10 Famous Failures That Will Inspire You
Remember how I said failure isn't a bad thing? Well, I was right. I still am. Even though it has been proven beyond reasonable doubt that failure isn’t the opposite of success, a lot of you are still skeptical about it so I thought I should show you more proof.
Our society is filled with people who struggled for a while, some longer than the others, few of them till death; and then later succeeded in their endeavors. We call this set of people “Famous Failures”. I think what makes them stand out is the fact that they proved that success isn’t how it is normally shown. They showed how much failure is required to succeed. They lived relatable lives and still do; unlike the super-easy-blessed-lucky-talented-rich people, we see everywhere.
We have so many famous failures around us; the likes of Albert Einstein, Abraham Lincoln, Isaac Newton, and Thomas Edison. We shall go into 10 famous failures and hopefully become inspired by them.
I was today year old when I found out that Arianna Huffington was the founder of one of my favourite websites, HuffPost. Arianna is also the founder and CEO of Thrive Global and the author of 15 books, but it wasn’t always like this.
Arianna struggled to get her book published as it took 36 rejections until it was finally accepted on the 37th attempt. Now she is listed by Forbes as the 52nd Most Powerful Woman in the World.
2. Colonel Harland David Sanders
The first time I heard this name was in a YouTube video, where he was mentioned as one of the people who succeeded very late in life.
He lost his father at the age of 5 and had only his mother who was a skilled cook, to take care of him. He started working at the age of 10; and at 14, he left home as his mother had remarried. He worked different jobs for years and finally started his own. At this point, he was 40 years old. Four months later, the restaurant got destroyed by fire and subsequent businesses of his failed.
It wasn’t until he was 65 that he made any progress; after getting rejected by 1,009 restaurants. He is the founder of the famous Kentucky Fried Chicken (KFC).
This brings back memories of my cousin convincing me to watch the movie that was adapted from her life experience. I still haven’t.
Emily was the master of poems; she wrote a lot of them while she was alive but they weren’t published. Only 10 of them that was, were altered. She was an introvert that never got married and wrote about death and immortality. She was considered a failure. After her death, her sister found her cache of poems, about 1,800 of them.
Now, she is one of America’s greatest and most original poets. So yeah, famous failure at death.
Jack Canfield, a celebrated author, and motivational speaker. He is the author of Chicken Soup for the Soul, a collection of true stories to help inspire people and motivate them to achieve their dreams.
The book received 144 rejections from major publishers but was finally accepted by a small self-help publisher in Florida. This book has sold over 500 million copies in over 20 languages.
5. Keanu Reeves
Are you a movie person? You might also know him as John Wick. I first saw him in a quote. Weird.
Keanu’s life wasn’t easy. His father abandoned the family when he was 3 and didn’t see him again till he was 13. He went to 4 different schools in the space of 5 years because his mother married again and divorced 4 times. He dropped out of high school at 17. He married Jennifer, who unfortunately had a stillbirth, and 18 months later, Jennifer died in a car accident.
6. Milton Hershey
I’m intrigued by this one because of my love for chocolate. Milton Hershey is the founder of the Hershey Chocolate Company.
He left school and chose to apprentice in a local printer. He was fired later when he accidentally dropped his hat into one of the machines. He worked for a candy company and decided to open his candy store which failed. He later started working for a candy and restaurant chain which he quit a few years later. He sold candy on the streets of New York, which was also unsuccessful. Disappointed, he went back to the farm where he grew up and started experimenting with chocolates and candies.
He opened a Caramel Company which sold for 7 million dollars 7 years later. He was 43 when Hershey Chocolate Company succeeded.
Oprah lived in poverty with her grandmother and later moved in with her mother when she was 6 years old, who had her as a single teenaged mother. In her early years, Oprah was sexually molested by her cousin, uncle, and family friend. She ran away from home at 13 and got pregnant at 14. She had a premature birth and the child died shortly after. She was fired from a job as a news anchor because she was deemed unfit for television.
Now, she is a multi-billionaire and the owner of one of the highest-ranked shows.
8. Stephen King
There is no way I’m skipping Stephen King. I didn’t have to research much about him as I know most of his major stories after reading his memoir, on writing. He is the king of Horror.
He is one of the greatest writers and a successful one at that. He has sold over 350 million books and some of his books have been adapted into a movie, like Carrie.
Speaking of Carrie, it was rejected 30 times, then he threw the manuscript away. His wife asked him to try one more time, the 31st attempt, which was finally accepted. He is 73 years old and has written at least 78 books.
And I have read only one.
He is also referred to as Dr. Seuss. If this name rings a bell in your head, it’s probably because you’ve read his book or you read one of his quotes on this blog.
He was an American children’s author and has written more than 60 books under his pen name Dr. Seuss. He has sold over 600 million copies of his books and it has been translated into 20 different languages.
His first book, And to Think That I saw It on Mulberry Tree was rejected 28 times. He had headed home once and was about to burn the manuscript but later got a breakthrough.
10. Vincent Van Gogh
It’s amazing the ridiculous amount Vincent’s painting is worth.
He was seen as a failure in his time. Even though he was trying to build up a reputation for himself, he still received criticisms. He considered himself a failure and burned, and destroyed many of his paintings. He couldn’t live with this failure he had believed himself to be and committed suicide.
In his lifetime, he sold only one of his paintings. His paintings now sell for over 82 million dollars and are among the most expensive artworks ever sold.
I think this is the saddest story of famous failures among these listed here. Would he have become this successful if he was still alive or was his success as a result of his death?
This shows just how important mental health is, and how much your behaviour towards others and opinions about yourself matters.
I can’t tell if you feel inspired by these people but I know I am. I guess I’m not a terrible writer, at least until I’ve been rejected 144 times, almost burned my manuscript, or I’m on the verge of suicide. Not to reduce the weight or effect of your pain, but I don’t think we’ve suffered as much as these people listed above, not with this technology.
It’s high time you correct that blurry picture of success you have and become more realistic and honest. Age is not a measure of success, and because it hasn’t happened doesn’t mean it won’t.
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