Sukhi Jutla is an award-winning entrepreneur, author, Co-Founder & COO of MarketOrders.
She is a sought-after international speaker, thought leader and a qualified IBM Blockchain Developer. She has won numerous awards including Asian Women of Achievement, Female Entrepreneur of The Year and named Top 100 European Digital Pioneer by The Financial Times and Google.
Sukhi Jutla’s book ‘Escape The Cubicle: Quit The Job You Hate, Create A Life You Love’ is perfect for anyone wanting to start a new career.
Sukhi has been there: exhausted, unhappy and stuck on the corporate treadmill for over a decade, she bravely handed in her notice and took a step into the unknown.
In her book, she shares everything she’s learnt along the way.
She is also the co-author of:
• Authors and The Blockchain
• The FinTech Book In April 2018, Sukhi made global headlines becoming the World’s First #1 Bestselling ‘Blockchain’ Author.
Sukhi is a regular media commentator on tech, blockchain and digital disruption, having been featured in over 100+ UK and international publications.
In 2019, Sukhi was appointed Board Member to the Mayor of London’s Digital Skills Partnership, representing the voice of new technologies such as blockchain, AI and machine learning.
In less than 3 years, her business MarketOrders has been nominated for over 40 awards and got over 1300 mentions in the press.
Tell us a little bit about your background and how you ended up writing a book?
Graduating from university, I thought all I ever wanted was a high-powered role in the city working in finance – but they do say be careful what you wish for! I got the role I so desperately wanted but very soon afterwards (around one month into the job) I realised I was not working in an area I enjoyed and that was because my skills weren’t suited to that type of work.
I found working in finance very monotonous with a lot of rules and regulations and not much space for innovation or creativity. So, I kept moving jobs, from one company to another, thinking I would enjoy my next role, but alas it was not to be as I finally discovered I was in the wrong line of work!
As a result, I started tinkering around with a number of different business ideas after work and over the weekends whilst I continued to work the day job. I experimented with re-training as a life coach and coaching people, to having my own financial consultancy. But I always had a burning desire to write my own book as I was an avid reader growing up. I read a lot of books to help me find what I wanted to do with my life… but I couldn’t find any good ones and that’s when I was inspired to write a book about my journey of leaving the corporate grind to become an entrepreneur. The publication of my first book paved the way for a few more books and that’s how I started my author journey and started my own publishing house.
What do you hope your readers take away from this book?
I want readers to understand that life is a process and that it’s OK to experiment and fail. In today’s society we are surrounded by ‘overnight’ success stories and presented with images of people who wake up and know exactly what their purpose is in life. The reality is that it’s a messy process mainly because most of our dreams and ambitions have been coached out of us and replaced with the status quo or ‘getting a good job to pay the bills’. We have forgotten how to step out of our comfort zones and that is where real joy resides. But to get there you have to be willing to face a few roadblocks and potential U-turns. Instead of seeing these as failures we need to see all these experiences as opportunities to learn about ourselves and learn new skills. I used to think my 10+ years’ experience working in finance was a waste… until I eventually started my own businesses and was able to benefit from all the skills I had accumulated. No skill or experience is ever wasted if you approach it with the right mindset!
What are the top three tools you are currently using to write, publish, and promote your books?
I use Scrivener to write the drafts of my books. I find it more reliable than Word.
I also love to use Google Docs to write and capture ideas when on the go.
I’m also a big fan of Grammarly editing software.
BookFunnel is a great way to deliver ebooks.
When will you consider your book a success?
Success can be measured in two ways; the first is obviously financial (for me that would be a million copies sold!) and the second is in the joy it gives you in writing (which I have already achieved as I love writing!).
‘’At that moment, I decided I could no longer live a life where I kept waking up miserable every day, had to put up with idiots and did the kind of work that sucked the life and soul out of me. I was slowly dying inside while still alive. Instead, I wanted to live life fully and to wake up excited, knowing that I was going to make a real contribution to the world. I didn’t know it, but I had just started on my personal quest to discover my passions, find my purpose and unleash my highest potential.
I was determined to create the life that I wanted, a life where I could consciously choose both how and where I spent my most valuable currency – my time and energy. I was tired of living up to other people’s expectations of what I should and shouldn’t be doing. It was time I claimed 100% responsibility for my life. It was time to embark on my personal quest.’’
What is the one thing you wish you knew before publishing your book?
It takes time to build a loyal readership and to promote your book so keep at it and be consistent with promoting and marketing your books via podcasts, guest blog posts and writing content on your author website.
The best marketing tips is to have a basic author website (I used WordPress and it takes less than 15 minutes to set up a free website. Add an author bio and a link to a mailing list (I used Mailchimp). This email list will be your most powerful marketing tool to communicate and connect with potential readers and it’s very inexpensive especially when you are just getting started.
Just start writing! Most authors are gripped with fear at the start and think their words are never going to be good enough, I know I certainly felt this way. Just remember that none of the books you see in bookstores were written that way in the first draft. As writer Ann Lamont says ‘write your shitty first draft’ so you can edit and make it better as you can’t edit a blank page!
What is your favorite quote?
“Twenty years from now, you will be more disappointed by the things you didn’t do than by the things you did do. So, throw off the bowlines. Sail away from the safe harbour. Catch the trade winds in your sails. Explore. Dream. Discover.”
– Mark Twain
This quote reminds me that life is a journey, a process. Stop focusing on the ‘end goal’ as it is the journey that counts and moulds you as a person.
Who should we interview next and why?
Joanna Penn is an author entrepreneur who I learned a lot from. She understands the business of book publishing and helps authors become business savvy. She also has an amazing blog and podcast educating authors.
How can we get in touch with you?
I am on most social media platforms where I appear as Sukhi Jutla so just search me and add me and let’s connect!
Sukhi Jutla book: Escape The Cubicle: Quit The Job You Hate. Create A Life You Love
Random Interview: Andrea Waltz: Fail Your Way to Success with the Co-author of Go for No!
