What does it take to turn rejection into real power? For Reshma Saujani, the answer was not winning—it was learning to lose. The founder of Girls Who Code and one of the most influential voices on women’s leadership has a career built not on a string of victories, but on a series of public, painful failures that she refused to let define her. Her story offers a radical reframing: sometimes, losing is the only way to find what you were truly meant to build.
The Three Rejections That Shaped Her
Before Saujani became a household name, she was obsessed with one credential: Yale Law School. She applied once. Rejected. She applied again. Rejected. She applied a third time. Rejected . “I finished college in three years, took the LSAT, and applied to my dream school. And… I didn’t get in,” she recalls. She went to Harvard for public policy, applied again. Didn’t get in. Again .
“I should have just gone out to change the world, but I couldn’t shake the idea of needing that one perfect credential,” she says . She eventually transferred to Yale, but when she graduated, she realized something: “All that time I spent chasing Yale was time I could have been using to actually make a difference in the world” .
The Political Losses That Opened a New Path
In 2010, Saujani made a bold move: she decided to run for U.S. Congress, challenging an 18-year incumbent in the Democratic primary . She was the first Indian-American woman to run for Congress—an outsider taking on a political establishment . On the night before Election Day, she called supporters with optimism. She received just 19 percent of the vote .
The loss was humiliating. She retreated to her windowless bedroom, wanting to stay under the covers for days. “I knew people were going to be celebrating my pain,” she says . Her boyfriend (now husband) bought her a dog, “just to give me some purpose in life and to get out of the bed and shower each day” .
She wrote a book, Women Who Don’t Wait in Line, about what the campaign taught her. Then she ran again—this time for New York City Public Advocate in 2013. She finished third with 15 percent of the vote . Another loss. Another public humiliation.
The Birth of Girls Who Code
But here is where the story turns. During her first congressional campaign, Saujani visited local schools and noticed something striking: computer science classrooms were packed with boys, not girls . The gender gap in tech was staring her in the face. “Our economy—our society—is losing out because we’re not raising our girls to be brave,” she realized .
Despite having no tech background, she founded Girls Who Code in 2012 . The organization grew from an informal summer program for a handful of girls into a national movement reaching nearly 600,000 girls through direct programming, with 14.6 billion engagements worldwide . Ninety-three percent of alumnae have declared or intend to declare a major or minor in computer science .
“I Would Never Have Founded Girls Who Code If I Hadn’t Lost”
The irony is not lost on Saujani. “I never would have founded Girls Who Code if I hadn’t lost the 2010 election,” she says . The losses forced her to stop chasing credentials and start chasing impact. “Chasing my dream, not a credential, was the best decision I ever made” .
Her 2016 TED Talk, “Teach girls bravery, not perfection,” has now been viewed more than 54 million times . The talk crystallized the core insight from her journey: girls are socialized to be perfect; boys are taught to be brave. The result is a “bravery deficit” that keeps women out of STEM fields, leadership roles, and positions of power .
What Makes Power Real
Saujani’s story offers a different model of power—not one built on accumulating credentials or winning elections, but one forged through repeated failure and the courage to keep showing up. “I feel like I’ve always somewhat embraced struggle and never been afraid of it,” she says. “It’s just made me stronger. It made me feel a little bit shameless in the sense I’m not afraid to ask for things and I’m not afraid to lose. That doesn’t mean it doesn’t hurt, but it doesn’t break me” .
Today, Saujani leads Moms First (formerly Marshall Plan for Moms), advocating for paid leave, affordable childcare, and structural changes for working mothers . She serves on the boards of Harvard University, the International Rescue Committee, and the Economic Club of New York . She has been named one of Fortune’s World’s Greatest Leaders and one of Forbes’ Most Powerful Women Changing the World .
The Bottom Line
Reshma Saujani did not win her way to power. She lost—publicly, repeatedly, painfully. And then she got back up, each time with more clarity about what she was meant to build. Her journey offers a quiet challenge to anyone waiting for permission, a perfect resume, or a guaranteed win: real power does not come from never failing. It comes from being brave enough to fail, and wise enough to build something from the wreckage.
FAQ:
Q: What is Reshma Saujani best known for?
A: She is the founder of Girls Who Code, a nonprofit working to close the gender gap in technology, and the author of Brave, Not Perfect and Women Who Don’t Wait in Line . Her TED Talk “Teach girls bravery, not perfection” has over 54 million views .
Q: How many times did she run for political office?
A: She ran twice—for U.S. Congress in 2010 and for New York City Public Advocate in 2013. She lost both campaigns .
Q: What is the core message of “bravery, not perfection”?
A: Saujani argues that girls are socialized to be perfect while boys are taught to be brave. This “bravery deficit” holds women back from taking risks, pursuing leadership roles, and entering fields like technology. She advocates teaching girls to embrace imperfection and failure .
Q: What is she working on now?
A: Saujani is the founder and CEO of Moms First, an organization advocating for paid family leave, affordable childcare, and structural changes to support working mothers.
