Our Family Motto is Perseverance

Both Tim and I believe it's important to instil a growth mindset in our children as we did when we were both teachers in schools.

These past few months we've modelled this to our boys. We've been trying to buy our forever house in Spain. You name the hurdle, we hit it. We've had disappointments, a rejection from a bank, those saying it won't happen, working with people who weren't doing their job....

My credit score in the UK was 454/1000. Barrier after barrier. We were stressed, full of anxiety, but we were determined. We worked hard to sort out a range of problems:

📞 Two full days I was on the phone to my old bank till they admitted they had made a mistake - I hadn't defaulted on my mortgage. Ever.

📞 Our old broadband wasn't closed properly and they were still billing us.

⛽ There was an old default record on our gas bill which again wasn't our fault but down to the company not sending us the correct bill till months after we'd moved house. This was particularly tricky as NPower no longer exist and Eon Next said they haven't got access to the data.

💹 Our business bank kept sending us the wrong statements. We couldn't do our company accounts without these. After months of debacle, I ended up finally getting these statements when I flew to the UK for a friend's Book Launch and personally went into a branch.

✔ Last month, we finally got our company accounts completed.

✔ Last week, my credit report said my score was 955

✔ This week, we found out we got the mortgage

The relief was so huge, I screamed, jumped on Tim and we both hit the ground laughing. The last time I remember being that overjoyed after so much hard work was when I opened up my A Level results. Life changing. Funnily enough, I had three words on my mirror back in 1992/3 - Sedulous, Diligent and Perseverance.

To give it context, we've been in Spain for 14 months and have moved 5 times. Previously we were in Bournemouth for 5 years and had moved 5 times. Our 10-year-old has known 11 abodes in his lifetime. This next move should be his last before he decides to move out (when he's 35!). Right now I feel too exhausted to be excited. But I can feel the delirium creeping in.

MalCPD Coaching Corner:

Perseverance can be developed through a combination of techniques such as:

✴️ setting clear and achievable goals

✴️ breaking down larger tasks into smaller, manageable steps

✴️ taking consistent and persistent action towards achieving those goals

✴️ using positive self-talk and visualization

✴️ surrounding yourself with supportive and encouraging people

✴️ reflecting on and learning from failures

✴️ staying positive and focusing on the benefits of achieving your goals can also help increase determination

✴️ finding inspiration and motivation from role models who have demonstrated perseverance

✴️ reflecting on your progress and celebrating small wins along the way.

In about a month, we'll get our keys to our new home. We've only been able to achieve this through sheer grit, determination and perseverance.

OK. I'm really excited now!

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Malarvilie is a former senior leader and history teacher.

As an Education Consultant and Executive Coach she supports leadership development through InstituteLM recognised leadership and coaching skills courses.

Contact her now if you'd like a complimentary 30 min coaching call.

Email: mal@malcpd.com

Website: www.malcpd.com/