23 Incredibly Successful People Who Failed at First

Successful People Who Failed At First - Business Insider Page 1 of 25
23 Incredibly Successful People Who

Failed At First
RICHARD FELONI AND ASHLEY LUTZ
MAR. 7, 2014, 2:17 PM
Rejection can feel

devastating, but you
shouldn't let it crush
you. Some of the world's
most successful people
have failed — sometimes
more than once.
We've put together a list

of highly successful
people, from movie stars
to scientists, who
experienced massive
failure before they found
fame and fortune.
Weaker people might

have given up. Instead, AP Photo/Francois Mori
these folks remained Stephen King at a book signing for "Dr. Sleep."
focused on their goals.
Scroll down to see the

underdogs who went on
to change the world.
View As: One Page Slides
http://www.businessinsider.com/successful-people-who-failed-at-first-2014-3 8/17/2015
Winston Churchill was estranged from his political party over

ideological disagreements during the "wilderness years" of 1929 to
1939.
At the outbreak of World
War II on Sep. 3, 1939,
Churchill was appointed to
the British Admiralty, thus
ending his "exile." The next
year, he was elected prime
minister at the age of 62.
AP Photo
Thomas Edison's teachers told him he was "too stupid to learn

anything."
Edison went on to hold more
than 1,000 patents and
invented some world-
changing devices, like the
phonograph, practical
electrical lamp, and a movie
camera.
AP Photo
Oprah Winfrey was fired from her first television job as an anchor in
Baltimore, where she said she faced sexism and harassment.
But Winfrey rebounded and
became the undisputed
queen of television talk
shows before amassing a
media empire. Today she is
worth an estimated $2.9
billion, according to Forbes.
Photo by Richard Shotwell/Invision/AP
Walt Disney was fired by a newspaper editor because he "lacked

imagination and had no good ideas."
Several more of his
businesses failed before the
premiere of his movie "Snow
White." Today, most
childhoods wouldn't be the
same without his ideas.
AP Photo
Steven Spielberg was rejected by the University of Southern

California School of Cinematic Arts multiple times.
He went on to create the first
summer blockbuster with
"Jaws" in 1975, and has won
three Academy Awards.
Photo by Danny Moloshok/Invision/AP
R.H. Macy had a series of failed retail ventures throughout his early
career.
But at the age of 36, Macy
launched R.H. Macy & Co.,
which grew to become
Macy's, one of the largest
department store chains in
the world.
YouTube/A&E Biography
Soichiro Honda's unique vision got him ostracized by the Japanese

business community.
Honda was a mechanical
genius who idolized Edison
and rebelled against the
norm. His passion for
aggressive
individualism was more fit
for the United States, and
thus alienated him from
Japanese businessmen, who
valued teamwork above all
else. Honda then boldly
challenged the American
automotive industry in the
1970s and led a Japanese
automotive revolution.
Getty Images/ The Asahi Shimbun
Colonel Harland David Sanders was fired from dozens of jobs before
founding a successful restaurant.
He traveled across the U.S.
looking for someone to sell
his fried chicken, and after
finally getting a business
deal in Utah, Kentucky Fried
Chicken was born. KFC is
now one of the most
recognizable franchises in
the world, with over 18,000
locations.
AP Photo
After having trouble adjusting to the culture and his classes, Dick
Cheney dropped out of Yale — and then returned, only to drop out for
good.
George W. Bush once joked:
"So now we know if you
graduate from Yale, you
become president. If you
drop out, you get to be vice
president."
AP Photo/Richard Drew
Sir Isaac Newton's mother pulled him out of school as a boy so that
he could run the family farm. He failed miserably.
Realizing her son was not
meant to till the land, she let
Newton finish his basic
education and was
eventually persuaded to
allow him to enroll in
Cambridge University.
Newton went on to become
one of the greatest scientists
of all time, revolutionizing
physics and mathematics.
Getty Images/Portrait by Sir Godfrey Kneller
Vera Wang failed to make the U.S. Olympic figure-skating team.

Then she became an editor at Vogue and was passed over for the
editor-in-chief position.
She began designing
wedding gowns at age 40
and today is one of the
premier designers in the
fashion industry, with a
business worth over $1
billion.
Photo by Charles Sykes/Invision/AP
When Sidney Poitier first auditioned for the American Negro

Theatre, he flubbed his lines and spoke in a heavy Caribbean accent,
which made the director angrily tell him to stop wasting his time.
Poitier worked on his craft
and eventually became a
hugely successful
Hollywood star. He won an
Academy Award for Best
Actor and helped break
down the color barrier in the
American film industry.
Photo by Dan Steinberg/Invision/AP
As a child, Albert Einstein had some difficulty communicating and

learning in a traditional manner.
Of course, Einstein's
communication and
behavioral problems were
not indicative of a lack of
intelligence. He won the
Nobel prize in physics for
the discovery of the
photoelectric effect, and his
special theory of relativity
theory corrected the
deficiencies of Newtonian
physics.
Note: A previous version of this slide

incorrectly stated that the Nobel prize
was for his theory of relativity. AP Photo
In one of Fred Astaire's first screen tests, an executive wrote: "Can't

sing. Can't act. Slightly balding. Can dance a little."
Astaire went on to become a
Hollywood and Broadway
legend.
AP Photo
J.K. Rowling was a single mom living off welfare when she began
writing the first "Harry Potter" novel.
Rowling is now
internationally renowned for
her seven-book Harry Potter
series and, in U.S. currency,
became the first billionaire
author in 2004.
Photo by Dan Hallman/Invision/AP
Charles Darwin was considered an average student. He gave up on a

career in medicine and was going to school to become a parson.
But as Darwin studied
nature, he found his true
calling and traveled the
world to uncover nature's
mysteries. His writings,
especially "On the Origin of
the Species," fundamentally
changed the world of science
by spreading the discovery
of evolution.
AP Photo, File
Vincent Van Gogh sold only one painting, "The Red Vineyard," in his
life, and the sale was just months before his death.
If he had given up his artistic
career after it proved to
strain his financial and
emotional well-being, the art
world would be missing
hundreds of paintings from a
true master.
Getty Images/Self-Portrait by Vincent Van Gogh
After Harrison Ford's first small movie role, an executive took him
into his office and told him he'd never succeed in the movie
business.
Ford's career went on to span
six decades, and has
included timeless starring
roles in blockbuster films
like the "Star Wars" and
"Indiana Jones" series.
Photo by Dan Steinberg/Invision/AP
Theodor Seuss Geisel, better known as Dr. Seuss, had his first book
rejected by 27 different publishers.
Dr. Seuss became a
legendary children's author
known around the world for
classics like "The Cat in the
Hat" and "Green Eggs and
Ham." His books have sold
over 600 million copies.
AP Photo
Lucille Ball appeared in so many second-tier films at the start of her

career that she became known as "The Queen of B Movies."
Then she got her big
break when CBS picked up
her and her husband Desi
Arnaz's vaudeville act and
turned it into the highly
influential sitcom "I Love
Lucy."
Getty Images/Mondadori Portfolio
A young Henry Ford ruined his reputation with a couple of failed

automobile businesses.
However, after conducting a
search, he was finally able to
find a partner who had faith
in him. Ford proved he had
learned from his mistakes
when Ford Motor Company
forever changed the
automotive industry and
culture with his assembly
line mode of production.
AP Photo
While developing his vacuum, Sir James Dyson went through 5,126
failed prototypes and his savings over 15 years.
But the 5,127th prototype
worked, and the Dyson
brand became the best-
selling bagless vacuum
brand in the United States.
He is now worth an
estimated $4.5 billion,
according to Forbes.
Getty Images/Derek Hudson
Stephen King grew so frustrated over his attempt to write the novel
"Carrie" that he threw away the entire early draft.
King's wife Tabitha found
the manuscript in the trash
and took it out. "Carrie"
became a hit and launched
his career. His novels have
since sold over 350 million
copies.
AP Photo/Elise Amendola, file
For some more inspiration when you're knocked down...
Here's A
Rejection Letter
U2 Got From A
Record Label In
1979 >>
@uberfacts
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Successful People Who Failed At First - Business Insider Page 1 of 25

23 Incredibly Successful People Who

Rejection can feel

We've put together a list

Weaker people might

Scroll down to see the

View As: One Page Slides

Winston Churchill was estranged from his political party over

Thomas Edison's teachers told him he was "too stupid to learn

Photo by Richard Shotwell/Invision/AP

Walt Disney was fired by a newspaper editor because he "lacked

Steven Spielberg was rejected by the University of Southern

Photo by Danny Moloshok/Invision/AP

Soichiro Honda's unique vision got him ostracized by the Japanese

Getty Images/ The Asahi Shimbun

Getty Images/Portrait by Sir Godfrey Kneller

Vera Wang failed to make the U.S. Olympic figure-skating team.

Photo by Charles Sykes/Invision/AP

When Sidney Poitier first auditioned for the American Negro

Photo by Dan Steinberg/Invision/AP

As a child, Albert Einstein had some difficulty communicating and

Note: A previous version of this slide

In one of Fred Astaire's first screen tests, an executive wrote: "Can't

Photo by Dan Hallman/Invision/AP

Charles Darwin was considered an average student. He gave up on a

Getty Images/Self-Portrait by Vincent Van Gogh

Photo by Dan Steinberg/Invision/AP

Lucille Ball appeared in so many second-tier films at the start of her

Getty Images/Mondadori Portfolio

A young Henry Ford ruined his reputation with a couple of failed

Getty Images/Derek Hudson

AP Photo/Elise Amendola, file

For some more inspiration when you're knocked down...

More: Features Celebrities Success Failure

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