At age 23, Tina Fey was working at a YMCA.
At age 23, Oprah was fired from her first reporting job.
At age 24, Stephen King was working as a janitor and
living in a
trailer.
At age 27, Vincent Van Gogh
failed as a missionary and decided to go to art school.
At age 28, J.K. Rowling was a
suicidal single parent living on welfare.
At age 28, Wayne Coyne (from The
Flaming Lips) was a fry cook.
At age 30, Harrison Ford was a
carpenter.
At age 30, Martha Stewart was a
stockbroker.
At age 37, Ang Lee was a stay-at-home-dad
working odd jobs.
Julia Child released her first
cookbook at age 39, and got her own cooking show at age 51.
Vera Wang failed to make the
Olympic figure skating team, didn’t get the Editor-in-Chief position at Vogue,
and designed her first dress at age 40.
Stan Lee didn’t release his first
big comic book until he was 40.
Alan Rickman gave up his graphic
design career to pursue acting at age 42.
Samuel L. Jackson didn’t get his
first movie role until he was 46.
Morgan Freeman landed his first
MAJOR movie role at age 52.
Kathryn Bigelow only reached
international success when she made The Hurt Locker at age 57.
Grandma Moses didn’t begin her
painting career until age 76.
Louise Bourgeois didn’t become a
famous artist until she was 78.
Whatever your dream is, it is not
too late to achieve it. You aren’t a failure because you haven’t found fame and
fortune by the age of 21.
Hell, it’s okay if you don’t even
know what your dream is yet. Even if you’re flipping burgers, waiting tables or
answering phones today, you never know where you’ll end up tomorrow.
Never tell yourself you’re too
old to make it.
Never tell yourself you missed your chance.
Never tell yourself that you aren’t good enough.
You can do it. Whatever it is that sets your soul on fire.
