“If we accept failure as part of life rather than something we try to avoid all the time, it can make a big difference in the way we choose to live our lives,” – Arianna Huffington, founder The Huffington Post.
Whether we like it or not, rejection is a part of life! Everyone, right from Steve Jobs to Elon Musk to Alibaba’s Jack Ma and even J. K. Rowling and Walt Disney have faced rejection, rather multiple rejections, in life. In fact most of the success stories in the world start with rejection and how it changed the person’s life.
So the important question is not how to not get rejected, but what do you do if you are rejected.
- Take it to your mind, not your heart.
Avoid reacting emotionally to any rejection. Of course being rejected hurts; but give yourself time to process your feelings instead of believing it to be the end of the world. Remind yourself it might just be the beginning of a new one.
- Know that it is not all about you.
Many times we think of rejection as a rejection of ‘us’, of who we are. But that’s not necessarily true. There are always multiple factors for things not coming together the way we would like, and our (perceived) shortcomings are not always the cause. It is important to be self aware and to think of why one got rejected; but don’t let a rejection eat at your confidence and belief in yourself.
- Focus on what you can learn from the experience.
It is always a good idea to think about what the reasons might be for getting rejected. Think about what you can learn from the experience, and what you can or should do differently. Treat it like a learning experience and let it be something that adds to your life, not detracts from it.
Rejection is not a sign of failure, it is more a proof of having lived a full life, markers of instances when you might have gone out of your comfort zone. And rejections are not permanent, however they might feel at the moment. It is up to you to get up, dust yourself and look for the next opportunity that you can convert to success.
And if it seems too difficult, just read up on the lives of every other successful person in the world – the stories of their rejection and eventual triumphs will surely provide you the inspiration!
