A Fine Collection of Failures

DO NOT TAKE REJECTION PERSONALLY

Success in any business takes a good deal of persistence. One reason so many people never learn to become persistent is that they take every rejection, setback, or failure personally. They somehow equate their idea, product, service, book, or song with their personal self-esteem. Those striving for success can never afford this self-indulgence for there will be plenty of rejection before fame. Everyone gets rejected on the way up, authors, singers, and salesmen more than most. But whatever your profession you must not take rejection personally.?

These Authors Showed Amazing Persistence

Herman Melville's masterpiece,?Moby-Dick, was turned down by multiple publishers, some of whom had creative suggestions for the author. One publishing house wrote: "First, we must ask, does it have to be a whale?” When he finally did get published, Melville still ended up paying for?the typesetting and plating himself.

"You’d have a decent book if you’d get rid of that Gatsby character." This rather drastic?revision was suggested to F. Scott Fitzgerald about his masterpiece?The Great Gatsby.

Animal Farm?by George Orwell was rejected because "there is no market for animal stories in the USA."

Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone?was rejected 12 times and J. K. Rowling was told: "not to quit her day job.”?

Lord of the Flies?by William Golding was rejected 20 times before it was published.

“I haven’t the foggiest idea about what the man is trying to say. Apparently, the author intends it to be funny.” Joseph Heller decided to name his satirical book about World War II after the 22 rejections?he received:?Catch-22.

Dune?by Frank Herbert was rejected 23 times before it was published and Herbert was already an established author.

The Wizard of Oz?was rejected by every publisher, even though Baum had published several similar books. He had to pay for the first publication himself.

Carrie?by Stephen King was rejected 30 times before it was published.?King was so discouraged he tossed the book into the trash. Fortunately, his wife then went through the trash to rescue it and convinced him to re-submit it.?Today, King has over 50 novels and has sold over 350 million copies of his work. Can you imagine what King’s life would be like had he given up? It’s difficult to imagine that such a successful author was once rejected so many times.

Gone with the Wind?by Margaret Mitchell was rejected 38 times before it was published.

Zen and the Art of Motorcycle Maintenance?by Robert M. Pirsig was rejected 121 times before it was published.

He was fired from his role as a contributor to the?San Francisco Examiner?in 1889 because he was told by an editor, “I’m sorry Mr. Kipling, but you just don’t know how to use the English language.”

Movie Persistence

During his screen test for MGM, the?studio’s talent scout wrote on his report to describe the man auditioning: “Can’t act. Can’t sing. Slightly bald. Can dance a little.” Who was the man who, according to the talent scout, could only "dance a little?" The man was Fred Astaire!

When she was trying to start her career, modeling agencies told Norma Jean (Marilyn Monroe) she should consider becoming a secretary.

After just one performance, at the Grand Ol’ Opry, manager Jimmy Denny fired Elvis Presley. He reportedly told him, "You ain't going nowhere, son. You ought to go back to driving a truck."

Ironically, Steven Spielberg was rejected from the University of Southern California School of Theater, Film, and Television three times. He was eventually accepted by another school, a school that he dropped out of to pursue directing. While the lack of a diploma did not hold him back, Spielberg finally completed his BA in 2002.

Today, the MOMA owns more than 100 of Warhol's pieces, including Gold Marilyn and Campbell's Soup Cans, both created in 1962!

Yes, people much more famous than you have suffered ridicule and rejection. Get out of the habit of beating yourself up mentally when things go wrong. There are plenty of other people out there who are only too willing to do it for you, and they won’t charge you a dime! By blaming yourself, you are breaking down your level of persistence and resolve.?

By all means, analyze what went wrong, but don’t take the rap personally. Simply focus on a new angle of attack and use your mental energy to come up with a new solution. Realize that past failures mean nothing. They are gone and can't be re-played. You are concerned only with the future. You start each new day with a clean slate. It's up to you what you do with that day.

The past does not reflect what will happen in the future, let it go and press on!