Mike Rowe Just Gave a Fan Some Stellar Advice About Dealing With RejectionRowe, the host of 'Dirty Jobs,' revealed he was in the final running to become host of Comedy Central's 'The Daily Show' before losing out -- not once, but twice -- to Craig Kilborn and then Jon Stewart.

ByGeoff Weiss

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Mike Rowe

Mike Rowe is famous for gamely trying his hand at strange and unusual occupations on his hit Discovery seriesDirty Jobs, but it turns out the TV host wasthis closeto landing one of the plushest gigs of all.

In aletter to a fannamed Tara on the subject of rejection, Rowe reveals that he was in the final running to become host of Comedy Central's《每日秀》before losing out -- not once, but twice -- to Craig Kilborn and then Jon Stewart

Stewart's emotional farewell has inspired Rowe to reflect. While rejection has been called both a motivator and a devastator, Rowe writes: "Seems to me that rejection is a reality in everyone's life, but it's a reality with no inherent power beyond the power we give it."

Related:Mike Rowe: Freelancing Embodies the Entrepreneurial Spirit

And given his own career tribulations -- Rowe has auditioned for several thousand gigs in his lifetime, he says, and has regularly been rejected several times per week -- sometimes this meaning is only evident in in hindsight.

"You can't separate your successes from your failures until you look back, and even then, there's not much point in putting each into a separate column. It's all a part of whatever path you're on. But don't misunderstand me," he writes, I don't believe that, everything happens for a reason.' I think we make our own luck, and the only real failure is the failure to try.'

For more wisdom from Rowe, including a peak at his tear-stained rejection letter from《每日秀》, check out the letter in full on hisofficial website.

Related:Barbara Corcoran: Great Entrepreneurs Don't Have Time to Mourn Rejection (VIDEO)

Wavy Line
Geoff Weiss

Former Staff Writer

Geoff Weiss is a former staff writer at Entrepreneur.com.

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