Reframing Rejection: Creating Opportunity

Who enjoys rejection?.....anyone?...[Cue the crickets.]

Didn’t think so. For most people, this is when your inner critic that has been sitting in the cheap seats of your brain rushes the stage.

“I’m not qualified enough.”

“They don’t like me.”

“I should have answered the questions better.”

We question everything that might have gone wrong and think about what could have been. We are reluctant to try again because we assume the same rejection with find us again and again. It feels like a waste.

It doesn’t have to be. The only time rejection is a waste is when you don’t learn anything and keep doing the same thing that got you to “no.”

Insanity: doing the same thing over and over again and expecting different results. ~Albert Einstein

It can be scary to be direct and open yourself up to the no. Many people avoid following up or being assertive because they don’t want to come off as desperate or aggressive. Just as noone likes a pushy salesman, they also don’t like a passive applicant lurking in the shadows waiting and hoping for a yes, but avoiding a no. This just leads to a more drawn out awkward rejection.

When you are courageous enough to receive and accept a clear no, you are free to put it behind you and move on to your next opportunity. And hopefully you have new information and feedback that will get you the yes next time.

Are you willing to bust through the no’s to get to your yes?

In fact, once your no-phobia is under control, rejection can actually become an opportunity. If you can emotionally detach yourself from the results, you create a mindset of nonjudgement and curiosity and get a lot of knowledge and information for future use.

-Ask questions about what company or department’s needs are.

-Ask what they saw as your weaknesses, so you can grow and be a better applicant.

-Build a strong connection that may serve you down the line when a different door opens up.

Careers and jobs of value are usually the product of grit and determination. There may be a lot of no’s standing in front of your YES.