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42 Times Celebrities And Successful People Were Badly Rejected But Later Proved Everyone Wrong
Mick Jagger, one of the greatest philosophers of the 20th century, once famously said, "You can't always get what you want / But if you try sometime / You'll find / You get what you need." To further illustrate his point and show that the road to success is paved with failure, actors, writers and other creatives are using the hashtag #ShareYourRejections to share the times they were not good enough.
Author Saeed Jones started the initiative, saying "Sometimes I dig up old rejection letters from publishers and literary journals to remind myself that it’s just part of the process." He added the hashtag and others quickly joined him.
For example, writer and former children's laureate Malorie Blackman said that her novel, Noughts & Crosses, which deals with racial discrimination, was rejected for a literary award because "it would've shown more insight if a white author had written it". Scroll down to get your daily dose of motivation and upvote your favorites.
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#1
Naomi Armitage 7 years ago
Reminds me of that joke in the Rodney Dangerfield movie "Back to School" where Rodney has Kurt Vonnegut HIMSELF write a paper on Kurt Vonnegut for Rodney ('cause Rodney's mad rich), and the professor, knowing Rodney didn't write it himself, says something like "Whoever *did* write this doesn't know the first thing about Kurt Vonnegut!"
Sal Silvio 7 years ago
…and another thing, Vonnegut. I’m gonna stop payment on the check.
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Kelly Hartle 7 years ago
It's like when Dolly Parton entered a Dolly Parton look-alike contest. She came in third.
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#2
#3
Max L. 7 years ago
Then Tom Hanks called you because he did like your script but you hungup on him because you tought it was a prank :D
Max L. 7 years ago
You should meet my aunt, she is greek, look, and behave EXACTLY like the mom in the movie, speaks the same way, offers food to welcome and all. I remember being teen going to visit her a few hours drive, we used to eat along the highway going, just arrived she used to say "Cmon Max have a seat, you want to eat ?" - "No zia, we ate along the road" - "Ill make you a sadwich then.". As the movie was out I used to remember her the episode and she did react like "what's wrong, you don't want to eat a meal, you must eat a sandwich at least!" :D
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Steve Bowman 7 years ago
“If you put your mind to it, you can accomplish anything.”
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#5
SykesDaMan 7 years ago
Did he call you after the Oscar asking to get back together? "No, not because of the Oscar... Hmmm... I think I might be pregnant! No, no kidding! Men can't be pregnant? So... I really love you and stuff"
Grumble O'Pug 7 years ago
YES!!! Male editors are so in love with themselves, they think they make the movie.That's why great directors either shoot so tight you can't do anything but cut the way it's shot or work closely with the editor.
#6
Emily Graves 7 years ago
She was amazing in the part either way, cant imagine anyone else doing it as well as her.
Diver Driver 7 years ago
Really funny, makes you wonder how she stuck in their minds as a "b!tch"
Aaron Kara 7 years ago
Every cloud has silver lining, or if you're in a huge television series, a gold lining.
#7
SweetMamaP 7 years ago
Ouch! I am personally offended for her on that second rejection. What a douche!
#8
CultOfBambi 7 years ago
Spaced is AWESOME. (Simon Pegg & Nick Frost in the very early days of their acting partnership)
Ryo Bakura 7 years ago
Good. Spaced was awesome, and unique. Don't need some crappy commercial trying to mimic it.
Aaron Kara 7 years ago
Ha! Now that is ridiculous... still waiting for new season of Spaced...
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#10
Pelleh Din 7 years ago
depending on where she kicked him in response. poetically, of course.
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h u m o u r M e 7 years ago
he pretended he liked it all those years...how romantic no? So je let slip, go kiss him now and say i love you and now i will recite you a poem i wrote a few years ago for you, you ungrateful peice of s**t, get out
#11
Skink Dog 7 years ago
I once got "encouraged" to take another class than dancing from a teacher at a school I went to - she didn't want the class performance to get ruined by me... Unfortunately can't say anything positive happened after, except I had a little happy moment by myself when I got a hang of some of the steps we practiced. Never danced with anyone, never showed anyone. Was at the school because I was depressed and suicidal.
#12
Tinley's Aunt 7 years ago
But now you don't have to write a bachelor's guide to New York, because you already have their rejection!
SykesDaMan 7 years ago
Hey, what do you know? You got your book published: https://www.amazon.com/Only-Dead-Inside-Surviving-Apocalypse-ebook/dp/B01MUGWVIG
Load More Replies... Meowton Mewsk 7 years ago
Ugh one of the few good things about the zombie apocalypse is that there would be fewer kids and even fewer of those “parenting is my only identity” people. Don’t give them a guide!
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#14
Carol Emory 7 years ago
We had a similar situation with an undergrad student that had done a rather bad job at reviewing a case study on the degradation of bones in an acidic environment in order to age biological remains. As she stood in front of the class and the professor, she proceeded to say "The guy that wrote this screwed up his data. The guy that wrote that got all of his conclusions wrong." Apparently the most important thing she should have read was the name of "the guy that wrote this." Maybe then she would have realized that he was the professor that was in the room currently grading her presentation.
Vaida Kuodytė 7 years ago
Had he actually made mistakes, he wouldn't have acknowledged them anyway, sadly... Professors and even primary school teachers have colossal egos and therefore "can never be wrong". :(
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#15
Debbie Lyn Jones (Deb) 7 years ago
Ouch.... I just go to my corner and quietly hold my stuffed lamb. Then... I write about how lonely it must be to live the life of those who rejected me and I weave a verse about their dark desperation to find ... love. Maybe scribble a few notes about how I hope the zombie apopalypse begins and ends in their offices.
Madison Schon 7 years ago
Hope the lamb is helpful! Even stuffed animals give great comfort
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#18
Sherida van den Bent 7 years ago
Bridget Jones is not even fat. And people wonder why girls are so conscious about their weight... -_-'
#19
Jane Doe 7 years ago
I think he was trying to be cool and instead of saying he didn't flip his lid over it, he shortened it to flip, so he managed to sound unclear and incomplete in addition to snarky and eqally dated implied not joke.."Yeah, you'll get an emmy someday and I'll be shocked. Not."
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Master Markus 7 years ago
I don't get his insult. Does he dislike the Emmys? Is getting an Emmy secretly shameful because it's not based on actual quality of writing?
#20
#21
Caroline Murphy 7 years ago
When I read the tweet I thought "I know this guy from somewhere but can't place where from" thanks to your comment I realised
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Fiendhunter 7 years ago
Maybe he did want to focus on his career; what's the bottom line here? You being a film director doesn't mean he's not successful or enjoys his acting career, and you're certainly not better than him for getting to cast for your project.
Daria B 7 years ago
I guess the point here is that they had similar career goals, going the same directions. They could have supported each other in making each other's dreams come true, following similar career paths, but he decided to split up. In the end, she got successful earlier and more than him. That's my guess about the bottom line. Anyway, personally I think they weren't meant for each other anyway if they split up for something they couldn't see. But I still do kinda empathize with the author of the tweet. She must have had some feelings for him and the breakup obviously wasn't easy for her.
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Aaron Kara 7 years ago
What's your point? You became more successful than him, well done, even so I wouldn't call this a rejection story that anybody can learn from
Daria B 7 years ago
Maybe he underestimated her. There are a few other stories here that are not really about rejection, but rather being underestimated.
Load More Replies... Ben Smith 7 years ago
Did you ever see that movie He's Just Not That Into You?? Well, he wasn't into you. He didn't care about his career...just needed an excuse.
Meowton Mewsk 7 years ago
Probably. And judging by her stank attitude and profile pic, I can see why. If you look at her twitter she got all mad when people called her out for this and tried to act incredulous but it just came across as ghetto. She’s a fan girl pretending to have success.
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Sergio Bicerra Descalzi 7 years ago
Humilliating someone cause stopped seeing you after just a few dates... that's not right.
Christina Sersif 7 years ago
So let me guess you decided not to cast him because you wanted to rub it in his face 5 years later? Very mature.
Meowton Mewsk 7 years ago
This isn’t a story of rejection. This is a story of a b****y b***h seeking attention for her success who is bitter over FIVE YEARS after being broken up with. The guy wanted to focus on his career and did and she’s mad why? Because he didn’t make it as far as she claims she made it? What a loser.
Mia Em 7 years ago
It wasn't a triumph. And nope, she's still mad. Making herself out to look like a total heifer.
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Patricia Ross 7 years ago
She may not be better than him but she's probably further ahead in her career. If he gets that gig, she'll be his boss.
#23
Isla Reyne 7 years ago
maybe, but look closer and you'll see a long line.....she's been gainfully employed and very busy for years, bit parts or no.
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#29
Misterscooter 7 years ago
The rejections aren't fun but I hope you always liked writing during that time.
#32
#33
Ryo Bakura 7 years ago
Plenty of coaches/managers in sports that have never played professionally, yet still have a job.
SIB 7 years ago
I'm surrounded by people who can, they also teach because they love it. I've always thought that was the dumbest damn saying.
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#34
rola 7 years ago
Dude he skipped a shift.... unless he called off ahead of time, that was a real d**k move to his coworkers.
Patricia Ross 7 years ago
What makes you think he didn't call off? Why so negative?
Load More Replies... Misterscooter 7 years ago
That's not a rejection, that's natural consequences. Glad it worked out, though.
Vaida Kuodytė 7 years ago
Just a reminder folks, you can get fired for literally no reason, no good reason, or no legal reason... IT'S ELIAS F***ING TOUFEXIS :O
#35
Blue Cicada 7 years ago
Some kind of Spanish... great phrasing. Every brown person I know has had to explain where their country is, what languages they do/don't speak, why they do/don't have an accent. (Examples: No, Brazil is not in the Middle East, it's in South America. /No, I don't speak Arabic. I speak Urdu. / I have an accent because I didn't start learning English until I was six years old. I don't have an accent because my family has been in this country for four generations.)
Blue Cicada 7 years ago
This may not be a perfectly written a poem, but the format is quite acceptable for contemporary poetry. The sentiment is very understandable to anyone who is a minority, anyone who is part of a group with a strong self identity, anyone who has ever been excluded from such a group.
Master Markus 7 years ago
From that poem she's ALMOST got it. I like the beginning, but it starts getting too specific and expositional and less linguistically emotional around the "or some kind of spanish" line in my opinion.
#37
Carol Emory 7 years ago
Saw another story of a guy from Compton that was rejected from Google three times until they wrote to him and asked him to re-apply. He's been working with them for several years now and has a program that helps other kids from poor impoverished areas get the training they need to become members of the tech industry.
#39
#40
Gypsy Snow 7 years ago
I have 35k followers on IG 'cause I show my butt a lot....35k is not a difficult number to reach /shrug/
Anna Thouvenin 7 years ago
It's probably more difficult to achieve 35k followers when you talk about politics.
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Charlotte Bayer 7 years ago
I will never understand some people's obsession to shout out their political views? maybe its because I am from Germany, I don't know. But here your political standpoint is your own private thing, you don't need to validate it by shouting into an echo chamber of brainless sheep who agree with everything you say.
Ryo Bakura 7 years ago
America: Salute the flag, or we'll shoot. Patriotism is the biggest load of hogwash since religion.
Heidi Bean 7 years ago
Any woman or minority who votes for conservatives is either an ignoramus, or a masochist.
#41
Nadja Lambacher 7 years ago
Well, basically saying "I didn't expect someone like you to write grammatically correct sentences" Is not a compliment.
Load More Replies... SIB 7 years ago
Huh? I have plenty of LGBT friends that go to church. Two of them are pastors!
Load More Replies... #42
Hannah Ingram 7 years ago
he's now famous for drawing dc characters, especially teen titans
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What do you think ?
Laugh Fan 7 years ago
Some of the stories were a little bit 'Oooh, but I'm marvellous and no-one realised until X happened'. Unfortunately sometimes people get rejected as they aren't ready and that's why it works out several stages later on. Though in some others instances? Fantastic turnarounds and success. Kudos to those people.
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DE Ray 7 years ago
While working as an editor (newspaper), emailed a rejection of a submitted story without bothering to look at who wrote it. Then my phone buzzed because I just got an email.
DawnMarie 7 years ago
This is actually a better rejection story than everything I just read!
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Shari H 7 years ago
My grade 8 English teacher (who pronounced idea as "i-deer") recommended I drop out because I was not capable of finishing high school. I graduated high school at 17 and went on to earn 3 college degrees, graduating with a 3.8 GPA while working 2 jobs, one full time and one part-time.
PBMc 7 years ago
Congratulations but you must have really sucked at 8th grade to have a teacher recommend you drop out of school
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Dinetk 7 years ago
I once was rejected for a job as a psychologist because I was no psychologist. I am. Stupid comittee didn’t read my resumé properly
Laugh Fan 7 years ago
Think you had a luck escape if they're that c**p at assessing candidates!
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Daria B 7 years ago
When I was young and an avid gamer, they used to tell me "video games won't give you no bread". Well, guess what... They give me rice, bread and even cakes! I'm now working in the video games industry, and our company provides us with free lunch, birthday cakes, business dinners, business trips too sometimes.
Jeanneke van Berkel 7 years ago
A Dutch poet and writer, famous, had one of his grandchildren visiting him. The boy asked his grandfather to help him with his homework, since it was about some poems the grandfather wrote himself. Most of the questions were in the style of: what did the poet mean by this metaphore.... He answered all the questions honestly, and the grandson got an F.
Laugh Fan 7 years ago
Some of the stories were a little bit 'Oooh, but I'm marvellous and no-one realised until X happened'. Unfortunately sometimes people get rejected as they aren't ready and that's why it works out several stages later on. Though in some others instances? Fantastic turnarounds and success. Kudos to those people.
Load More Replies... DE Ray 7 years ago
While working as an editor (newspaper), emailed a rejection of a submitted story without bothering to look at who wrote it. Then my phone buzzed because I just got an email.
DawnMarie 7 years ago
This is actually a better rejection story than everything I just read!
Load More Replies... Shari H 7 years ago
My grade 8 English teacher (who pronounced idea as "i-deer") recommended I drop out because I was not capable of finishing high school. I graduated high school at 17 and went on to earn 3 college degrees, graduating with a 3.8 GPA while working 2 jobs, one full time and one part-time.
PBMc 7 years ago
Congratulations but you must have really sucked at 8th grade to have a teacher recommend you drop out of school
Load More Replies... Dinetk 7 years ago
I once was rejected for a job as a psychologist because I was no psychologist. I am. Stupid comittee didn’t read my resumé properly
Laugh Fan 7 years ago
Think you had a luck escape if they're that c**p at assessing candidates!
Load More Replies... Daria B 7 years ago
When I was young and an avid gamer, they used to tell me "video games won't give you no bread". Well, guess what... They give me rice, bread and even cakes! I'm now working in the video games industry, and our company provides us with free lunch, birthday cakes, business dinners, business trips too sometimes.
Jeanneke van Berkel 7 years ago
A Dutch poet and writer, famous, had one of his grandchildren visiting him. The boy asked his grandfather to help him with his homework, since it was about some poems the grandfather wrote himself. Most of the questions were in the style of: what did the poet mean by this metaphore.... He answered all the questions honestly, and the grandson got an F.
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