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11 Famous Failures That Will Inspire You To Success

The document discusses how a fear of failure is one of the biggest phobias, affecting nearly one third of people. It aims to help alleviate this fear by providing examples of 11 famous and highly successful people who experienced notable failures early in their careers, including Michael Jordan, Walt Disney, Steven Spielberg, John Grisham, Albert Einstein, Henry Ford, Oprah Winfrey, Jerry Seinfeld, James Dyson, Elvis Presley, and Colonel Sanders. The examples demonstrate that even massive successes have faced failure, and that one should not be discouraged from pursuing their goals due to potential failures along the way.

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207 views3 pages

11 Famous Failures That Will Inspire You To Success

The document discusses how a fear of failure is one of the biggest phobias, affecting nearly one third of people. It aims to help alleviate this fear by providing examples of 11 famous and highly successful people who experienced notable failures early in their careers, including Michael Jordan, Walt Disney, Steven Spielberg, John Grisham, Albert Einstein, Henry Ford, Oprah Winfrey, Jerry Seinfeld, James Dyson, Elvis Presley, and Colonel Sanders. The examples demonstrate that even massive successes have faced failure, and that one should not be discouraged from pursuing their goals due to potential failures along the way.

Uploaded by

Kuldeep Ban
Copyright
© © All Rights Reserved
We take content rights seriously. If you suspect this is your content, claim it here.
Available Formats
Download as PDF, TXT or read online on Scribd

11 Famous Failures

That Will Inspire You


to Success
Fear of failure is daunting. Here's help--famous
"been there, done that" stories that will have you
saying "learned this, did that".

By Scott Mautz @scott_mautz

CREDIT: Getty Images

Nothing debilitates us as much or is as scary as a fear


of failure.

In fact, research indicates that our fear of failure tops


the list of our phobias with nearly one in three people
having a fear of failure (31 percent), ahead of our fear
of public speaking or fear of spiders (30 percent each)
or even our fear of the paranormal (15 percent).

A close fifth was our fear of


another Transformersmovie being made.

Furthermore, nearly half of all adults (49 percent)


admitted that fear of failure "was the biggest
roadblock to either not achieving their goals at all, or
discouraged them from revisiting their goals."
In this column (and in my upcoming book) I talk a fair
amount about overcoming a fear of failure, for good
reason. It is the antithesis of what makes us feel
inspired, the opposite of positive, forward-movement,
the dark force that snuffs out our passion for our work.

It can be lonely, but you're not alone.

The truth is that when we find that even massively


successful people have failed along the way, and
more than recovered, it's reassuring and inspiring
(we're sick like that). It's a universal truth that we fear
things a bit less when we know that we're not alone in
facing that fear. There is quiet comfort in numbers.

Especially when your failures keep company with the


likes of the success stories that follow. Ask yourself,
"What if these people had let their failure shut them
down?"

1. The greatest basketball player of all time, Michael


Jordan, was cut from his high school team.

2. Walt Disney was fired from his job at a newspaper


early in his career--they said he lacked imagination.

3. Steven Spielberg was rejected from film school three


times.

4. John Grisham's first book, "A Time to Kill", was


rejected twenty-eight times.

5. Albert Einstein had the label "mentally slow" put on


his permanent school record.

6. Henry Ford's first two automobile companies failed.

7. Oprah Winfrey was fired from an early job as a


television news anchor.

8. Jerry Seinfeld was booed off stage in his first stand-


up comedy appearance.

9. Sir James Dyson suffered through 5,126 failed


prototypes before he landed on the first working
Dyson vacuum.

10. Elvis Presley was fired from the Grand Ole Opry and
was told to go back to truck driving.
11. Colonel Harland Sanders of KFC fame was rejected
over 1000 times before finding a franchise partner.

Feel better? You should. We've all been there. It's all
in your frame of reference and determination to keep
moving forward, which is in your control.

Yes, a fear of failure is daunting. But no, you're not on


an island. Take comfort in these famous failures and
get more comfortable with getting on that horse and
giving it a go.

Before you know it, you and success will be getting


along famously.

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