Let’s be honest, few stories are as motivational as a good comeback tale. We look up to our superheroes, of course, but the ones we really look up to? They’re not the ones who have reached incredible heights but rather the ones who’ve hit rock bottoms and made those experiences stepping stones for greatness. Legends are made, not born, and their success isn’t immediate but rather built upon experiences of failure and setbacks that might have broken ordinary people. If you’ve ever felt as though you’ve reached a plateau of failure, please remember these 10 legends below and how failure led them down their paths to success.
10. Oprah Winfrey
Oprah has not always been the media giant that the world recognizes and respects. In the early stages of her professional life, Oprah had been a local television anchor in Baltimore, and then, she had been fired from her position because her employers believed that “she wasn’t fit for television.” Rather, this setback had only made Oprah stronger, and instead, she showcased her ability to tell a great story and connect it with a human. This is how Oprah created a landmark and an empire, and she is a billionaire today.
9. Vincent van Gogh
Van Gogh is now regarded as one of the greatest painters to have ever existed, but was he in his lifetime? He was penniless, ill, and sold one painting only to a friend for nearly nothing. Amidst poverty and rejection, he painted with abandon, and he left behind over 800 paintings. Years after his death, his paintings became invaluable, and his name was attached to genius. Occasionally, the world simply needs to catch up.
8. Steven Spielberg
Steven Spielberg, the genius behind Jurassic Park, E.T., and Indiana Jones, couldn’t even get accepted into film school. He was rejected three times from USC’s elite School of Theater, Film, and Television. He eventually quit another college to pursue directing on his own terms. Not only did he disprove his critics, but he went on to become one of the most influential directors in history. The kicker? USC subsequently conferred an honorary degree upon him.
7. Charles Darwin
Darwin was once considered lazy, distracted, and a disappointment to his family. Teachers and even his dad believed he would amount to nothing. His revolutionary concepts on evolution were mocked, dismissed, and even considered heresy. But Darwin persisted with his work, and his book On the Origin of Species revolutionized science forever. His so-called “daydreaming” was one of humanity’s greatest epiphanies.
6. Fred Astaire
One of Hollywood’s greatest legends almost didn’t make it. Following his first screen test, a studio executive composed the devastating critique: “Can’t act. Can’t sing. Slightly bald. Not handsome. Can dance a little.” Astaire saved that note for inspiration, and then danced into history as one of the all-time greats. As it turns out, “can dance a little” was the century’s greatest understatement.
5. Stephen King
Stephen King is horror’s king today, but his career came close to not materializing. His novel Carrie was rejected by 30 publishers. Disgruntled, King threw the manuscript away until his wife rescued it from the trash and urged him to give it another try. On the 31st try, at last, a publisher accepted, and King’s career began to soar. Now, his novels have sold over 350 million copies. Tenaciousness (and a good partner) rewarded.”.
4. Michael Jordan
Even the GOAT of basketball began with a grand failure: he didn’t get onto his high school varsity team. Rather than quitting, Jordan worked harder and used every failure as motivation. During his career, he missed over 9,000 shots and lost close to 300 games, but he loved failure as much as he loved success. His own words say it best: “I’ve failed over and over again in my life. And that is why I succeed.”
3. Ludwig van Beethoven
Growing up, Beethoven’s teachers believed he was hopeless as a musician. Some even labeled him “too stupid” to write music. Afterwards, he started losing his hearing, an unfathomable tragedy for a composer. Yet Beethoven did not give up. Even when he became totally deaf, he kept composing, producing some of the most recognizable works of music in history. It is a testament that passion can transcend even the toughest challenges.
2. J.K. Rowling
Before Harry Potter, J.K. Rowling was surviving on welfare checks, depressed, and a single mother to her daughter. She had her manuscript rejected by a dozen publishers before one of them finally decided to take a chance on it. A few years later, she transitioned from penniless and unknown to being one of the world’s best-selling authors. Magic didn’t occur in her novels; it occurred in her life as well.
1. Abraham Lincoln
Abraham Lincoln is one of America’s greatest presidents, but his journey was far from easy. He twice declared bankruptcy, was a business failure, lost many elections, and even fought in a war as a captain but returned as a private, the lowest rank. Most folks would have quit, but not Lincoln. His determination took him all the way to the presidency, where he altered the course of U.S. history.
Setbacks aren’t the end of the book; oh, they’re only the messy, painful pages before the victory. All the legends you read about today used to have to struggle through doubt, rejection, and defeat. So if you find yourself halfway through your own failure, take note: it could just be the prologue to your comeback.