v Speaker 1>to making the most of our time. Hey, everybody, I'd

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<v Speaker 1>love to hear from you. You can send me your tips,

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<v Speaker 1>your questions or anything else. Just connect with me on Twitter, Facebook,

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<v Speaker 1>and Instagram at Before Breakfast pod. That's B the number four,

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<v Speaker 1>then Breakfast p o D. You can also shoot me

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<v Speaker 1>an email at Before Breakfast podcast past at iHeartMedia dot

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<v Speaker 1>com that Before Breakfast is spelled out with all the letters.

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<v Speaker 1>Thanks so much, I look forward to staying in touch.

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