Before Dr Seuss became a phenomenon, he was a struggling writer trying to get his first book published.
He recounts how this first book came to life in a 1976 interview:
… I had a book on my hands, called “And to Think That I Saw It on Mulberry Street”. So, what to do with it?
I submitted it to 27 publishers. It was turned down by all 27. The main reason they all gave was there was nothing similar on the market, so of course it wouldn’t sell.
After the 27th publisher had turned it down, I was taking the book home to my apartment, to burn it in the incinerator, and I bumped into Mike McClintock coming down Madison Avenue.
He said, “What’s that under your arm?”
I said, “That’s a book that no one will publish. I’m lugging it home to burn.”
Then I asked Mike, “What are you doing?”
He said, “This morning I was appointed juvenile editor of Vanguard Press, and we happen to be standing in front of my office; would you like to come inside?”
So, we went inside, and he looked at the book and he took me to the president of Vanguard Press. Twenty minutes later we were signing contracts.
That’s one of the reasons I believe in luck. If I’d been going down the other side of Madison Avenue, I would be in the dry-cleaning business today!
It’s this final point on luck that I want to emphasise today.
Yes, it was lucky that Dr Seuss was walking on the right side of Madison Avenue to bump into his future publisher. But this chance encounter would have been for nil if Dr Seuss didn’t raise that he wanted his book published.
When you are actively working towards a goal, every encounter has a chance of helping you achieve it.
But if you don’t let others know about your goal, you make it far less likely that they’ll be able to assist.
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