Have you ever failed at your attempt to start any business? If you have ever failed at any of your attempts to start a business, then you are not alone. Most of the successful business people you see around you sure have experienced one form of failure or the other before they eventually succeeded.
For you to become a successful entrepreneur, you must not be afraid of failure. If you are afraid of failure, you can never get to start anything. All you need is the desire and drive for success coupled with hard work and good business etiquette, nothing more and nothing less.
Successful entrepreneurs handled their failures maturely which is the basic reason why they eventually become successful and are celebrated by all and sundry. These 20 Entrepreneurs failed in their attempt to start their business before they eventually succeeded:
20 Entrepreneurs That Failed Before Finally Succeeding
1. Thomas A Edison
The story of how Thomas A. Edison failed 10,000 times before he eventually invented the incandescent electric bulb is one that can’t be forgotten easily. Despite that failure, he went ahead to become the inventor cum entrepreneur that has the record of the highest numbers of patent right over any invention.
2. Bill Gates
Yes he is the richest man in the world but what you might not know is that this business guru failed in his early age as an entrepreneur. His first business Traf – O – Data didn’t pass the early stage of business but he still went ahead to co-found Microsoft which eventual become highly successful.
3. Henry Ford
Have you heard the story of Henry Ford’s failure in several businesses that left him dead broke? Yes, he failed severally before he eventually succeeded with Ford Automobile Company. Today the Fords brand of cars is a household name.
4. Rowland H. Macy
You must have seen Macy’s outlets in different locations all around the world. Macy’s departmental stores didn’t just become a major hit overnight. As a matter of fact he failed over 7 times of trying to start a business before he eventually became an unbeaten business mogul.
5. Walt Disney
Don’t be carried away by the fame and fortune of Disney land. Walt Disney failed as a newspaper editor and he also failed with several attempts of starting a business before he eventually succeeded in building his business empire.
6. Akio Morita
He was the co founder and former chairman of Sony Corporation. Before Sony became a success, one of their first products a portable rice cooker was an instant failure that almost ruined their business. But with persistence and innovation, the company overcame their early failures and built a globally accepted brand.
7. Colonel Sanders
Colonel Sanders was the founder of the famous Kentucky Fried Chicken with various outlets all over the world. In case you didn’t know, Colonel Sanders failed at several attempts of trying to get people to buy his chicken recipe.
As a determined and focused entrepreneur who knew what he wanted, he was not discouraged by the over a thousand attempts before he eventually hit success
8. Soichiro Honda
This Japanese engineer and industrial giant didn’t start out as a success. In fact he failed to secure a job with Toyota Corporation when he graduated from college; he tried his hands on several inventions that failed to hit lime light before he eventually started Honda. Honda did just become a success; the company went through some trying times in the early stage.
9. Oprah Winfrey
She is regarded as the Queen of talk shows and one of the most successful women in the world. If you ever heard her story then you would realize that she didn’t just become successful with business. she had her own fair share of failures. As a matter of fact she was sacked from her job as a TV reporter before she eventually starts her own thing.
10. Richard Branson
This Billionaire at a point as a young entrepreneur failed with many businesses, foremost amongst them is the business of selling Christmas trees.
In the 60s Richard Branson failed at his attempt to start a business that involved selling Christmas trees but he refused to give up. With doggedness and zeal, he ultimately became one of the most celebrated business icons in uk and the world at large.
11. Donald Trump
This property and investment guru was almost discouraged and nearly bowed out as an entrepreneur in his early days due to recession. At a point no one thought he could ever bounce back from debt. Good news was that he did and he has become one of the richest entrepreneurs in his industry.
12. Lawrence Ellison-: This name might not sound familiar but he is the founder of Oracle. He failed at his early attempts to start out as an entrepreneur before he eventually became successful. The Oracle brand is known all over the globe.
13. Rovio-: Rovio is the brain behind the popular video game ‘Angry Bird’. He didn’t just become successful over night; he tried to design game software over 50 times and failed before he succeeded with the game Angry Bird.
14. Steven Spielberg-: They said he was not good enough to be admitted into the School of Cinematic Arts of the University of Southern California, but he proved all his critics wrong and went ahead to become a celebrity film producer.
15. J. K Rowling-: She is celebrated globally has the first author to hit the billion Dollars mark. She struggled and tried her hands on many projects before she eventually become successful with her book “Harry Potter series”.
16. James Dyson-: Before he eventually succeeded he made over five thousand attempts to produce his first workable vacuum brand. What happened finally? He succeeded and today he is celebrated all over the world.
17. H. J. Heinz-: he was the founder of Heinz, he failed at a point in his business but he bounced back and became successful.Today the Heinz group of products has continued to do quite well in the markets.
18. William C. Durant-: He is the founder of General Motors and Chevrolet. He failed and became bankrupt at a point but he bounced back and attained greater success with his business. In some countries the Chevrolet brand of cars has continued to soar high in sales.
19. Clarence Saunders-: He is the Founder of Piggly Wigglies also known as Safeway. He failed as an entrepreneur before his eventual hit at lime light and he went ahead to be rated as became triumphant by all standards..
20. Milton Hershey-: He is the founder of Hershey. He went bankrupt as an entrepreneur but he worked hard and bounced back. He has been rated as one of the most successful entrepreneurs the world has ever produced.
If you tried and failed as an entrepreneur, don’t give up. Just keep changing your business approach and keep working hard. Those who have gone before you and have had tails of woes to tell now have success and inspiring stories to tell. If you continue to hit at it, you would sure meet success ahead of you. Failure is not final!