Everyone experiences failure at some point in their lives. 

It’s something that we all experience at multiple points in our lives. Nobody is perfect and so no-one can get through life without making mistakes and failing in some way. Failure is nothing to be ashamed of and is something that we can all grow from. Often failures can be one of the best lessons learned. We have created this list of fifteen failure quotes to help you realise you’re not alone in your failure and that we all go through some kind of failure at some point. The key is learning to grow from your failures and come out shining on the other side.

A Bit About Failure Quotes

Failure quotes are great to act as a reminder that everybody goes through failures and you are not alone when you fail. So what exactly is failure and what can be classes as a failure? How do failures affect us and why? This section will explore just that.

​What is failure?

According to dictionary.com, failure is an act or instance of failing or proving unsuccessful, also meaning a lack of success. This means that failure occurs when you have experiences some form of set back or something has not quite gone right for you.

​How does failure impact us?

Failure can often make us feel helpless and can get in the way of us achieving our goals and dreams. The key to succeeding in life is not letting failure stop you from chasing after you goals and dreams. Instead, use failure as a lesson and change the way you approach the task that you’re trying to do based on what you failed on the last time.

​Our List of Fifteen Failure Quotes

We have curated this list of some of the best failure quotes from various sources. These quotes should make you feel inspired and will act as a reminder that you are not alone – we all fail all the time. It’s human nature to experience failures along the path to success.

1. “What matters is this: Being fearless of failure arms you to break the rules. In doing so, you may change the culture and just possibly, for a moment, change life itself.” —Malcolm Mclaren

You should never be afraid of failure. Failure is inevitable and everyone experiences some kind of failure. It happens all the time. However, failure can often be a great life lesson or can lead to something even greater.

2. “I can accept failure, everyone fails at something. But I can’t accept not trying.” —Michael Jordan

As previously mentioned, everyone experiences failure in something. But failure only comes if you’re trying at something. You should never punish yourself for failing, because at least you’re trying to do something.

3. “The greatest glory in living lies is not in never falling, but in rising every time we fall.” —Ralph Waldo Emerson

We should always rise every time we fall because giving in to failure should never be an option. Everybody falls at some point and we all have down days, but we should all always get back up and keep fighting. After all, we only live once.

4. “If you’re not failing every now and again, it’s a sign you’re not doing anything very innovative.” —Woody Allen

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People who do nothing at all can avoid failure because they’re not even trying to accomplish anything. If you’re a person who is striving to accomplish things, then you should expect failure because nothing great was ever accomplished without a few failures along the way.

5. “I don’t believe in failure. It is not failure if you enjoyed the process.” —Oprah Winfrey

How can you call something a failure if you had fun along the way? As long as you’re continuously having fun, you haven’t failed. We all only live once and life should be about enjoying every moment, including those moments when you feel like you’ve failed.

6. “We’re born with success. It is only others who point out our failures, and what they attribute to us as failure.” —Whoopi Goldberg

We all have the ability to succeed. One of the keys of life is not allowing other people to point out your failures, and if they do, don’t listen to them. As long as you’re progressing and making an effort in achieving what you want, you’re already doing better than all of those people who aren’t trying at all.

7. “I have not failed. I’ve just found 10,000 ways that won’t work.” —Thomas A. Edison

Don’t ever allow failure to win. It doesn’t matter how many tries it takes for you to achieve your goals, the key is not giving up no matter how many times you get knocked down. Regardless of what it is you’re tying to achieve, failure is inevitable and you will always come across struggles. Don’t let your failures knock your determination to succeed.

8. “It is impossible to live without failing at something, unless you live so cautiously that you might as well not have lived at all, in which case you have failed by default.” —J. K. Rowling

We all, every single one of us, only live once. That is why we should always live our lives doing everything that we want to. Who cares if we hit a few bumps in the road along the way? As long as you’re having fun and doing things you enjoy, you haven’t failed, you’re winning at life.

9. “I’ve probably earned the right to screw up a few times. I don’t want the fear of failure to stop me from doing what I really care about.” —Emma Watson

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Never allow failure to get in the way of you getting what you want. We all have dreams and goals that we wish to achieve, and we will all experience some sort of failure in the journey to achieving them. Don’t be afraid to fail. If you’re not failing, you’re not doing anything at all.

10. “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

Choose to live your life rather than playing it safe. You may fail in any experience, but if you fear failure, you’ll never experience anything at all. To live a great life is to live life without being afraid of failure and continuing to experience new things.

11. “If you set your goals ridiculously high and it’s a failure, you will fail above everyone else’s success.” —James Cameron

Credit: fbaforward.com

No goal or dream is ever too big. Sure, you may experience some failures along the way, but everyone has the ability to achieve great things if you only put your mind to it and work hard. Don’t let fear of failure ever get in the way of you achieving your dreams.

12. “I was afraid of being a failure, of not having the best time or of being chicken. But every year I get older I think, What was I fearing last year? You forget. And then you move on.” —Sandra Bullock

We all have fears, it’s human nature, but we should never fear failure. Failure is often a gift in disguise. It can teach us things, build our character and make us stronger as we learn to face new challenges with a different approach.

13. “Failure doesn’t kill you… it increases your desire to make something happen.” —Kevin Costner

When we get knocked down, it’s important that we use that set back to get back up again and try harder. Goals are never unachievable, and although we may run into some difficulties along the way, failure is never final.

14. “You don’t go into anything contemplating failure, because if you did, you wouldn’t make it.” —Simon Cowell

If we constantly thought we were going to fail at every new thing we tried, we would never try anything new. Believe in yourself. If failure happens, it happens. The key is getting back up and fighting back against failure. Never let failure be the final step.

15. “If you learn from defeat, you haven’t really lost.” —Zig Ziglar

Credit: emilysquotes.com

We can all learn from our failures and set backs. That’s what they’re there for. If we never made mistakes, we would never learn and have motivation to strive towards bigger goals. When you get knocked down, get back up again and use the experience as a lesson. Change the way you approach the task the next time round based on what set you back. Failures are all part of the journey to success.

Did you enjoy this list of failure quotes?

We hope you enjoyed this list of failure quotes. Do you know any other failure quotes that you think should be on this lis? We would love to hear them! Please leave us a comment in the comment section below.

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