The History books are filled with examples of people who are famous for achieving greatness - yet if we study their lives, we find that they failed miserably before they succeeded.
The key to their success was not their talent as much as it was their refusal to give up. It was their "bull dog tenacity" that kept them focused and persistent to keep on keeping on. Consider these examples:
• Upon his election as U.S. President, Abraham Lincoln was called “a baboon” by a newspaper in Illinois, his home state. The paper went on to say that the American people “would be better off if he were assassinated.”
• Henry Ford failed and went broke five times before he succeeded. At the age of 40 he earned just $20 a week, but by the age of 60 he was the richest man in America.
• After his first audition, Hollywood screen legend Fred Astaire received the following assessment from an MGM executive: “Can’t act. Slightly bald. Can dance a little.”
• A so-called football expert once said of two-time Super Bowl-winning coach Vince Lombardi, “He possesses minimal football knowledge. Lacks motivation.”
• NBA superstar legend Michael Jordan was once cut from his high school basketball team.
• A young Burt Reynolds was once told he couldn’t act. At the same time, his pal Clint Eastwood was told he would never make it in the movies because his Adam’s apple was too big.
• Walt Disney was fired from a newspaper because they said he lacked ideas. Later, he went bankrupt several times before he built Disneyland.
