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.

Sarah Harper Huntington

When I was 25 I made a series of mistakes that were both costly and caused me o feel a lot of shame. My mom flew out from the East Coast to California where I was living at the time to help me pick up the pieces and figure out my next move. At one point I looked at her and said, “Aren’t you disappointed in me?” but she took my face between her hands and said, “The people who love you don’t care that you made a mistake. They just want you to be happy”. Read more>>

Rahmir Murphy

I have experienced a lot of failure in my short time of getting my business started. One of my most memorable one was booking a studio secession with a client and than having than fake out on the secession after I had already put the money down for studio leaving me to lost money. I quickly learned from that and put in place a non refundable deposit to ensure that I still get some money for my time and protect myself from situations like that. Another time I failed was very early on in my business when I took on a project that at moment in time out of my skill range. Read more>>

Chris Irving

One of the things that many of us are afraid of is failure. Whether it be in business, career, marriage, mental health, or fitness. We’re all afraid of being vulnerable and admitting that something didn’t work out, or that we didn’t respond how we should’ve. We see failure as this end all be all event that defines our lives, and although some failures are small or even trivial, we still let it dictate who we think we are, and like a cement block attached to our ankle, it slows us down and sometimes even drowns us as we try and swim for whatever reprieve we can latch onto. Read more>>

Alexandria Higgs

I don’t consider anything as a failure, more as a lesson or a redirection. I recently experienced a redirection within my career as an artist manager. I have been working in the music industry for over 10 years and it has been the most riveting experience. I have met some amazing people, and seen amazing cities, and venues. I watched the most breathtaking shows, and artists truly shine! Read more>>

Kenley Smith

Failure is a matter of perspective. I helped found a new-works theatre in Virginia some 14 years ago. We put up about 30 first or second productions over three seasons, which, looking back, seems remarkable. It couldn’t survive past those three seasons, however, and I’m left feeling that while the mission was on-point, the execution was wrong. Read more>>

Spencer Erdossy

Although Ground 3 Media is one of my businesses now, I started a business-like Ground 3 Media months prior. I invested in that studio and did all the construction myself to create my vocal booth. Within a month COVID-19 happened and it caused the tenant I was renting my space from to get evicted. Due to the Landlord being evicted my business, The Factory Sound, I was forced to move as well. The move caused a lot of mental stress and financial hardship, so I was forced to start from the scratch back working at a pizza shop. I was still committed to my dreams of music and being a businessman. Read more>>