❌ How To Handle Rejections?

Rejections are quite interesting. How we deal with them can depend on if we are a ‘half-full’ or ‘half-empty’ type of person.

I recently listened to some TEDx talks by Simon Sinek and Jia Jiang on leadership and rejection, and it was a great opportunity to reflect on some of the rejections I have faced so far.

One rejection that stands out was when I asked someone to give me a trial run as a writer for them late last summer. This was before I started this newsletter, posted on LinkedIn, or took this whole writing business seriously. And unsurprisingly, I was rejected.

On reflection, that rejection was a key catalyst for my thoughts and my want to try this whole thing out seriously. I was underqualified when I applied, had no portfolio of work, and didn’t know what I was doing. Now shooting your shot is great, but you have to be able to back it up - which I hadn’t.

Fast forward six months, I stayed in touch with the client and started my newsletter and LinkedIn posts. And four months later, the client reached out to me, willing to do a trial run to work together. I won’t lie; the entire process has taken nearly a year. However, if I hadn’t been rejected, I wouldn’t be in the position I am today.

Reflecting on this highlighted a few key points:

• A rejection isn’t actually a ‘no’. It’s simply you aren’t good enough for X job YET.

• Use rejection to fuel your ambitions. It’s easy to move on and not make any improvements, but that means you are setting yourself up to be rejected again.

• Stay visible to clients who rejected you - BUILD IN PUBLIC

  • In my case, I was posting on LinkedIn - a platform they frequent, and I stayed in touch with them via messages. I recommend creating a Client CRM to revisit old clients every so often. You never know when they might need you.

• Be tenacious. Persevere and don’t give up.

One of the key points I picked up from Jia’s TEDx was that ‘handling rejection is a muscle’. I couldn’t agree more. And like a muscle, the more we ‘train’ or get better at handling rejections, the more we grow in all spheres of life.

Rejection is also a numbers game. They can be hard in the moment but try not to dwell on it.

In an effort to grow my business over the last few months, I have spent time messaging/emailing countless potential clients, and I have had all sorts of experiences. Most of them have been rejections. However, I managed to land a few Yeses because I was getting better at all aspects of my business and increasing my luck surface area. Every rejection is a learning opportunity.

I am keen to hear how you tackle rejection and take away different messages. Do hit reply and let me know!

P.S. I have got some good news!
Recommendations will be back from next week - I know a few of you have messaged in and asked 🙂