And I didn't realizeitatthetime, buthewasjustredefiningfailureforme.
Failurebecameaboutnottrying, nottheoutcome.
Goingthroughlife, theonlyfailurethat I everfeelthat I'vehadisif I don't try.
Sothatwas a realgiftthathegaveme.
I wantedtobe a lawyer, and I'm a terribletesttaker.
After I basicallybombedtheLSAT, I triedoutatDisneyWorldtobegoofy.
Andyouhavetobe 5'8", and I'm only 5'6", so I'm theheightof a chipmunk.
Whichwaslike, I guessyoucouldsay, sortoffelt a littlebitlikerockbottom.
I wasn't goingtobe a lawyer, and I wastooshorttobegoofy.
Therewas a momentwhen I wassellingfaxmachinesdoor-to-door, and I wasconstantlybeingescortedoutofbuildings.
Orsometimespeoplewouldripupmybusinesscardinmyface, whichwas a typicaloccurrence.
Andoneday I pulledoffthesideoftheroad, and I literallythought,
I'm inthewrongmovie.
Like, thisisnotmylife.
Cut, calledthedirector, calledtheproducer.
Howdidthishappen? Thisisnotsupposedtobemylife.
I wenthomethatdayandwroteinmyapartment, inmynotebook, whatmystrengthswere.
Andtheonlythingbasicallyinthestrengthcolumnthat I wassureaboutwassales.
And I said, okay, whatcan I dowiththat?
And I endedupwriting, I wanttoinvent a productthat I canselltomillionsofpeoplethatwillmakethemfeelbetter.
Anditwastwoyearslaterthat I cutthefeetoutofcontrol-toppantyhosetowearwhitepantsto a party.
I wentonlineandlookedupmanufacturersthatmadeundergarmentsandhosiery-typeproducts.
And I calledthemonthephoneanddidn't getanywhere.
Andeventually I took a weekoffofworkanddrovearoundNorthCarolinabeggingallofthesemen, ironically, thatweremakingourundergarmentstohelptrytomakethisnewtypeofundergarment.
I wentinunannounced. I hadnoappointment.
Soyoucanimaginehowthatwent.
Mostofthemescortedmeoutandsaid, goodluck.
I got a phonecallabouttwoweekslaterfromoneofthemanufacturerowners, andhesaid, Sarah, I havedecidedtohelpmakeyourcrazyidea.
I ranitbymythreedaughtersatthedinnertable, andtheytoldme I shouldgiveyou a shot.
I cameupwiththenameSpanxbecauseitwasallabouttherear.
Andsoitkindofmadeyourmindwander.
Nobodyeverforgotit.
And I changedtheKStoan X atthelastminutebecause I knewthatmade-upwordswereeasiertotrademark.
Thefirstbigaccountthat I gotwasNeimanMarcus, and I calledthemonthephone.
And I spentabout a weekcallingthebuyerandjustkeptgettingheransweringmachine.
But I knewfrommyfaxmachinesellingdays, don't leave a message.
And I waitedtill I got a humanonthephone, and I said, thisisSarahBlakely. I'veinvented a productthat's goingtochangethewayyourcustomerswearclothes.