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From Struggle to Success



Hey there this is Adam, founder of Adam White Speaks and Author of A Leader Others Will Follow: The Power of Influence and I’m so excited to talk to in this session and this week, because we are talking about success that comes out of struggle.

Have you been in a struggle your life and it seems like maybe you not going to get out of that struggle? I’m going introduce you to some people today that overcame struggle.

The stories of these people are very personal to me because my story also started with struggle. There was a point in my life where I lost everything that I had and I was forced to move into my parent’s basement. It was in that basement that I felt at the lowest point in my life, I felt that I was unqualified to live, I moved into a state of depression and I had lost everything. I said how would I be able to be able to get myself out of the situation, I felt so unqualified for life.

Often in society we see people that have struggled and we think they truly are a failure. We have to turn that thinking around and understand that failure is simply what success is built upon. After you hear stories of some people you may or may not know you will also be convinced to know that no matter what you’re struggling with in your life, you can overcome and achieve unprecedented levels of success.

Let me introduce you to some people today and they will inspire you to overcome struggle and achieve success. Let’s get started….

Sorichiro Honda

Let me introduce you to the first person. The first person is Sorichrio Honda. Have you heard of Honda before? Guess what happened to Shorichiro Honda? Sorichiro was turned down by Toyota for job as an engineer. Sorichiro said hey, I’m looking to become an engineer and he was denied.

He went back home and started making scooters at home. Toyota told Soirchiro Honda you’re not good enough to be engineer in our company. Sorichiro said I’ll go home and start making scooters. He started building scooters and ultimately developed the company that we know today as Honda.

You may be driving a Honda or maybe you’ve owned a Honda with. Sorichrio was told, you’re not good enough to be an engineer for Toyota and started making his own scooters building an automotive empire.

Don’t give up on your dreams. Even when you are rejected.

Heartland David Sanders (Colonel Sanders)

Here is someone else have you heard. A man by the name of Heartland David Sanders. Or maybe you might know him by this name: Colonel Sanders. KFC, Kentucky fried chicken.

What happened to Col. Sanders? His famous secret chicken recipe was rejected 1,009 times before it was accepted. I didn’t say he was rejected 10 times or 100 times, he was rejected 1000 times before his recipe was accepted. So here is an older gentleman going around in the south, trying to sell his secret chicken recipe. Every restaurant he went He was rejected more than 1000 times. They said your recipe sucks, your chicken is no good, and we don’t want it in our restaurant. Col. Sanders said, I tell you what, I’ll start my own franchise. I’ll start my own restaurant, and thus was born Kentucky fried chicken.

All my chicken lovers out there know talking about. He created KFC and it is now one of the largest chicken franchises in the world. So Col. Sanders was rejected 1000 times until his recipe was accepted. He took off and created KFC and he never looked back.

Oprah Winfrey

Let me tell you about someone else. I know you heard of this name: Oprah Winfrey. Everybody knows who Oprah Winfrey is, but she wasn’t always successful. She started with an abusive childhood.

Have you been abused? Have you been misused by someone or something someone said to you that could have crushed your dreams. She was physically and emotionally abused. I believe it was the age of nine. As a child it wasn’t enough to grow up with low self-esteem and grow up not feeling significant and being abuse and misused by someone else, but she was also fired as a television news reporter and was told that she was “unfit for television,”

Can you imagine being told that you are unfit? You not pretty enough, you don’t have the right look so they fire you. Not because you don’t know your job, or not because you’re not good, it was simply because you are unfit for television, and we know the rest is history.

Oprah Winfrey has gone on to own her own television station and is known as one of the richest women in the world on the Forbes list. But it started with an abusive childhood. She had to endure struggle and then she was rejected from a news reporting television station, telling her she was unfit for television. Has someone spoke in your life and said you unfit? You are unqualified? Don’t believe the lie. I’m here to inspire you to let you know if Oprah Winfrey can overcome rejection so can you. If Oprah Winfrey can overcome an abusive childhood so can.

Sidney Poitier

How about this next person, Sidney Poitier. Sidney is one of the best actors that we know today.

Yet Sidney was told to stop wasting people’s time and go become a dishwasher. Can you imagine this, you have a dream to be an actor and they told him to go and become a dishwasher. Go wash people’s dishes. Go serve someone else. You’ll never make it in this industry of acting.

What happened to Sidney Poitier? Sidney went on to win an Oscar and is deemed as one of the best actors in the business today. He will be remembered in history. Many of you have probably saw, ”Guess who’s coming for dinner” and all of the wonderful movies he acted in. A brilliant actor but he had to overcome what someone told him, stop wasting our time in the movie industry and go become a simple dishwasher. Sidney Poitier didn’t listen to the rejection of others, he overcame it and he’s became one of the best actors that we know.

Jeanne Moreau

Let me tell you about someone else: Jeanne Moreau. Jeanne was told by a casting director that “she wasn’t pretty enough.” Can you imagine been told by someone you not pretty enough, that you’re not handsome enough, that you are not smart enough, you don’t have what it takes?

How did she respond to this? Jeanne went on to star in nearly 100 films and won numerous awards. Jeanne proved to them more than 100 times that I am pretty enough, that I am good enough, and that I am smart enough. Learn from Jeanne today. You are made for greatness.

Jeanne took with negativity of what people said and proved them wrong one hundred times over.

Lucille Ball

How about this person? Lucille Ball, Oh my God, we all love, “I love Lucy.” Lucille Ball was regarded as a failed actress and she was deemed as a B list movie star. Not and A list but B list movie star. She was told to try another profession. They said maybe you want to become a secretary maybe you can go clean houses and do something different. Acting is not for you. Go try another profession. What happened with Lucille Ball?

Lucille Ball went on to win 13 Emmy nominations and 4 of those nominations she won. She also received a lifetime achievement award. She defied the odds. They told her you are a B-movie star. You are a failed actress. That doesn’t sound like failure to me. 13 Emmys! I’m proud you Lucille Ball. You can do the same thing.

Theodor Seuss (Dr. Seuss)

Have you heard of Theodore Seuss? Or maybe you know him as Dr. Seuss? The Cat in the Hat? Or Green Eggs and Ham? Every kid has heard of or has read Dr. Seuss’s books and they are still very popular today.

Dr. Seuss’s first book was rejected by 27 different publishers. 27 publishers said your book is not good enough, and it won’t sell. But we know the rest is history. Dr. Seuss created so many books, hundreds of them, all from 27 publishers saying you’re not good enough. Dr. Seuss didn’t believe the lie.

Stephen King

How about this guy? Steven King? You have to know Stephen King. Stephen King’s first book the iconic “Carrie” (I love that movie), received 30 rejections. He gave up. This really moved me after learning this. Stephen King was rejected 30 times, gave up, and threw his manuscript in the trash.

His wife fished it back out of the trash and asked him to submit it one more time and the rest is history. Don’t give up. His wife was there to help. You need people in your life to encourage and inspire you not to give up. People that will take your dreams, that have been thrown in the trash, and pull them back out of the trash, and tell you to try it again.

That’s what Adam White Speaks does in your life today. That’s why I’m here. To tell you don’t throw your dreams in the trash. Don’t listen to people telling you that you’re not good enough, or you’re not smart enough, or you’re not pretty enough. Pull your dreams back out of the trash. I will pull them out for. Submit them again. Go after it again. You can achieve success. Stephen King is here to tell you that’s it’s still possible.

J.K. Rowling

How about this J.K. rolling? J.K. Rowling wrote the Harry Potter series. How did she start? She started nearly penniless, severely depressed. She was divorced and depending on welfare. How does a woman by the name of J.K. Rowling go from living on welfare to becoming one of the richest women in the world? The author of Harry Potter Harry Potter series along J.K. rolling an author she did let poverty stop she did let me panelist opportunity lead divorce and depression stopper to get Preston towards a dreams of working on a book and send herself to college and all of a sudden she exploded into success J.K. Roland defied the odds, let failure or struggle stop me when overcome the odds she went on to become the richest woman in the world.

Jack London

How about this guy? Jack London. Have you heard of Jack London?

Jack London is a well-known author and his first story (this was unbelievable when I discover this) received 600 not 60 rejection slips, before his story was finally accepted. Imagine this: Jack London a writer, is trying to write a story and he got 600 rejection slips. How would you feel if someone rejected you 600 times? How many times have you been rejected? Jack London accepted 600 rejections before achieving success. How about you? Five rejections are nothing. Being told no, should mean nothing. Don’t let anyone stop you. It doesn’t matter how many times you get rejected. Don’t stop. Be consistent. Keep going after your dreams.

Elvis Presley

How about this guy? I know you know this guy, Elvis Presley.

Listen to what happened when Elvis Presley. Jimmy Denny, the manager of the Grand Old Opera fired Elvis and told him you ain’t going nowhere son, go back to driving a truck. Oh my God! Elvis Presley the king of it all, the music, Graceland, the whole nine.

Jimmy Denny told Elvis you’re not good enough, you’re not going to make it. You are wasting your time. You’re not going anywhere. Have you had someone to tell you that you’re not going anywhere? You won’t achieve anything life? You will always be in a failed position?

Don’t listen to those lies. You don’t have to go back to driving your truck. Elvis Presley changed the face of music because he didn’t listen to Jimmy Denny. He decided, I’m going to go after my dreams.

I don’t care what anyone says. That’s Awesome!

Ludwig Van Beethoven

How about this guy? Ludwig Van Beethoven. If you love classical music, then you know who Beethoven is. Watch this.

Beethoven handled the violin awkwardly and neglected to practice. His teachers told him he was hopeless to learn how to play the violin. Imagine being told that you are absolutely hopeless.

What happened with Beethoven? We know that he went on to compose some of the best love symphonies that we have ever heard. Symphonies like Moonlight Sonata is one of my favorite symphonies. Beethoven composed five of those symphonies while he was completely deaf. He couldn’t even hear. How do you compose music and you can’t even hear?

I don’t care what deficiency your face, I don’t care what handicap you seem to have. It doesn’t stop you from fulfilling your dream, your purpose, and your mission. If Beethoven can compose five symphonies completely deaf, you can do great things in life as well.

Babe Ruth

How about this guy? All of my baseball fans out there. Babe Ruth held the record for the most home runs 714. But he also held the record for the most strikeouts 1,330. How do you hold the record for the most home runs and the record for the most strikes outs?

When they asked him about holding the strikeout record, Babe Ruth responded, every strike brings me closer to the next home run.” Oh my goodness, if that’s not taking struggle and turning into success, then I don’t know what is. “Every strike out brings me closer to the next home run.”

I hope that these stories have inspired you and encouraged you not to give up on your dreams and not give up on doing something greater in your life. You were made for greatness and I’m here to take this journey with you. I know struggle, I know what it was like to fail, but I able to turn things around and bought a Subway franchise and real estate. On this journey I began to see that there is a need to help others who also failed, but also knows and wants to know how to take failure and turn it into success.

How to take a struggle and turn it into something great. These stories inspire me and they brought tears to my eyes. To read about Oprah Winfrey who had to deal with abuse or Stephen King who threw his manuscript in the trash, and his wife fished it out, telling Stephen don’t give u, try again.

Adam White is your coach. I’m here today to tell you don’t give up. Don’t throw your dreams in the trash.

Get back out and dream again. Don’t let the abuse and what others have tried to say and do in your life stop you from achieving greatness. This is Adam and I hope you enjoyed this session.

As always you come visit me of adamwhitespeaks.com.

If you not already a member of my blog, I want you to join me at my influential leadership blog to get teachings like this delivered right to your email box every single week. I thank you for your time and hope these stories have inspired you.

Guess what you? You were made for Greatness! See you next time.


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