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50 Famously Successful People Who Failed At First

Not everyone who's on top today got there with success after success. Moreoften than not, those who history best remembers were faced with numerousobstacles that forced them to work harder and show more determination

than others. This can be said for education as well, as furthering youreducation with abachelor’s or master’s degree can also help do wonders foryour success. Next time you're feeling down about your failures incollege orin a career, keep these ftyfamous people in mind and remindyourself that sometimes failure is !ust the rst step towards success.Business Gurus These businessmen and thecompanies they founded are todayknown around the world, but as

these stories show, theirbeginnings weren't always smooth. Today’s business"minded studentscan learn what it takes to besuccessful in business bycompleting online businessdegrees.

#. Henry Ford: $hile %ord istoday known for his innovativeassembly line and &merican"made cars, he wasn't an instant

success. n fact, his earlybusinesses failed and left himbroke ve times before hefounded the successful %ordMotor (ompany.

). R. H. acy: Most people are familiar with this large department storechain, but Macy didn't always have it easy. Macy started seven failedbusiness before nally hitting big with his store in New *ork (ity.

+. F. W. Wool!orth: ome may not know this name today, but$oolworth was once one of the biggest names in department stores in the-.. efore starting his own business, young $oolworth worked at a dry

goods store and was not allowed to wait on customers because his bosssaid he lacked the sense needed to do so.

/. Soichiro Honda: The billion"dollar business that is 0onda began witha series of failures and fortunate turns of luck. 0onda was turned down by Toyota Motor (orporation for a !ob after interviewing for a !ob as anengineer, leaving him !obless for 1uite some time. 0e started making

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scooters of his own at home, and spurred on by his neighbors, nallystarted his own business.

2. A"io orita: *ou may not have heard of Morita but you'veundoubtedly heard of his company, ony. ony's rst product was a ricecooker that unfortunately didn't cook rice so much as burn it, selling less

than #33 units. This rst setback didn't stop Morita and his partners asthey pushed forward to create a multi"billion dollar company.4. Bill Gates: 5ates didn't seem like a shoe"in for success after dropping

out of 0arvard and starting a failed rst business with Microsoft co"founder6aul &llen called Traf"7"8ata. $hile this early idea didn't work, 5ates' laterwork did, creating the global empire that is Microsoft.

9. Harland #a$id Sanders: 6erhaps better known as (olonel anders of :entucky %ried (hicken fame, anders had a hard time selling his chickenat rst. n fact, his famous secret chicken recipe was re!ected #,33; timesbefore a restaurant accepted it.

<. Walt #isney: Today 8isney rakes in billions from merchandise, movies

and theme parks around the world, but $alt 8isney himself had a bit of arough start. 0e was red by a newspaper editor because, =he lackedimagination and had no good ideas.= &fter that, 8isney started a numberof businesses that didn't last too long and ended with bankruptcy andfailure. 0e kept plugging along, however, and eventually found a recipe forsuccess that worked.

Scientists and %hin"ers These people are often regarded as some of the greatest minds of ourcentury, but they often had to face great obstacles, the ridicule of theirpeers, and the animosity of society. tudents who complete online sciencedegrees can learn skills in scientic in1uiry and advance their education in

disciplines like biochemistry, biology, 1uantum physics, and more.;. Al&ert 'instein: Most of us take >instein's name as synonymous with

genius, but he didn't always show such promise. >instein did not speakuntil he was four and did not read until he was seven, causing his teachersand parents to think he was mentally handicapped, slow and anti"social.>ventually, he was expelled from school and was refused admittance tothe ?urich 6olytechnic chool. t might have taken him a bit longer, butmost people would agree that he caught on pretty well in the end, winningthe Nobel 6ri@e and changing the face of modern physics.

#3. (harles #ar!in: n his early years, 8arwin gave up on having amedical career and was often chastised by his father for being la@y and too

dreamy. 8arwin himself wrote, = was considered by all my masters and myfather, a very ordinary boy, rather below the common standard ofintellect.= 6erhaps they !udged too soon, as 8arwin today is well"known forhis scientic studies.

##. Ro&ert Goddard: 5oddard today is hailed for his research andexperimentation with li1uid"fueled rockets, but during his lifetime his ideaswere often re!ected and mocked by his scientic peers who thought they

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were outrageous and impossible. Today rockets and space travel don'tseem far"fetched at all, due largely in part to the work of this scientist whoworked against the feelings of the time.

#). )saac *e!ton: Newton was undoubtedly a genius when it came tomath, but he had some failings early on. 0e never did particularly well in

school and when put in charge of running the family farm, he failedmiserably, so poorly in fact that an uncle took charge and sent him oA to(ambridge where he nally blossomed into the scholar we know today.

#+. Socrates: 8espite leaving no written records behind, ocrates isregarded as one of the greatest philosophers of the (lassical era. ecauseof his new ideas, in his own time he was called =an immoral corrupter ofyouth= and was sentenced to death. ocrates didn't let this stop him andkept right on, teaching up until he was forced to poison himself.

#/. Ro&ert Stern&er+: This big name in psychology received a B(C in hisrst college introductory psychology class with his teacher telling him that,=there was already a famous ternberg in psychology and it was obvious

there would not be another.= 7uchD ternberg showed him, however,graduating from tanford with exceptional distinction in psychology,summa cum laude, and 6hi eta :appa and eventually becoming the6resident of the &merican 6sychological &ssociation. This should inspirestudents at traditional and accredited online colleges to always strive tosucceed, no matter what anyone says along the way.

)n$entors These inventors changed the face of the modern world, but not without a fewfailed prototypes along the way. tudents interested in designing innovativenew machines and systems can sharpen their skills by completingonlineengineering degrees.

#2. %homas 'dison: n his early years, teachers told >dison he was =toostupid to learn anything.= $ork was no better, as he was red from his rsttwo !obs for not being productive enough. >ven as an inventor, >disonmade #,333 unsuccessful attempts at inventing the light bulb. 7f course,all those unsuccessful attempts nally resulted in the design that worked.

#4. ,r$ille and Wil&ur Wri+ht: These brothers battled depression andfamily illness before starting the bicycle shop that would lead them toexperimenting with Eight. &fter numerous attempts at creating Eyingmachines, several years of hard work, and tons of failed prototypes, thebrothers nally created a plane that could get airborne and stay there.

Pu&lic Fi+ures%rom politicians to talk show hosts, these gures had a few failures beforethey came out on top.

#9. Winston (hurchill: This Nobel 6ri@e"winning, twice"elected 6rimeMinster of the -nited :ingdom wasn't always as well regarded as he istoday. (hurchill struggled in school and failed the sixth grade. &fter schoolhe faced many years of political failures, as he was defeated in every

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election for public oFce until he nally became the 6rime Minister at theripe old age of 4).

#<. A&raham -incoln: $hile today he is remembered as one of thegreatest leaders of our nation, Gincoln's life wasn't so easy. n his youth hewent to war a captain and returned a private Hif you're not familiar with

military ranks, !ust know that private is as low as it goes.I Gincoln didn'tstop failing there, however. 0e started numerous failed business and wasdefeated in numerous runs he made for public oFce.

#;. ,prah Winfrey: Most people know 7prah as one of the most iconicfaces on TJ as well as one of the richest and most successful women in theworld. 7prah faced a hard road to get to that position, however, enduring arough and often abusive childhood as well as numerous career setbacksincluding being red from her !ob as a television reporter because she was=unt for tv.=

)3. Harry S. %ruman: This $$ vet, enator, Jice 6resident and eventual6resident eventually found success in his life, but not without a few

missteps along the way. Truman started a store that sold silk shirts andother clothingKseemingly a success at rstKonly go bankrupt a few yearslater.

)#. #ic" (heney: This recent Jice 6resident and businessman made hisway to the $hite 0ouse but managed to Eunk out of *ale -niversity, notonce, but twice. %ormer 6resident 5eorge $. ush !oked with (heney aboutthis fact, stating, =o now we know Kif you graduate from *ale, you becomepresident. f you drop out, you get to be vice president.=

Holly!ood %ypes These faces ought to be familiar from the big screen, but these actors,actresses and directors saw their fair share of re!ection and failure before

they made it big. tudents interested in careers in acting could benetfrom online liberal arts degrees that expose them to multiple disciplines andgive them a broad knowledge base to draw from when considering how toplay a role.

)).  erry Seinfeld: Lust about everybody knows who einfeld is, but therst time the young comedian walked on stage at a comedy club, helooked out at the audience, fro@e and was eventually !eered and booed oAof the stage. einfeld knew he could do it, so he went back the next night,completed his set to laughter and applause, and the rest is history.

)+. Fred Astaire: n his rst screen test, the testing director of M5Mnoted that &staire, =(an't act. (an't sing. lightly bald. (an dance a little.=

&staire went on to become an incredibly successful actor, singer anddancer and kept that note in his everly 0ills home to remind him of wherehe came from.

)/. Sidney Poitier: &fter his rst audition, 6oitier was told by the castingdirector, =$hy don't you stop wasting people's time and go out andbecome a dishwasher or something= 6oitier vowed to show him that he

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could make it, going on to win an 7scar and become one of the most well"regarded actors in the business.

)2.  eanne oreau: &s a young actress !ust starting out, this %renchactress was told by a casting director that she was simply not prettyenough to make it in lms. 0e couldn't have been more wrong as Moreau

when on to star in nearly #33 lms and win numerous awards for herperformances.)4. (harlie (haplin: t's hard to imagine lm without the iconic (harlie

(haplin, but his act was initially re!ected by 0ollywood studio chiefsbecause they felt it was a little too nonsensical to ever sell.

)9. -ucille Ball: 8uring her career, all had thirteen >mmy nominationsand four wins, also earning the Gifetime &chievement &ward from the:ennedy (enter 0onors. efore starring in I Love Lucy, all was widelyregarded as a failed actress and a movie star. >ven her dramainstructors didn't feel she could make it, telling her to try anotherprofession. he, of course, proved them all wrong.

)<. Harrison Ford: n his rst lm, %ord was told by the movie execs thathe simply didn't have what it takes to be a star. Today, with numerous hitsunder his belt, iconic portrayals of characters like 0an olo and ndiana Lones, and a career that stretches decades, %ord can proudly show that hedoes, in fact, have what it takes.

);. arilyn onroe: $hile Monroe's star burned out early, she did havea period of great success in her life. 8espite a rough upbringing and beingtold by modeling agents that she should instead consider being asecretary, Monroe became a pin"up, model and actress that still strikes achord with people today.

+3. ,li$er Stone: This 7scar"winning lmmaker began his rst novel

while at *ale, a pro!ect that eventually caused him to fail out of school. Thiswould turn out to be a poor decision as the the text was re!ected bypublishers and was not published until #;;<, at which time it was not well"received. &fter dropping out of school, tone moved to Jietnam to teach>nglish, later enlisting in the army and ghting in the war, a battle thatearning two 6urple 0earts and helped him nd the inspiration for his laterwork that often center around war.

Writers and Artists$e've all heard about starving artists and struggling writers, but thesestories show that sometimes all that work really does pay oA with success inthe long run. tudents who would like to prepare for careers as artists in

various elds would benet from online art and design degrees that teachthem marketable skills.

+#. /incent /an Go+h: 8uring his lifetime, Jan 5ogh sold only onepainting, and this was to a friend and only for a very small amount ofmoney. $hile Jan 5ogh was never a success during his life, he plugged onwith painting, sometimes starving to complete his over <33 known works. Today, they bring in hundreds of millions.

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+). 'mily #ic"inson: ecluse and poet >mily 8ickinson is a commonlyread and loved writer. *et in her lifetime she was all but ignored, havingfewer than a do@en poems published out of her almost #,<33 completedworks.

++. %heodor Seuss Giesel: Today nearly every child has read The Cat in

the Hat or Green Eggs and Ham, yet )9 diAerent publishers re!ected 8r.euss's rst book To Think That I Saw It on Mulberry Street .+/. (harles Schult: chult@'s 6eanuts comic strip has had enduring

fame, yet this cartoonist had every cartoon he submitted re!ected by hishigh school yearbook staA. >ven after high school, chult@ didn't have iteasy, applying and being re!ected for a position working with $alt 8isney.

+2. Ste$en Spiel&er+: $hile today pielberg's name is synonymous withbig budget, he was re!ected from the -niversity of outhern (aliforniachool of Theater, %ilm and Television three times. 0e eventually attendedschool at another location, only to drop out to become a director beforenishing. Thirty"ve years after starting his degree, pielberg returned to

school in )33) to nally complete his work and earn his &.+4. Stephen 1in+: The rst book by this author, the iconic

thriller Carrie, received +3 re!ections, nally causing :ing to give up andthrow it in the trash. 0is wife shed it out and encouraged him to resubmitit, and the rest is history, with :ing now having hundreds of bookspublished the distinction of being one of the best"selling authors of alltime.

+9. 2ane Grey: ncredibly popular in the early )3th century, thisadventure book writer began his career as a dentist, something he 1uicklybegan to hate. o, he began to write, only to see re!ection after re!ectionfor his works, being told eventually that he had no business being a writer

and should given up. t took him years, but at /3, ?ane nally got his rstwork published, leaving him with almost ;3 books to his name and sellingover 23 million copies worldwide.

+<.  . 1. Ro!lin+: owling may be rolling in a lot of 0arry 6otter doughtoday, but before she published the series of novels she was nearlypenniless, severely depressed, divorced, trying to raise a child on her ownwhile attending school and writing a novel. owling went from dependingon welfare to survive to being one of the richest women in the world in aspan of only ve years through her hard work and determination.

+;. onet: Today Monet's work sells for millions of dollars and hangs insome of the most prestigious institutions in the world. *et during his own

time, it was mocked and re!ected by the artistic elite, the 6aris alon.Monet kept at his impressionist style, which caught on and in many wayswas a starting point for some ma!or changes to art that ushered in themodern era.

/3.  ac" -ondon: This well"known &merican author wasn't always such asuccess. $hile he would go on to publish popular novels like hite

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!ang and The Call o" the ild, his rst story received six hundred re!ectionslips before nally being accepted.

/#. -ouisa ay Alcott: Most people are familiar with &lcott's mostfamous work, Little omen. *et &lcott faced a bit of a battle to get herwork out there and was was encouraged to nd work as a servant by her

family to make ends meet. t was her letters back home during herexperience as a nurse in the (ivil $ar that gave her the rst big break sheneeded.

usicians$hile their music is some of the best selling, best loved and most populararound the world today, these musicians show that it takes a whole lot ofdetermination to achieve success.

/). Wolf+an+ Amadeus oart: Mo@art began composing at the age ofve, writing over 433 pieces of music that today are lauded as some of thebest ever created. *et during his lifetime, Mo@art didn't have such an easytime, and was often restless, leading to his dismissal from a position as a

court musician in al@berg. 0e struggled to keep the support of thearistocracy and died with little to his name.

/+. 'l$is Presley: &s one of the best"selling artists of all time, >lvis hasbecome a household name even years after his death. ut back in #;2/,>lvis was still a nobody, and Limmy 8enny, manager of the 5rand 7le7pry, red >lvis 6resley after !ust one performance telling him, =*ou ain'tgoin' nowhere, son. *ou ought to go back to drivin' a truck.=

//. )+or Stra$ins"y: n #;#+ when travinsky debuted his nowfamous #ite o" S$ring, audiences rioted, running the composer out of town. *et it was this very work that changed the way composers in the #;thcentury thought about music and cemented his place in musical history.

/2. %he Beatles: %ew people can deny the lasting power of this supergroup, still popular with listeners around the world today. *et when theywere !ust starting out, a recording company told them no. The were told=we don't like their sound, and guitar music is on the way out,= two thingsthe rest of the world couldn't have disagreed with more.

/4. -ud!i+ $an Beetho$en: n his formative years, young eethovenwas incredibly awkward on the violin and was often so busy working on hisown compositions that he neglected to practice. 8espite his love ofcomposing, his teachers felt he was hopeless at it and would neversucceed with the violin or in composing. eethoven kept plugging along,

however, and composed some of the best"loved symphonies of all timeKve of them while he was completely deaf.Athletes$hile some athletes rocket to fame, others endure a path fraught with a littlemore adversity, like those listed here.

/9. ichael ordan: Most people wouldn't believe that a man oftenlauded as the best basketball player of all time was actually cut from hishigh school basketball team. Guckily, Lordan didn't let this setback stop him

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from playing the game and he has stated, = have missed more than ;,333shots in my career. have lost almost +33 games. 7n )4 occasions havebeen entrusted to take the game winning shot, and missed. have failedover and over and over again in my life. &nd that is why succeed.=

/<. Stan Smith: This tennis player was re!ected from even being a lowly

ball boy for a 8avis (up tennis match because event organi@ers felt he wastoo clumsy and uncoordinated. mith went on to prove them wrong,showcasing his not"so"clumsy skills by winning $imbledon, -. . 7pen andeight 8avis (ups.

/;. Ba&e Ruth: *ou probably know abe uth because of his home runrecord H9#/ during his careerI, but along with all those home runs came apretty hefty amount of strikeouts as well H#,++3 in allI. n fact, for decadeshe held the record for strikeouts. $hen asked about this he simply said,=>very strike brings me closer to the next home run.=

23. %om -andry: &s the coach of the 8allas (owboys, Gandry brought theteam two uper owl victories, ve N%( (hampionship victories and holds

the records for the record for the most career wins. 0e also has thedistinction of having one of the worst rst seasons on record Hwinning nogamesI and winning ve or fewer over the next four seasons.