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.

Will Sterling

Failure, to me, is all about falling forward. I borrow this sentiment from the great Denzel, yes, Washington. A lot of people have talked about the idea of a “fallback” in case their primary goal or dream or objective falls through. Read more>>

Jesse Orlean

In 2020, I moved to the Colorado mountains to pursue my passion for snowboarding and discovering the unknown. Near the end of my first season there, after over 110 days on the hill, I snapped my arm in half trying a new trick I had never done before. Read more>>

Gillian Smith

My story of failure is an experience that at the time was rarely discussed and felt taboo, but thankfully has become more commonplace as people have become more comfortable being honest and brave about what they want to do with their lives. Read more>>

Malcolm Worthy

I moved to Los Angeles to continually pursue all of my passions in entertainment. I was playing in a Mecca semi pro league game in February 2023 & tore my acl & meniscus. Read more>>

Rochelle Cruz

Ive been Dragonfly Company online since early 2008 as far as a working business and website. When I finally had some extra cash I copyrighted my logo which I designed myself. Read more>>

Andrew Dudko

Sure, here’s the translation: In 2015, my best friend and I decided to bring our dream to life and founded a workshop for producing designer lamps made of wood, metal, and glass.  Read more>>