8 Inspirational Personalities Who Have Overcome the Odds ...

Barack Obama is the first black US president, an accomplishment that will forever be recorded on the history books. His background reveals an extremely non-political upbringing ranging from Hawaii, Indonesia and parts of the US. His election campaign was probably the most successful aspect of his journey as he managed to defeat Hillary Clinton, the leader and favorite by all accounts.

Armstrong is a leading sports cyclist who dominated his field for years. He is a four-time Tour de France winner, an accomplishment all the more noteworthy because of he achieved it after his battle with cancer. Despite being given less than a year to live, Lance Armstrong battled the disease with the determination of a fighter and came through.

Steve Jobs was so broke in college that he was forced to drop out. At 20, he started Apple in a garage with a friend. After making it a $2 billion dollar company he was fired and used the opportunity to start Pixar, the leading animation company. He was recalled to Apple to rejuvenate its performance and despite being diagnosed with pancreatic cancer has revolutionized the company and environment in which it exists.

Nelson Mandela joins this list of inspirational personalities who have overcome the odds by standing up against apartheid in South Africa. For his beliefs he spent 26 years in prison only to come out to a free country. He soon became its leader and continues to be an inspiration to many.

What makes Mahatma Gandhi so inspirational is that he united a nation and achieved astronomical results without any kind of violence. Unlike other famous revolutions, the Indian fight for freedom was one of civil disobedience, envisioned by this great man who lived by strong tenets of moderation and restriction.

Thanks to the movie ‘The Pursuit of Happyness’ we learned about the story of Chris Gardner, a single dad who was so poor he often times spent the night in the bathroom of a train station with his son. His strength of will and determination enabled him to become trainee in a stockbroker firm, an experience that ultimately enabled him to start his own million-dollar company.

Marie Curie is definitely one of the inspirational personalities who have overcome the odds because of her struggle through poverty, fighting against all hope to develop her education, and ultimately discovering radium and a mobile X-ray machine. She has received 2 Nobel prizes for her efforts, the first woman to do so.

John Nash accomplishments in the field of mathematics earned him a Nobel Prize but what made this extraordinary is that throughout his life he battled with mental illness, specifically schizophrenia.

These 8 inspirational personalities who have overcome the odds are just a few of the many more out there who have managed to achieve amazing feats starting from very little. Their stories are enough to inspire generations of others in their pursuit of greatness.

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