Rejection sucks. There’s no way of getting around it. It is no fun to want something or someone and get a big thumbs down thrown your way. We’ve all been there. Still, rejection is not something anyone wants to get used to.
The thing is, sometimes we have to get used to being denied. We just have to look for the lesson in it. For me, one lesson came when I moved to Los Angeles with the mission of working for the Style Network. I applied for months before moving to L.A. I continued to apply for every job I thought I was qualified for at the network once I moved here. For various reasons, I was told no. Denied. Rejected. Ouch. I tried to make sure I learned something form each closed door. It’s easier to see in hindsight. That’s when the dots start to connect. I wasn’t as ready as I thought I was to work in network TV. There were still some things I had to learn. Had I been hired for the jobs I had interviewed for, there wouldn’t have been time for me to get up to speed. It would have been a total hit the ground running type of thing. Lucky me that those didn’t pan out, I would have probably fell on my face. Rejection was actually protection.
The thing is, I didn’t give up. I chose to see the denials as simply delays. I kept looking for things that I was suited for. As someone in love with all things fashion, beauty and style, I was determined to work for that network. Fast forward, two years later and my fourth interview with the network and I finally got the job! It was a perfect entry point for me to learn as I grew there. Here are a few lessons I learned from that experience:
- If you want it, don’t give up I recently read a blog by a woman who was nervous about not getting into medical school – for the second time. It is her dream to be a doctor. She was beginning to feel like if it didn’t work out this time, that maybe she should move on to something else. By the end of the post she had convinced herself that this was what she wanted and there was no other dream. When you feel that strongly about what you want – DON’T GIVE UP!
- Not now, doesn’t mean not ever Even when things aren’t happening on the timeline you expect, don’t trick yourself into believing that it will NEVER happen.
- If you believe in it, be willing to wait for it In my situation, two years was a long time to wait to work for a network I had dreamed of working for. It was worth the wait though. Through all the rejection, my determination paid off. There’s no reason to believe that what you want won’t happen. NONE. Keep working and give it time.
How do you deal with denial? What dreams are you thisclose to giving up on? Tell me in the comments.
