I'm so happy your failure drove you forward to bigger successes. Five years ago, when I was forced to quit my job as a physiotherapist due to injury, I turned to writing. Somehow, I managed to sell the first short story I submitted. This success drove me to write more, but the endless stream of rejections after that one win, is what drove me to improve my craft and become a far better writer. So basically, faiture was my success story.