At twenty-nine he was defeated in his bid to become house speaker. Two years later he lost a bid for elector. By thirty-five, he had been defeated twice while running for Congress. At thirty-nine (after a brief term in Congress) he lost his reelection bid.

At forty-one, his four-year-old son died. At forty-two, he was rejected as a prospective land officer. At forty-five, he ran for the Senate and lost. At forty-seven, he lost the vice presidential nomination. At forty-nine, he ran for Senate again - and lost again...

The man in question? Abraham Lincoln.

Failures of various kinds can be either roadblocks or stepping stones.  Our choice.