Dear Steemers,
Today, I met my past.
And I discovered something you will enjoy. It is what I found out a couple of years ago while reading blogs. I don't remember who talked about it first, or what the article was about...
But a part of me was changed.
In fact, it is the reason I started blogging.
Because I remember this lady from that article. She was somewhat successful and her picture captured my attention.
Her name is C.J. Walker and here she is:
And let me tell you, this lady could have...
Because:
First, from what I remember, she was selling hair products door-to-door.
I just know she was successful, so I decided to check her out.
And here's what I found:
Walker was born in Louisiana.
Poor.
On a farm.
In 1865.
Now this wasn't a good time especially if you are:
- A woman
- African American
Add to that, there were plenty of other challenges.
Walker's parents were slaves.
Then she lost her mom at the age of 5.
Two years later, her dad passed away.
At the age of 7, she was an orphan.
Age 10, started working.
At 14, married.
And mother at 17.
Then a widow at 20.
Jeez.
Life was never easy for her. And to support her daughter, she worked several hours long, picking cottons, to earn $2 a day.
And if you thought you had it rough, let me tell you:
At the age of 24, Walker developed a condition that made her hairs weak.
She started balding.
Can you imagine?
Having gone through all this, the last thing you want is to lose your hairs.
She faced it all.
And in times like this, all that matters is your courage, isn't it?
Perhaps your determination.
Then your willpower.
And it looked like Walker had it in her.
And so she looked for a solution to fix this problem. First, she started by observing the possible solutions out there.
And next, she discovered what was wrong with these solutions.
Then, like an entrepreneur, she invented her own solution, which later turned into a hair product.
Her. Own. Hair. Product.
Amazing, isn't it?
Yet Walker never had any much money.
No big budget to promote.
So she looked beyond that....
And did what most never do:
Imagine the number of times she knocked on those doors.
The number of times she was rejected?
Even insulted?
And I am betting even threatened back in those days.
But that never stopped her.
She knocked one door after the another.
Took rejections.
Insults.
And threats.
Yet kept moving...
To the point that she sold more hair products than possible...
And setup her own factories.
One after the another.
Which made her the:
Here's Walker again:
What a story, isn't it?
She made a million bucks.
All by herself.
Held her head high...
Moved forward despite those battles...
Threw her past behind...
And created newer opportunities.
All while smiling.
As I think about it, I am reminded of my mother.
Both faced their fears.
Fought their challenges.
And rewrote their destiny.
Like many wonderful women in this world, they truly are:
Which brings me to the point:
We should have absolutely NO excuse for failure...
Because if we have to strive for something in life, let's strive for success.
Yeah, sure, failure is part of life.
We all fail.
Heck, I have failed many times.
I failed to please people.
Failed to write... and was called illiterate.
Failed to work on projects...
Failed to scale my operations....
And failed at hundreds of things...
But you know what?
It isn't the failure that holds us back:
That truly matters.
Most cling onto failures for a lifetime.
In fact the other day, a friend said his dad was depressed since 2000.
Reason?
Business partner cheated.
No one said it's easy...
But get up.
Look up.
And keep walking.
That's all there is to life. And this is the only message I wish to share with you...
Because if you ever felt life was unfair to you, and things are not working out as you once wished, while hoping for a change...
Then remember these four words:
Now is the time....
To change.
To face fears.
To work harder.
And to knock on those doors.
With this, I hope and wish you enjoy these valuable lessons.
I hope and wish you achieve everything you wished for.
And I hope and wish you will chase your dreams now.
With a BIG smile on your face....
Like I am having one right now writing this article, with fever and eye infection by my side...
Cheers,
Sid
This post received a 45% upvote from @randowhale thanks to @sidwrites! For more information, click here!
Very inspirational story. Thank you for sharing
I am glad you liked it! :)
Very nice.
Thank you!
Good story to read on a beautiful Sunday...thanks for sharing
I've always thought that failure is just another opportunity to succeed the next time, C. J. Walker is an inspiration, dealt a poor hand and just got on with, but then excelled and proved life and the haters wrong. Thanks for posting!
Thank you so much for sharing this inspiring story with us. It will definitely be helpful to some people w ho feel like they are down on their luck and need to start feeling more uplifted and happy with what they have in life. Do you turn to this story often when you need a smile on your face? Your idea that we should have absolutely no excuse for failure is definitely an uplifting sentiment! Followed :)
UHHH IM CRYING!!!!! @sidwrites
how did you even come by this story
Really inspired thanks for sharing :)
Amazing article.. giving an upvote and following you so that i can get to read more of your articles :)
Amazing stroy and very inspiring!
Love reading such stuff! @sidwrites ( just realized hadn't followed you) Followed! :P
Thank you for your comment.
I am glad to know you loved it!
Following you back... on a Friday morning, at 5 am, and before Rahu Kaal...
I am excited!
Hahahaha!
Awesome post ! Well done my friend ! Upped and resteemed ! 👍👍👍
What an inspiration!
You motivator you @sidwrites !
Great post. I wish I had her fortitude! What a woman. I'd never heard about her before, Even when I lived in New Orleans.
Great article! I have a BIG smile on my face now! Thanks a lot for sharing! ;D
I am happy to see you growing like a rocket now! Lets stay in contact.
Thank you for upvoting my photo. If you like that one you may like my other ones. https://steemit.com/@readallaboutit
I read this story before! This is a great post! :)
Feel better bud, YOU INSPIRED ME JUST NOW , ITS AMAZING how words have such an impact like a spell, failure is part of the process of success, when u Fail you need to dissect the positive information , where u can learn from it, use that to better yourself. If u fail again repeat n keep moving forward. It's how you confront failure. If we didn't fail we wouldn't learn. Stay positive , that's "THE BEAUTIFUL STRUGGLE®" aspire to inspire , stay blessed. I can't wait to read another one of your stories. Truly inspired, motivated me, as well as changing my mind set just now. Thank you. ♥️🙏👌🏻
That's wonderful! It's excellent writing.
Upvote for you