Throughout history, there have been thousands of famous failures. Even before recorded history, people were battling with the push-and-pull created by this burning desire to succeed. This stems beyond mere survival. Survival is built into our DNA — it’s part of the very fabric that makes us into who we are.

However, human beings weren’t just made to survive; we were made to thrive. We’ve been thriving since the earliest days of our species some 200,000 years ago. With the beautiful invention of language, we’ve been able to expand our knowledge, enhance our technology and vastly improve our quality of life.

Still, while we’re suffering through the disheartening and gut-wrenching pains of failure, we’re often not thinking about thriving, we’re solely focused on surviving. When we fail, it makes us question everything, right down to the very heart of who we are and why we’ve been put here on this earth. But failure, as much as it hurts, is also a necessary part of life. It’s the pathway to our goals.

In fact, the most successful and famous people in the world have endured the most failures in life. They’ve failed repeatedly. But they’ve also gotten back up. They didn’t throw in that proverbial towel. They didn’t call it quits or head for the ropes. They got up and kept going. And that’s just what it takes to succeed.

Today, if you’ve suffered through failures in the past, or you’re going through the torrent of a failure right now, know this — failure will make you better. Failure will improve your life. It will allow you to reach new understandings and epiphanies on life, love, business and the people all around you.

Failure will make you better. 

Still, it’s not enough to talk about failure in that aspect. It’s not enough to talk about the theoretical power that failure has. It’s far more beneficial to look at some of the most famous people in time who’ve failed. It’s far easier to rely on their experiences and witness what they had to suffer through, than it is to just reflect on failure itself.

In the past, I did a post about 12 famous people who failed, and what I came to realize was the importance of this material through just how much interest it received. So I decided to do another one. Below, you’ll find 48 famous people who failed at first. You’ll read their stories and realize just what they had to go through to succeed.

Remember, you’re never too old to try again. It’s never too late to take another shot. Some of these famous failures were in their 60’s when they gave it another go such as Colonel Harland Sanders, the founder of KFC, who was a wild-eyed 65-year old when he set out with nothing more than a $105 social security check in his pocket and a recipe for his now-famous fried chicken.

You get the idea? Never give up on your hopes and your dreams. Never allow someone else to tell you that you’re not good enough, smart enough or talented enough to achieve greatness in whatever capacity you’re seeking. You can do anything you put your mind to. Anything.