A mythological bird that fascinates us is the PHOENIX; a bird that is as large as an
eagle, with brilliant scarlet and gold feathers. It is said to rise from the ashes of its
predecessor and then lives for the next 500 years.
Everybody is familiar with the idea of Phoenix symbolism It symbolizes rebirth and
eternity and is also representative of hope. Phoenix also denotes ability to face adversities
and to come out from them stronger. Some very famous people displayed phoenix like
characteristics in their lives.
Actor Amitabh Bachchan is known for his tall presence on Indian celluloid screens. If we
call him a master of comebacks, it won’t be wrong. He is known for his baritone voice but
fact is that his voice was once rejected by the All India Radio. He gave 12-13 successive
flop movies before his film Zanzeer became a hit. Even in his late career, he struggled
financially and once seemed to have become irrelevant in films. In year 2000 he was
diagnosed with Hepatitis and liver cirrhosis and since then he has been living with only
25% of a normal liver. But who can see through these hardships and pains when you see
Amitabh Bachchan in those TV commercials and KBC shows ?
Like a Phoenix he rose from the ashes, overcame all adversities and persevered and even today his larger than
life presence mesmerizes one and all.
Jack Ma of Chinese Ecommerce Giant, “Alibaba” was worth 29 billion dollars a few years
ago. He grew up poor, failed his University-entrance exam twice, and was rejected from
dozens of jobs. Famously, he was the only one rejected out of 24 applicants for a job with
KFC in China. He tried to study business and, in the process, got rejected by Haward
Business School 10 times. But then he built a company so huge that it’s IPO of $150 billion
was the largest for a US listed company at that point of time and he became the richest
in China.
Failure is fundamental to our growth. If we can learn from what went wrong and why, we
know what to avoid or alter in the future to avoid a repeat. Walt Disney, the famous
founder of Disney World was once fired from a newspaper and was told that he lacked
creativity. Steve Jobs was fired from Apple when he was in his 30s and he re-joined it only
as a result of his new company getting acquired by Apple and then he went on to change
the course for this company and made it a premium name worldwide.
Life goes in circles. Sometimes we are at peak and then sometimes we face pitfalls. How
a person faces adversitiesmakes the true difference. It is this thing which decides whether
one succumbs against odds or rises as a phoenix.
“Everyone can rise above their circumstances and achieve success if they are dedicated to
and passionate about what they do.” – Nelson Mandela
