Does bad credit rating signal an end of my world of credit cards?

Whether it’s due to bad spending habits or due to plain carelessness, a lot of people do end up earning a bad credit rating in the initial few years of their credit card usage. Well, credit cards are not the only way that you earn a bad credit rating. You could also earn a bad credit rating because of defaulting on your mortgage payments, defaulting on your car loan payments etc.

The question is that once you have earned a bad credit rating, is that it for you? Does that mean that you cannot get a credit card (or another credit card)? Isn’t there a way out?