Top Learning From Failure Quotes to Continue Your Struggle

Updated Dec 13, 2022.
Learning From Failure Quotes

Learning from failure quotes are quotes that motivate you to learn from failure instead of fearing it.

Fear is a serious show-stopper because it has the power to ruin things.

However, fear can be triggered in the right direction.

Many people are so scared of failing that they end up doing nothing. They just sit in fear all their lives.

But the definition of someone who has failed in life is someone who lets the fear of failing to stop them from living up to their full potential.

A person who falls and gets up has been proven to be stronger than a person who has never fallen and we should, no matter how difficult, rise again and learn.

Now you might be wondering what it means to learn from failure. It means you become fully aware of what you did wrong and what you did right.

There is a reason why you failed and finding out for yourself what that reason is helps prevent you from going down that road again.

There is always a lesson to learn from failure and these “learning from failure” quotes will inspire you to see failure as a vital lesson.

Inspiring Learning From Failure Quotes

Many people fear failure. They are afraid to take the bold step because they are not sure they will succeed. But we should always remember that failure is an important lesson we must experience before we reach success.

Rather than fear failure, learn from it. Whether successful entrepreneurs are born or made, doesn't matter. Everyone will experience failure. Only those who learn from it and rise will succeed. Likewise, only those who dare to fail greatly will achieve greatly.

Inspiring Learning From Failure
Source: Fail Forward

Here are some quotes to inspire you to get up whenever you feel like a failure;

01
“It's only when you risk failure that you discover things. When you play it safe, you're not expressing the utmost of your human experience.”
― Lupita Nyong'o

Failure is often considered the opposite of success but this does not apply to every single form of it.

It could be a pointer to some bitter truths that you need to work on and regardless of the pain that failure brings, it is always better and wiser to learn from it.

The only thing that can limit a man is the man himself and there are so many ways one can do that; playing safe is one of them. We should aim to live life to the fullest and not merely exist.

How would you know that you are great at something if you do not at least attempt to do it?

Yes, you might not get it at first but you would be better off than you were before you tried it.

Mediocrity is no way to live life.

02
“Pain is temporary. Quitting lasts forever.”
– Lance Armstrong

The truth is that failure hurts and this is why many people try to avoid taking risks because it hurts to see your dreams and hard work crash right before your eyes.

There are 6 stages of failure and one would have to go through the motions of denial to acceptance and then growth before a success story is built.

It is important to have a book where you write down your vision to remind yourself of the reason you started the journey in the first place. It would keep you in check because regardless of how painful it is to fail, it is even more painful to live regretting that you gave up.

03
“You may encounter many defeats, but you must not be defeated.”
― Maya Angelou

A person is not regarded as a failure because of the number of times he failed but because he accepted defeat.

Rather than fear failure, fear regrets. Living in regret is the greatest and most painful failure anyone can ever experience. Always know that the step you are afraid to take, someone else has taken and succeeded.

For example, imagine being afraid to grow your business into an empire just because you are a woman and are scared about what people will say.

But when you take out time to look around, you will see that there are other successful women entrepreneurs who didn't let this hold them down. Instead, they used it to their advantage and inspired millions of women around the world.

04
“Children have a lesson adults should learn, to not be ashamed of failing, but to get up and try again. Most of us adults are so afraid, so cautious, so ‘safe,' and therefore so shrinking and rigid and afraid that it is why so many humans fail. Most middle-aged adults have resigned themselves to failure.”
― Malcolm X

We were not born with fears. It was learned from the different experiences we had. We learned to not try too hard for the fear of everything being a waste.

We learned to shrink back or run instead of approaching matters with boldness. But fortunately, we can also unlearn certain ideas and beliefs that hold us back.

It is hard to unlearn fear because it is something we grew up with but it is possible to learn courage.

  • Meditate on what you are afraid of.
  • Write down why you are afraid of it.
  • Envision the worst-case scenarios.
  • Think of the positive sides of it.
  • Take a leap of faith and do it regardless of the fear you feel.
05
“Defeat is not the worst of failures. Not to have tried is the true failure.”
– George Edward Woodberry

Failure helps you discover better ways to do something. It shows you what you are good at and what you are horrible at. For example, you can never know how to write if you don't write.

On your first attempt, you might feel frustrated but with time, you would either get better or know that it is not for you. It is better to try and fail than to never try and regret not trying all your life.

06
“I have not failed. I have found 10,000 ways that don't work.”
— Thomas Edison

Thomas Edison showed us by example how to embrace failure in a way that inspires you to be fearless.

Growing up, he was always told by the people around him that he was stupid and would never amount to anything but he did not let their words shape him.

He had a dream and regardless of the 10,000 times he failed at it, he kept his eyes on the goal because he believed in his dream and was willing to do whatever it takes to achieve it.

Many of us would not even make it past the 10th time but we need to adopt the habit of having faith in ourselves. Faith that stands even when things are not working out is what will keep us strong in times of drawback.

Every time you feel like giving up, ask yourself what Thomas Edison would do and do that instead.

07
“Do not judge me by my successes; judge me by how many times I fell and got back up again.”
― Nelson Mandela

Every successful person out there is someone who has at some point faced some level of rejection and disappointment but did not let it stop them.

It is natural for a baby to fall when he first attempts to walk. However, just because the baby fell doesn't mean he can never walk again. With time and constant practice, the child will be able to run without falling. All it takes is resilience and passion.

This applies to every single thing in life and the only things we become professionals at are the things that we do not give up on.

Always remember that failure is inevitable but it also builds character in us.

08
“Every adversity, every failure, every heartache carries with it the seed of a greater or equal benefit.”
– Napoleon Hill

There is a right way to look at failure.

A way that would not consume and drain you till you feel too overwhelmed to take any action.

The first thing to do is to take responsibility for the failure and accept the part you played in it. Many people play the blame game when things do not work out the way they expected but this would not change anything.

The next thing to do after taking responsibility for your actions is to look forward. Don't dwell on feelings of anger or pain. It is important for you to not skip the stages but try not to be absorbed by the hurt that you can't move on to greater things.

The last thing to do is to recharge and go again. Instead of quitting, practice the act of bouncing back.

People react to failure differently. But the best way to react is to learn from it and use it as your stepping stone to success.

Every entrepreneur will face adversity at multiple points in their journey. You can check out some inspiring quotes about entrepreneurial adversity to understand how you can use adversity to your advantage.

Adversity is not there to pull you down. Instead, it is to make you stronger and more resilient. The more you overcome, the more you develop a thick skin of resilience.

09
“Develop success from failures. Discouragement and failure are two of the surest stepping stones to success.”
― Dale Carnegie

Discouragement and failure are things that every human being goes through. But some people use them as an excuse to quit while others, stepping stones to greatness.

No matter how we try to sugar-coat it, our choices in life determine the outcome of our lives. What this means is that you are the captain of your boat and no amount of failure can stop you if you decide that it would not.

To do this, focus on the positives and leave out the negatives. What has happened cannot be changed but our attitude toward our next project can be fixed.

10
“Courage allows the successful woman to fail and learn powerful lessons from the failure so that in the end, she didn't fail at all.”
– Maya Angelou

Courage is built from failure. The more times you fall the lesser it hurts and the quicker you can get back up.

However, it is possible to keep failing without ever succeeding depending on how a person responds to his/her failure.

You should not just keep trying without evaluating the reason you failed at something. Doing the same things over and over again is a recipe for doom.

According to Dashun Wung, failure can only breed positive results if we try to understand its root causes. This is often not a simple process because it requires a lot of digging to discover and recognize what went wrong.

This analysis should be more mental than sentimental so that you can get to the bottom of the problem.

11
‘’We're born with success. It is only others who point out our failures, and what they attribute to us as a failure.”
― Whoopi Goldberg

Most of our fears come from what people have said about us in the past. But to break free from this chain, we must try to remember the good things that were also said about us or to us.

The human mind automatically captures negativity and saves it in our memory. However, we must make the extra effort to replace negative thoughts with positive thoughts.

If you cannot remember any positive thing that has ever been said about you, then practice the mirror exercise; declare yourself a winner and manifest what you want to see happen in your life.

12
“Success consists of going from failure to failure without loss of enthusiasm.”
– Winston Churchill

Enthusiasm is that push that spurs one to take profitable action and without it, a failed life is guaranteed.

However, as humans, it is natural to feel a drop in enthusiasm with every setback that you experience.

If not careful enough, there will be a total loss of motivation.

Failure is majorly what causes this loss of motivation but there are other supporters;

  • Uncertainty: This is when a person is not deeply rooted or grounded in wanting to achieve a particular goal. It's more like he wants it but he is not too sure about that.
  • Unbelieve: Everyone claims to believe in their dreams but the real proof comes after failure and is seen in whether you run or stand.
  • Negative thinking: There is a tendency to overthink and overanalyze failure in an unproductive way.

One way to overcome this lack of enthusiasm is to think deeply and focus on your inner self.

Practice daily affirmations and use the power of your mind and imagination to drag yourself back into believing.

13
“You can't let your failures define you. You have to let your failures teach you.”
– Barack Obama

Failure will surely come but we can decide what to do with it. Think of failure as an opportunity for a fresh start but this time with a bag of lessons from past mistakes.

Your attitude towards failing plays a huge role in determining if you ever succeed.

Nobody wants to fail because it is seen as “negative”. But not all failures are negative.

According to Amy Edmundson, there are 3 types of failure;

  1. Simple
  2. Complex
  3. Intelligent

The third type of failure is regarded as a positive failure because it allows you to fail in a way that teaches you and opens your mind to new ideas.

Since failure is inevitable, there is no point in fearing it. Your mind may play tricks on you and make you think you are afraid to fail. You can distract your mind and feed it with some powerful fear of failure quotes.

The worst of life's failures is to let fear stop you from achieving your goals.

14
“Failure is a part of the process. You just learn to pick yourself back up.”
― Michelle Obama

Resilience is one character that failure builds in a person. It is the ability to say no to defeat and it will keep you standing for decades.

Failure has no respect for people. Even the strongest person still has to go through some level of hurdles.

It differs from person to person. Some people have to try 100 times to eventually get it right while some try 5 times.

It all depends on how quickly you are to pick up your lesson and get going.

15
“Most great people have attained their greatest success just one step beyond their greatest failure.”
— Napoleon Hill

Many people have given up when they were very close to succeeding. This is not because they are unlucky or cursed, but because they are human.

It is easier to lose hope than it is to keep standing but only the people who stay till the end have the full benefit of enjoying success.

With each step of failure, we draw closer to the success mark because failure makes us better and gives room for improvement.

The most innovative entrepreneurs didn't wake up one morning and suddenly became innovative. Their innovation is a result of various failures. They challenged their minds to focus on their strength and form something positive out of their adversities.

16
“When it comes right down to it, I know of only one factor that separates those who consistently shine from those who don't: The difference between average people and achieving people is their perception of and response to failure.”
– John Maxwell

Do you ever wonder what the secret to someone's achievements is? It is their attitude towards failure.

Successful people do not play blame games. Instead, they take full responsibility for their mistakes and do not see failure as the end of the road for them.

They recognize that it is only a part of the process and they take certain strategies to ensure they learn from their failures.

  • Firstly, they acknowledge their slips and missteps.
  • They look to the source of the problem and try to work on them.
  • They re-strategize and try to shape old goals to fit into new goals.
  • They remind themselves of the big picture.

They can do all this because they are optimistic, and committed and they always persevere.

Unsuccessful people, on the flip side, never accept their faults instead they pass them on to every other person. They quit at the sight of failure and never get back up.

The first signs of failure lie in your attitude. What is your attitude towards challenges? Do you learn from them or do you avoid them?

An entrepreneur must always be willing to learn if they want to succeed.

17
“No human ever became interesting by not failing. The more you fail and recover and improve, the better you are as a person. Ever meet someone who's always had everything work out for them with zero struggle? They usually have the depth of a puddle. Or they don't exist.”
– Chris Hardwick

According to research done by Northwestern University's Kellogg school of management, setbacks have long-term benefits.

They help you to redefine your goals and gain wisdom from experience on how to achieve those goals. It also opens your mind to other options that you might have been blind to before.

Invent a learning habit that allows you to backtrack a bit and try to find new techniques.

18
“You can be discouraged by failure, or you can learn from it. So go ahead and make mistakes, make all you can. Because, remember that's where you'll find success – on the far side of failure.”
– Thomas J. Watson

It's normal to feel disappointed in yourself for making a terrible mistake that compelled you to fail at something but we should never stay down.

People that thrive in their industry are people that embrace the lessons that come from making mistakes.

Research has shown that there is a 10,000-hour rule that determines if a person gains mastery over something or not.

Within this period, mistakes are expected but it allows us to sharpen our focus and aim higher.

In reality, we need to make mistakes to have more clarity and this will eventually lead to growth.

19
“Those who dare to fail miserably can achieve greatly.”
― John F. Kennedy

Embracing the idea of failure is not easy but it helps to keep you in check.

It is one thing to fail and a completely different thing to regard yourself as a failure.

Here's the difference: If you think of yourself as a failure you will always fail but if you recognize that you only failed, it would be easier to move ahead.

It takes a lot of effort to not see yourself as a failure after failing miserably but it is a fight you must win.

  • Take a break: After failing utterly you will need some time away from work.
  • Take care of yourself: Within the period of your break, ensure to take things easy and encourage yourself. It is important to separate your value/identity from your work.
  • Remind yourself of what your goal was and what that goal meant to you, and try to find out what went wrong.
  • Try again.
20
“Fear regrets more than failure.”
— Taryn Rose

A lot of people die with their dreams undiscovered because of the fear of failure. At the end of our lives, it won't matter that we were scared, what would matter is that we tried.

The truth is that it is scary to take risks but you must always remember that the possibility of failure is only a half-truth.

What many people forget is that there is a 50% chance that you could succeed depending on your choices. It is better to have an optimistic approach to life.

No matter how many times you fail, you should never give up. Giving up is for quitters.

As long as you are still in the game, you are not a failure. What step did you miss or miscalculate in your action plan?

Take the lessons to learn and keep going. While you are at it, fuel your mind and encourage yourself with some never-give-up quotes.

21
“Never confuse a single defeat with a final defeat.”
– F. Scott Fitzgerald

According to Robert Greene, it is okay to lose a battle to win a war. This does not necessarily mean that there are small failures and big failures.

What it means is that there is a war we must not lose. It is the war against defeat.

This war is the same for everybody.

No matter what happens, we should always remember that it is not over until it is over.

Powerful Quotes About Failure

Learning from failure requires one to have an experimental perspective. This mindset allows for trial and error, after all, success comes as a result of failure.

In life, difficult situations force us to grow and make us mature in different ways.

There are so many lessons that come with failure and the following quotes would help us to be aware of what these lessons are;

22
“Good people are good because they've come to wisdom through failure. We get very little wisdom from success, you know.”
– William Saroyan

Some people think so highly of themselves that they never embrace change or growth.

This is a ridiculous mentality that permits stagnancy in life.

Nobody is above change because we are not perfect and with every fall we learn to stand stronger.

Failure teaches strength and makes us more eager to succeed. The real value of success is not in the euphoric feeling you get from succeeding but in the lessons you learn from failing.

23
“Failure is another stepping stone to greatness.”
― Oprah Winfrey

You should never see failure as a threat but rather as an opportunity to learn something different.

To learn from failure, you have to be open-minded and more rational. Re-think, re-strategize and research.

This is a formula for learning from your failure.

Do not give up because what you hoped for did not work out but try to properly analyze what the lesson could be and when you find it, work with it.

24
“Our greatest glory is not in never falling, but in rising every time we fail.”
― Confucius

Everyone has at some point gone through one setback or another. But not everyone is successful.

This is not due to the amount or level of the setback but the intensity of a person's determination to get back up and win.

Do you want to succeed? If you do then, you must be resilient. Never take no for an answer.

Don't ever be afraid to take risks. There is no success without risk. In fact, every step you take in your entrepreneurial journey is a risk.

You are not sure of the results but you take the leap of faith anyway.

Every marketing strategy you use in your business is a risk. The sales pitches you make to potential clients or investors are risks. Risk-taking is a key element of entrepreneurship.

25
“The only real mistake is the one from which we learn nothing.”
-Henry Ford

The first step to learning something from failure is acceptance.

After acceptance, we have the option of either trying to totally forget about our failures or studying them to learn.

None of the options are bad but one would lead to productivity in the future and the other would lead to stagnation.

26
“Don't fear failure — not failure, but low aim is the crime. In great attempts, it is glorious even to fail.”
― Bruce Lee

Fear can cripple us by making us perform less than our potential. Everyone has greatness inside of them but many times we let the fear of failure incapacitate us.

Regardless, fear can be used to spark light from within you.

The fear of failure could be turned into something that motivates you to work harder at achieving your goals or it could make you underperform and then fail.

The truth is that the ball is in your court, use your fears wisely.

27
“Failure is so important. We speak about success all the time. It is the ability to resist failure or use failure that often leads to greater success. I've met people who don't want to try for fear of failing.”
– J.K. Rowling

It is often said that ” failure is the condiment that gives success its flavor”.

This saying is not too far from the truth because it is through past failures that we gain the wisdom that helps us to eventually succeed.

When you find yourself dreading failure, listen to the success stories of people like Abraham Lincoln, Michael Jordan, Stephen King, and Oprah Winfrey to help you stay motivated.

28
“Failure should be our teacher, not our undertaker. It is a delay, not defeat. It is a temporary detour, not a dead-end street.”
– William A. Ward

Sometimes we interpret a “wait” to be a “no”. But in an actual sense, a “wait” does not mean that you cannot have what you seek.

It means it's not time yet but in the period of waiting, so much improvement can happen and so much can be learned.

For example; you can learn to be grateful for what you have, count your blessings and never take them for granted.

29
“Successful people don't fear failure but understand that it's necessary to learn and grow from it.”
— Robert Kiyosaki

Success does not just happen, it is a process that entails multiple failures. Failure is simply a phase that influences the outcome of your journey.

It is not the failing that makes one a failure but giving up because you failed.

Pick yourself up, encourage yourself, motivate yourself, and spur yourself up because the journey might be long but it can be eventful if you decide to enjoy the ride.

The ability to learn from the toughest situations is an important life skill to develop. There is no point in fearing failure when the lessons in it can make you better, stronger, and wiser.

You can only pass failure when you learn from it.

30
“Failure is an inescapable part of life and a critically important part of any successful life.”
– Tal Ben-Shahar

In life, we win some and lose some but if we learn from the ones we lose, then we do not lose.

This is the mentality that we should have because success comes after a series of failures.

To be successful, we must accept that we will fail a couple of times but that is okay because it is all part of the process.

31
“Failure is a feeling long before it becomes an actual result. It's a vulnerability that breeds with self-doubt and then is escalated, often deliberately, by fear.”
– Michelle Obama

There is a common saying that fear simply means “false evidence appearing real”. What many do not know is that we have the power to decide what our reality will be.

If you let fear stop you from achieving your goals, it is because you have placed a limit on yourself in your mind.

32
“The only thing that separates success from failure is one last attempt. Try one more time and you will get lucky.”
— Apoorve Dubey

If you ever find yourself at a point of hopelessness, always remember that “One last try will make all the difference”.

It's perfectly okay to feel frustrated because you are not getting it right but it is not okay to give up. Just keep learning from your mistakes and I promise you, you will get it right one day.

33
“It's fine to celebrate success but it is more important to heed the lessons of failure.”
— Bill Gates

Everyone wants to be successful but not everyone is willing to pay the price for success.

Success has a price tag that it comes with and if you ever want to achieve it, you must embrace certain lessons and changes.

You must be willing to change your attitude and approach to problems.

34
“Do not be embarrassed by your failures, learn from them and start again.”
– Richard Branson

We always get tempted to run when we make mistakes because it feels very embarrassing but the truth is that nobody is so conscious of our mistakes.

We tend to zoom in on them and magnify them till we are soaked in all the feelings of shame.

This is not healthy behavior and we should realize that we are not perfect hence mistakes should be allowed.

Did you set goals and fail at achieving them? Rather than give up, set them again and create a better action plan.

What small-scale business idea do you have but are afraid to launch? Challenge yourself to launch it. Then challenge yourself to grow the business.

The more you challenge yourself, you'll find out that you can achieve much more than you ever imagined.

35
“When you take risks, you learn that there will be times when you succeed, and there will be times when you fail, and both are equally important.”
― Ellen DeGeneres

There are high-risk and low-risk ventures but with every project, there is a level of risk.

This risk is very important as it grooms us into becoming refined and developed.

The pressure that comes from failure is very similar to the kind that produces gold because it molds us and gives us something precious; a lesson.

36
“Success or failure is caused more by mental attitude than by mental capacity.”
– Walter Scott

Successful people are not necessarily the smartest people but they are people that have mental and emotional strength.

They brace themselves and push even harder when they fail because they are aware that success is a thing of the mind.

They have the attitude of a soldier and they are incredibly relentless. To succeed, adopt the habit of thinking like a soldier because you are one.

37
“Winners are not afraid of losing. But losers are. Failure is part of the process of success. People who avoid failure also avoid success.”
– Robert T. Kiyosaki

You will never know how high you can fly if you never try. Trying does not guarantee that it will work out but it ensures that you are better than you were before you tried.

The lessons we learn from failures stick with us and build us in ways that we will be thankful for and appreciate later on in our lives.

38
“It's failure that gives you the proper perspective on success.”
― Ellen DeGeneres

It is important to work on our outlook on failure because the way we see things is what matters the most.

Some people regard failure as a dead end and in such cases, it will be. However, if we change the way we look at it, we will find a different approach that would lead to success

39
“You have to be able to accept failure to get better.”
– LeBron James

Nobody ever gets to the top without facing hurdles along the way. It is impossible to completely avoid failure and nothing fully prepares you for it.

The only tip is to accept that you are human and humans make mistakes. The good thing is that failure is only temporary and you can move on from it.

Learn to embrace change too. When a plan doesn't work, go back to re-strategize before trying again. If you want to improve, you must be willing to let go of your comfort box and focus on change.

With some inspirational quotes about change, you'll be able to see the benefits of change.

40
“If you learn from defeat, you haven't lost.”
– Zig Ziglar

The sad truth is that some things will not work out because they are not for us.

This is why it is good to be open-minded throughout the process of trying to succeed because you just might find a different passion that will lead you to a different destination.

Conclusion

Failure is such a sensitive topic and it comes with an emotional rollercoaster but changing your perspective on failure can help you achieve a lot through it.

First of all, you must never see yourself as a failure because you failed, or else you will indeed become one. Instead, see failure as a way to gain new insights and sharpen your skills and vision.

Whenever you feel down from failure, let these learning from failure quotes reenergize you and give you a new perspective about failure.

Learn to study your mistakes and always push yourself to try again, after all, success is not made on the first try but with consistency.

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Anastasia Belyh

Editor at FounderJar

Anastasia has been a professional blogger and researcher since 2014. She loves to perform in-depth software reviews to help software buyers make informed decisions when choosing project management software, CRM tools, website builders, and everything around growing a startup business.

Anastasia worked in management consulting and tech startups, so she has lots of experience in helping professionals choosing the right business software.