“7 Reasons Why You Should Never Give Up” by Joan Y. Edwards

“7 Reasons Why You Should Never Give Up!” by Joan Y. Edwards

The theme of my blog is “Never Give Up.” It takes determination, belief, and courage to Never Give Up. Most of my blogs encourage you to keep going toward your goals, your life’s dreams. Today I’d like to encourage you by telling you about the lives of 7 famous people who were rejected many times before they were successful. Their behavior shows 7 reasons why you should never give up. Each of these people had three essentials necessary to Never Give Up: determination, belief, and courage.

1. Did you know that J.K. Rowling was on welfare before she sold Harry Potter? Twelve publishing houses rejected Harry Potter. That’s why you should keep on writing. Keep on rewriting, revising, and submitting your manuscripts.

2. Did you know that Roget invented the Thesaurus at age 73? That’s why you should keep looking at the relationship of things that interest you. Write about what keeps your heart-strings strumming.

3. Did you know that Colonel Sanders, founder of the world-renowned Kentucky Fried Chicken chain got 1009 rejections from restaurant owners before he got one “YES,” when he was selling his franchise licenses to use his famous recipe in exchange for a percentage of the pieces of chicken sold? That’s why you should never say you’re too old or stop when one person says, “No.” Become proud of yourself, no matter where you are and how much money you’re making. Accept yourself as being good. Celebrate you as you are right now. Study and learn to get better.

4. Did you know that teachers said Thomas Edison was “too stupid to learn anything” and was fired from his first 2 jobs for not being productive enough. He tried 1,999 times to invent the light bulb. He was successful at try number 2,000. Keep on trying. Look at things from a different point of view. If you’ve written it in first person, write it as an observer. There is a way to succeed. You just haven’t figured it out yet. Believe in you and the success of your ideas. Your belief is a key ingredient to keep you going so that you Never Give Up.

5. Did you know that Toyota Motor Corporation turned down Soichiro Honda for an engineering job. He had no job so he started making his own scooters at home. His neighbors encouraged him and he setup his own company. Honda Motor Corporation. That’s the way to do it. Show the naysayers that you’re built of solid stuff. Show them they were wrong about you. You may make mistakes. However, you are not a mistake. Be determined that you’re going to succeed, no matter how many mistakes it takes to get there.

6. Did you know that people told Sidney Poitier to “stop wasting people’s time and go out and become a dishwasher or something” during an audition. Later he won an Oscar for Lilies of the Field. He became one of the most respected actors ever. In 2002, thirty-eight years after receiving the Best Actor Award, the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences gave Poitier an Honorary Award in recognition of his remarkable accomplishments as an artist and as a human being. It takes courage to continue when someone tells you that you’re wasting your time. Sometimes I believe that people are occasionally blind to good talent. Get a new pair of glasses to see yourself and others as opportunities to grow and succeed.

7. Did you know that Wilma Rudolph was paralyzed in 1 leg due to polio and told by doctors she would never walk again. Yet she later won 3 Olympic gold medals in track and fields. Talk about determination. That’s what you need to have to succeed. Determination. Be determined beyond anything that might happen or get in your way. You can do it. You must believe that you can.

Okay. You tell me you had a really bummer day. You got 50 rejections. Your cat died. Your dogs are lost. Your rent is due and your pockets are empty. Your car broke down on the interstate and there is no food in the pantry. You’re still not convinced that you should go on. You dug a hole and at this moment you are sitting at the bottom of a very deep pit of sorrow. Oh my. Here are 7 quotes of famous people who finally succeeded after many failures. Maybe this will get your enthusiasm genes in action to steer you to your goals.

1. “Success is the ability to go from failure to failure without losing your enthusiasm.” – Winston Churchill

2. “Sheer persistence is the difference between success and failure.” – Donald Trump

3. “How many people are completely successful in every department of life? Not one. The most successful people are the ones who learn from their mistakes and turn their failures into opportunities.” – Zig Ziglar

4. “When you reach an obstacle, turn it into an opportunity. You have the choice. You can overcome and be a winner, or you can allow it to overcome you and be a loser. The choice is yours and yours alone. Refuse to throw in the towel. Go that extra mile that failures refuse to travel. It is far better to be exhausted from success than to be rested from failure.” – Mary Kay Ash

5. “Failure is just a resting place. It is an opportunity to begin again more intelligently.” – Henry Ford

6. “If we try and fail, we have temporary disappointments. But if we do not try at all, we have permanent regrets.” – Bern Williams

7. “Be the one thing you think you cannot do. Fail at it. Try again. Do better the second time. The only people who never tumble are those who never mount the high wire. This is your moment, own it.” – Oprah Winfrey

Oh my goodness. You dug the hole even deeper! Here are links to other stories and quotes to help inspire you. Ask God to help you is a good plan. He knows what he put you on earth to do. God gave you the talent, the resources, the time, the energy, and everything you need to accomplish the dreams in your heart. Go for it. Today is a great day to believe that you can do it. I believe you can.

Resources

1. Aly Weisman. “Fifteen People Who Failed before Becoming Famous:” http://www.businessinsider.com/15-people-who-failed-before-becoming-famous-2012-10?op=1

2. Rethink Redefine. “66 Famous Failures of People Who Never Give Up:” http://rethink-redefine.blogspot.com/2012/08/66-famous-failures-of-people-who-never.html

3. Simon Dufresne and Dylan Moore. “Five Famous People Who Succeeded Long after They Should’ve Quit:” http://www.cracked.com/article_19655_5-famous-late-bloomers.html

4. Strategic Business Team. “Fifty Failure Quotes from 50 Successful People:” https://www.profitableventure.com/failure-quotes-successful-people/

Thank you for reading my blog. You honor me with your presence here.

Oh my goodness! I have 48,001 reads at his moment. I’m getting close to 50,000 views on my blog.  That is so exciting. I started this blog on October 9, 2009. In 3 years and a half, I’m at 48,001. That equals 1,143 readers a month. It could take two months to reach 50,000 reads. Thank you for making this possible.

One of my subscribers, Sandra Warren noticed how close I was and sent me an email congratulating me.  I asked her what should we do to celebrate. I liked her suggestion. Thank you, Sandra.  To celebrate I’m going to have a Give-Away to a lucky winner — a 1/2 hour personal consultation/critique on Making Your Blog Zing. I’ll do this by telephone or via computer (winner’s choice). I’ll analyze the lucky winner’s blog and make suggestions on how to improve what he’s already doing;  give tips on how to organize his time; and most importantly, answer questions he has about his blog.

So I’ll give you more details on the first blog I write after I reach 50,000 readers.  I’ll have a special treat for everyone who is subscribed at that time.

Join the 122 subscribers to my blog. To receive an email when I post my next article, click “Sign Me Up” in the left hand column. You’ll receive a link and password to download a free logo that says: Never Give Up Build It One Block at a Time. It’s my free gift to you for subscribing to my blog. Thank you.

Would you write a review of my picture book Flip Flap Floodle? Click here to Hear Flip’s Song.

I have 14 reviews. I need 15 to meet my goal for 2013.

Celebrate you today.
Never Give Up
Joan Y. Edwards

Copyright © 2013 Joan Y. Edwards