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Quotes about career setbacks

Almost every impressive career contains a point where everything seemed over. The six people below were fired, rejected or declared incapable – and it was exactly there that their real work began.

„Getting fired from Apple was the best thing that could have ever happened to me.“

Steve Jobs1955–2011

The historical background

In 1985, after a power struggle, Jobs lost control of the company he had founded himself. The dismissal was public, humiliating and looked like the end of his career – he was 30 years old.

The way into the light

In the years that followed he built NeXT and Pixar. In 1997 he returned to Apple; NeXT’s technology became the foundation of today’s operating system. The setback was the detour that made everything possible.

„I have not failed. I've just found 10,000 ways that won't work.“

Thomas Edison1847–1931

The historical background

Edison and his team tested thousands of materials over years in search of a durable light bulb. Investors grew impatient, the press mocked him, and in 1914 a huge fire destroyed a substantial part of his plant.

The way into the light

The morning after the fire he remarked that all the mistakes had burned with it and they could start fresh. Three weeks later his plant was shipping again. For him every failed attempt was one possibility crossed off, not a verdict.

„Never give in – never, never, never.“

Winston Churchill1874–1965

The historical background

After the catastrophic Gallipoli campaign of 1915, Churchill lost his post and was written off politically. The “wilderness years” followed: over a decade without office, taken seriously by almost no one.

The way into the light

In 1940, aged 65, he became prime minister – precisely in his country’s most dangerous hour. He spoke this line in 1941 to pupils at Harrow, his old school.

„I will seize fate by the throat.“

Ludwig van Beethoven1770–1827

The historical background

In his late twenties Beethoven realised he was going deaf – the worst possible occupational risk for a musician. In the 1802 Heiligenstadt Testament he wrote to his brothers that he had thought of ending his life.

The way into the light

He decided against it because his music was not yet written. Almost completely deaf, he then composed the Ninth Symphony – still one of the most performed works in the world.

„All the adversity I've had in my life has strengthened me.“

Walt Disney1901–1966

The historical background

Disney’s first studio, Laugh-O-Gram in Kansas City, went bankrupt in 1923; for a time he slept in the office and lived on canned beans. In 1928 he also lost the rights to his first successful character, Oswald the Lucky Rabbit, to his distributor.

The way into the light

On the train back to California he sketched a new character: a mouse. His biggest professional loss produced the most recognisable cartoon character in history.

„I attribute my success to this: I never gave or took any excuse.“

Florence Nightingale1820–1910

The historical background

Nightingale came from a wealthy family that forbade her for years from training as a nurse, since the profession was considered improper. In the Crimean War she found hospitals where more soldiers died of infection than of wounds – and her reform proposals were initially rejected.

The way into the light

With carefully kept statistics and diagrams she proved her case and pushed it through. Mortality fell dramatically; she founded modern nursing and medical statistics.

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Frequently asked questions

What helps after being let go?
Looking at people who went through the same thing. Steve Jobs was pushed out of his own company and later called it the best thing that could have happened – not as consolation, but because he used the freedom it gave him.
How do you deal with repeated failure?
Edison’s stance is practically usable: every failed attempt removes one possibility from the list. Failure becomes information rather than a verdict on who you are.

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