Success and failure go hand in hand.

“The things you are fired for are often the things that in later life you will be celebrated and given lifetime achievement awards for!” Francis Ford Coppola was canned for writing an “odd” and awkward script for the now legendary film Patton. The film was shelved, took years to make, and then went on to win an Oscar for best screenplay. Meanwhile, Coppola was working on The Godfather and was also on the verge of being canned from that film. He figures the glory from the Oscar saved his butt from being fired from The Godfather…which as we all know, went down in movie making history.

If I hadn’t been rejected from art school, I’d never have written my first book. If I’d gotten that gig with the big publishing house, I wouldn’t have met The Dalai Lama. If I’d stayed in my last company, I wouldn’t be sharing The Desire Map.

What’s “odd” is often revolutionary. (Change happens at the edges…beware of the majority.) Artistry rarely compromises; it just looks for a new place to express itself. “Good” will never, ever, ever be as deeply fine as giving it your all, come hell or high water.

Thank God for failure.

What failures are you grateful for?

Danielle LaPorte is the outspoken creator of The Desire Map, author of The Fire Starter Sessions (Random House/Crown), co-creator of Your Big Beautiful Book Plan, and soon-to-be publisher of DANIELLE Magazine, launching in early 2014. An inspirational speaker, former think tank exec, and business strategist, she writes weekly at DanielleLaPorte.com, where over a million visitors have gone for her straight-up advice—a site that’s been deemed “the best place on-line for kick-ass spirituality” and was named one of the “Top 100 Websites for Women” by Forbes.

You can also find her on Facebook, Pinterest, and Twitter @daniellelaporte.

*Featured image by Weinstock