Is it really necessary to taste failure before success ?

Never believed in words like "failure is first step to success" .
and often questioned myself ---Is it really necessary to taste failure before success ?

During campus placements , friends of mine were too busy preparing their cv's for interview filling up with their strengths ,weaknesses & objectives . For the sake of impressing the interviewee , I have written big stories but couldn't figure out my real strengths and weaknesses. Things went fine and I got placement in a reputed company or I can say an important phase of my life has begun .

Year(2007-2008) was full of trauma and professional setbacks because of various reasons , I was in very bad shape and sailing in troubled waters . Messed up everything and couldn't pull back things. people around me criticised my attitude for my shortfall . I became more introspective and resilient. I shared my feelings with a close pal and he told me "calm seas can never make a skillful sailor" . I understood that criticism is as inevitable as our breathe, I have learnt to accept constructive criticism .
I felt that when we are in hostile environment , our strength & weakness are exposed . I realized my strengths, it's adversity/failure that has taught me a lesson rather than success.
All these days I was thinking Failure as an enemy to success but in my opinion FAILURE is a friend on road to success.

p.s. The close pal, I refered to in this post is myself ;-) . I have a sequel for this post "is success dangerous ?"