Rejection in any form is painful. After all, everyone wants to be loved and valued whether it involves a romantic relationship or friendship to searching for a new job or promotion. Those crushing feelings usually have many of us blaming ourselves for the reason, especially if we start noticing a pattern. In fact, it can be devastating enough to keep us from taking a chance at seeking that job, getting involved in a fresh relationship or socially connecting. However, you can reframe rejection and turn it into a valuable experience. This empowers you to overcome your fear and pursue the life you desire.
Why Rejection Can Be a Blessing in Disguise
Your first impulse may have you feeling sorry for yourself due to the failure. This is only natural and signs of being rejected. But allowing that rejection, even an insignificant one, to keep you questioning your self-worth is not healthy emotionally or productive for moving forward. A better way to look at rejection is also to realize it has value.
To begin with, it can make you stronger if you reframe rejection. You have an opportunity to step back and ask yourself a few hard questions about what may have brought it on. In case of an interpersonal relationship, were you needlessly jealous when taking a closer look, overly possessive, too controlling, too critical, constantly nagging or complaining or maybe always the one that has to be right and get your way? The whole point is that in order to grow and learn from that suffering caused by being rejected, then you need to be honest with yourself about your role that played a part in that equation.
Professionally, rejection can motivate and drive you toward obtaining more education or developing other skills that you may be weak with. You may find that a class on public speaking or computer programming or coding may add to your value as an employee or new hire.
Misinterpreting Rejection: Why Words Don’t Always Mean What They Seem
Sometimes, you can’t always take everything others say at face value. There are times when people speak prematurely meaning one thing, but the words come out differently. You may think that you explained the response clearly, but in reality it can sound hurtful or dismissive to those that are especially sensitive about rejection.
For example, you may ask a friend to an event or even on a date that replies with an immediate “no.” For certain sensitive people, this can be taken as rejection when there could be more to it than that since no explanation was given. The friend could have had other plans for that date, found the event boring or would be uncomfortable attending. However, you automatically assumed that friend wanted nothing to do with you when that may not be the reason. Though that friend should have thought to provide an explanation, it can slip someone’s mind when other things may be going on in their life emotionally. Why lock the door on that person and take it as a slight when you may be putting more into it?
No one likes to be rejected, but it happens to all of us at one time or another. The only way around it is to accept it happened and learn from the powerful lessons it taught when you reframe rejection. Hopefully, these tips to overcome rejection will give you that needed edge to better deal with it. The end result is using that pain as a life lesson to become a stronger, better individual that realizes your worth and the happiness you deserve.
Visit Beauty Cooks Kisses Blog for more helpful posts to better your life!