What is life? I feel that life is the composition of ups and downs, highs and lows, successes and failures, happiness and sadness and so on. No wonder our heartbeat looks like this on a monitor.
It clearly portrays the philosophy of life. If that line was straight, we would be dead. Life is in fact mixture of failure and success. If you just try to recall what you did today, you will realize that it contained failure and success too. For example, you failed to catch the bus to work, you failed to remember the birthday of someone special and forgot to wish them, you failed the interview and got rejected, etc. These are few examples of failures that we encounter in our everyday life. Now to turn the entire scenario into success story; you managed to get a nice window seat on the bus, you succeeded in throwing a nice surprise birthday party to your loved one and made them feel special, you successfully got accepted for the new job, etc.
Failure and success is a part of life. It goes hand in hand. Everyone fails in life at one point or another. I am not being pessimistic but that is how life usually works. Failure is a reminder that you are a human. Humans fail. It’s normal to fail.
“It’s not how many times you succeed that counts. It’s not how many times you fail that counts. It’s how many times you fail and get back up that counts.”
The problem is most people associate failure with complete defeat. I can understand because I’ve failed countless times over. But through those failures, I learned some very important lessons. I realized that failures and rejections are equally important as success. I also realized that some of the most famous people to have ever lived had failed the most times.
Today, I would never take my failures back because it has shaped me to become who I am today, and I am pretty sure that the most successful people in the world wouldn’t do so either. I’ve grown stronger through those experiences. I know that failure and rejection hurt at the time, but it’s part of life’s design. When we fail, we learn. We grow and mature, achieving new understandings and perspectives on life, love, business, money, relationships, and people. Failure and rejection are there to make us stronger. Trust me, God would never give the pain if we cannot handle it.
“Life is a grindstone. Whether it grinds you down or polishes you up depends on what you’re made of.”
Below I’ve compiled failure and rejections of some great personalities and how they overcame and got back in life.
This guy was rejected and eventually fired from the company that he had created.
His response: “Sometimes life is going to hit you in the head with a brick. Don’t lose faith” – Steve Jobs
This writer was jobless, penniless, divorced, had a dependent child and was rejected by about 12 different publishers. One of them told her “you should not quit your day job”.
Her response: “It is impossible to live without failing at something, unless you live so cautiously that you might as well not have lived at all- in which case, you fail by default.” – J.K Rowling
This Director was rejected by the University of Southern California School of Theater, Film and Television. Thrice.
His response: “Failure is inevitable, success is elusive.” – Steven Spielberg.
This painter’s paintings were rejected throughout his lifetime, with only one sold.
His response: “If you hear a voice within you say, ‘you cannot paint,’ then by all means paint, and that voice will be silenced.” – Vincent Van Gogh.
This guy was fired from a local newspaper because they thought that he lacked imagination and had no good ideas. Started many businesses that didn’t last too long and ended with bankruptcy and failure.
His response: “Everyone falls. Getting up is how you learn to walk.” – Walt Disney
This lawyer was defeated for political office 7 times. His fiancé died. He failed in business. And he suffered nervous breakdown before becoming the President.
His response: “My great concern is not whether you have failed, but whether you are content with your failure.” – Abraham Lincoln
This man failed to get a job even after trying 30 times, was the only one rejected by KFC out of the 24 interviewees, failed twice during his school days, thrice during his university, applied 10 times for Harvard but rejected, allegedly started two business ventures but failed in both.
His response: “If you don’t give up, you still have a chance. Giving up is the greatest failure.” – Jack Ma
We all face rejections. It is your response to those rejections and failures that helps to grow and strengthen you from those experience. One more rejection is just another incentive to look back at your mistakes, pull yourself together and give it more than what you had given before, and keep going until you get what you had aimed for.
I would like to conclude this blog with a very famous dialogue from the movie “Rocky”.
“Let me tell you something you already know. The world ain’t all sunshine and rainbows. It is a very mean and nasty place and it will beat you to your knees and keep you there permanently if you let it. You, me, or nobody is gonna hit as hard as life. But it ain’t how hard you hit; it’s about how hard you can get hit, and keep moving forward. How much you can take, and keep moving forward. That’s how winning is done. Now, if you know what you’re worth, then go out and get what you’re worth. But you gotta be willing to take the hit, and not pointing fingers saying you ain’t where you are because of him, or her, or anybody. Cowards do that and that ain’t you. You’re better than that.”
– Rocky Balboa