Extremely successful, famous artists, athletes, authors, entrepreneurs, politicians, singers, scientists…
- The Beatles. REJECTED by every label in London. Band manager Brian Epstein persevered.
Countless more…
- Abraham Lincoln. FAILED serial entrepreneur.
- Albert Einstein. EXPELLED from school. Rejected by Zurich Polytechnic School.
- Andy Warhol. REJECTED by Museum of Modern Art (MOMA). Number one modern artist in history.
- Anna Wintour. FIRED by Harper’s Bazaar.
- Babe Ruth. STRIKE-OUT. “Every strike brings me closer to the next home run.”
- Beatrix Potter. REJECTED by every publisher in London. Number 1 children’s book author in history.
- Bill Gates. FAILED.His first venture, Traf-O-Data, flopped.
- Charles Darwin. REJECTED. Lifetime of unemployment.
- Claude Monet. REJECTED and mocked by the artistic elite in Paris.
- Donald Trump. IMPEACHED. Convicted. 3,500 lawsuits. Lost 2020. 45th and 47th U.S. President.
- Elvis Presley. REJECTED. Nashville Grand Ole Opry Manager: “Go back to Memphis and drive trucks.”
- Emily Dickinson. REJECTED During lifetime, 12 poems published of 1800 complete works.
- E.T. The Extraterrestrial. REJECTED by Hollywood Studios. All-time highest-grossing film (1983).
- Jerry Seinfeld. FIRED after a minor role on the sitcom Benson.
- J.K. Rowling. REJECTED by every publisher in London. Number one fantasy novel series in history.
- Galileo Galilei. INQUISITION trial and condemnation (1633) by the Catholic Church
- Guglielmo Marconi. FAILED in Italy.
- Harrison Ford. REJECTED by Hollywood, until Star Wars breakthrough.
- Henry Hudson. MUTINY by crew (1611) in Hudson Bay.
- Howard Stern. FIRED by NBC.
- Isaac Newton. FAILED to manage the family farm. Sent to University of Cambridge.
- Lady Gaga. REJECTED. Dropped from first record contract 3 months after signing.
- Lucille Ball. REJECTED. Considered a failed B-list actress by Hollywood.
- Madonna. FIRED by Dunkin’ Donuts in Times Square.
- Marilyn Monroe. REJECTED.Modeling agency told her to become a secretary.
- Michael Bloomberg. REJECTED. Let go from Citigroup (1998)
- Michael Jordan. REJECTED. Cut from his high school basketball team.
- Oprah Winfrey. FIRED as an evening news reporter.
- Socrates. SENTENCED TO DEATH for “corrupting the minds of the youth of Athens”.
- Robert Redford. FIRED as a worker for Standard Oil (1954) for sleeping on the job.
- Rudyard Kipling. FIRED by the San Francisco Examiner (1889) for [lack of English skills’.
- Sidney Poitier. FAILED first audition. Director told him to “get a job as a dishwasher.”
- Steve Jobs. FIRED (1985) from Apple his own company.
- Stephen King. REJECTED. Bestseller “Carrie” was rejected thirty times.
- Steven Spielberg. REJECTED from USC Theater Film and Television three times.
- Thomas Edison. FIRED by Western Union.
- Truman Capote. FIRED by the New Yorker.
- U2. REJECTED by RSO (famous letter) Originally, The Larry Mullen Band, The Feedback, The Hype.
- Vincent van Gogh.REJECTED. Never sold a single painting in his life.
- Walt Disney. FIRED from the Kansas City Star in 1919 for “lack of imagination”.