Jonathan Hugo Durival Kemp
4th Baron and 3rd Viscount Rochdale
Jonathan’s Memoir: Finding Peace of Mind
This is an inspirational journey through the challenges of bipolar disorder, depression, and addiction. With over 50 years of experience navigating mental health, including 20 years of personal attempts to overcome these challenges and 20 years of seeking professional medical help, Jonathan has amassed a wealth of invaluable knowledge. His incredible journey has taught him what truly works, and he is eager to share his insights with others. Jonathan’s deep-seated motivation to help others by sharing his story is a driving force behind his memoir.
Education
Jonathan focused most of his energy on night fishing, skateboarding, and the fledgling punk rock movement. He was diagnosed with dyslexia in his late 40s.
Australia
Early on, he went to Australia and worked at a cattle station in the outback for just over ten months. Most of the work was on horseback (a steep learning curve) and included fencing, rounding up cattle, and branding. He was also given the role of butcher for the station. The beauty of the outback captivated him. It was a wonderful experience to sit on the cattle yard railings in the evening, watching the dust settle, the sunset cast shadows through the eucalyptus trees, and listening to the parrots.
Metropolitan Police
He joined the Met in 1982 and served for 11 years, first as a constable in Chelsea and then as a sergeant in Fulham. It was a time of significant social and political change, with bombings in London, major industrial disputes, and restricted access to certain parts of the city. He was awarded two commendations for bravery and investigative ability.
University and a new life
Jonathan attended university as a mature student, earning a postgraduate diploma in management studies with distinction and a Master of Science degree in International Shipping, Trade, and Finance, where he ranked in the top 10% of his class. During his studies, he developed effective techniques and strategies for managing large volumes of knowledge. Unbeknown to him at the time, he was dyslexic, a condition not formally diagnosed until 12 years later. Jonathan then worked for a shipping company, utilising his expertise in Mandarin.
SmartWisdom®
In 1998, Jonathan founded his own business to help experienced professionals manage knowledge more effectively, saving them time and optimising their daily work performance, especially in meetings, presentations, and interviews. He developed SmartWisdom, an advanced business and study note-taking technique. SmartWisdom is scientifically proven to enhance cognitive capacity, enabling better focus, listening, and comprehension of new information. Jonathan has trained professionals in major institutions in the City of London and students at top universities. Today, he offers SmartWisdom worldwide through high-quality online learning.
Publications/Talks/Awards
Jonathan is the co-author of two scientific papers published in peer-reviewed journals: the British Journal of Educational Technology in July 2009, which shows that SmartWisdom helps experienced professionals improve their average ‘real-time’ comprehension and understanding in demanding meetings and presentations by 19%, and the Journal of Dyslexia in February 2011, which shows that SmartWisdom helps dyslexics outperform non-dyslexics by up to 23% in terms of ‘real-time’ comprehension and understanding in meetings and presentations. In 2015, Jonathan gave a TEDx talk on managing information overload. In 2011, he was awarded ‘Entrepreneur of the Year’ by the British Dyslexia Association.
Interests
Jonathan is an accomplished photographer. He is particularly interested in how the camera can be used to quickly meet people and build rapport and relationships with them, especially in situations where this would otherwise be difficult. He has the unique ability to approach strangers in public who are engaged in their daily activities or attending public events. For Jonathan, conversation is a critical element of the photographic process. Whenever possible, he combines photography with interviews, allowing him to form a greater bond and gain a more in-depth understanding of the subject. For Jonathan, photography is ‘all about the people.’