Staying power
Part of the New Guinea Commerce Winners Don’t Cheat Series.
By Sean Jacobs
In my late teens my Mum gave me a book titled The World at Their Feet edited by Australian writer Claire Halliday. It has some great insights from young actors, doctors, specialists and writers that have built and enjoyed success early in their careers. One contribution is from the fashion designer Kit Willow, then aged just 28, on creating her own fashion label. Here she is worth quoting at length:
I worked on it for a year – just me in my spare bedroom. It was really very lonely because I was working on a concept and an idea all on my own and there was no one there to support me. Every day I’d wake up and walk into the office and I’d be the one who was instigating every little thing that was going to happen that day. That can be really confronting and really exhausting. It doesn’t give you chance to sit back and rest, or to reflect on what you’ve been doing, or even the way you’ve been doing it. The phone’s not going to ring without you making it. You just have to keep plugging away every day.
Through hard work and passion Willow created a global brand – great success for someone in her late twenties and in such a competitive industry. But, in 2012, after spending time at international prominence, she was dumped from her own label.
Willow’s story is typical of the temporary nature of success. She may not have lost any of her passion or desire for hard work but, as any young professional will learn, what gets you to the top may not necessarily keep you there. Circumstances change and new challenges arise but it’s important that you stay ahead or on top of them.
New Guinea Commerce 