Over the years, after talking with tens of thousands of entrepreneurs, artists and creatives, almost every success story we’ve heard has been filled with stories of failure. Unfortunately, in our view the media rarely covers these parts of the story – instead we often read summaries that make it seem like success happened “overnight.” However, what we’ve learned in our conversations with so many successful folks is that failure is core ingredient in the recipe for future success. Below, we’ve shared some fascinating stories of failure from folks who have ultimately found great success.

Ryan Atkins

A great example would be my time entering into college. I was never an attentive or a good student in general for most of my schooling career. I always had other things I wanted to daydream about or other interests with friends that I wanted to do, and I never saw my studies in elementary, middle school, or high school as the highest priority. I would complete my assignments in hopes that I could do what I really find to be fun later in the day. The one exception would be the music program. I was forced to pick an instrument to play in middle school and I chose my dad‘s trumpet when he was in school. I never cared for any of the lessons and I definitely didn’t care about playing in the band in middle school. It wasn’t until freshman year of high school That I began to feel a family atmosphere and also felt like I was part of something bigger. Read more>>

India Traylor

Recently, I went through a challenging period where I felt like I had failed—failed my children, my family, and myself. To provide some context, I made the difficult decision to leave what I once considered a “happy home” because it was no longer a place where I felt I could thrive. It was, without a doubt, the hardest choice I’ve ever had to make. Moving back in with my grandparents, armed with little money and two kids, felt like a significant setback in my life. However, this trying time brought me closer to God, deepened my faith, and ultimately made me a stronger person. To cut a long story short, within seven months, my children and I found a new home where I now run a childcare center. Additionally, I’ve taken ownership of the hair salon where I had previously worked, all while continuing to pursue my passion for hairstyling. This experience taught me that even during the toughest seasons of life, there can be unexpected blessings on the other side. Read more>>

Alice Nufio

This is such a vulnerable question but it’s also so empowering to share the failures that have molded me to become more attentive in my work. As humans, we tend to show our successes which is wonderful who doesn’t want the approval? But the failures are what prepares us for the hard journey ahead of us and provides powerful lessons. Just recently I had a heart wrenching experience with a client. We had been emailing for weeks about her upcoming party and I could tell that she was very ecstatic to work with me. After sending mockups designs of her balloon garland for approval, she finally picked the one that she loved. I started ordering all the materials necessary for the install. The day finally came to pass and we were both very excited to meet one another. She greeted me with a smile and kept the conversation going as I started installing by the staircase. Read more>>

F. G. Keel

Being an author is about writing but also about dealing with constant failure. Each draft of a story is about improving the multitude of imperfections in your work. Once you’ve polished your book as much as you can, it’s time for rejection on a wholesale level. I’m not ashamed to admit that I’ve submitted my work to almost every literary agent with a working email address and have received nothing but polite rejections. Through this process, I have had many learning experiences, mostly about marketing yourself and your story. You need to replace your writer hat with that of an expert marketer. Read more>>