Why Rejection Is Beneficial To Your Career

Let’s be real for a second; nobody likes to get rejected. It’s not a good feeling, but it’s necessary for your personal growth and to excel in your career.

Take it from me: I started my career as a sales development representative. I was emailing and calling thousands of leads per month, trying to schedule a meeting to sell them a product. I got rejected more times than I could count. Not only while selling but also during the job-seeking process as a fresh grad. Nobody told me to take the referral route instead of the cold-applying route, but that’s a story for another day. 

The reason many of us hate rejection is because we either:

• Take it personally and internalize it as something being wrong with us  
• It makes us uncomfortable

However, in this uncomfortability, there is room for growth. 

Getting comfortable with rejection is necessary as an employee and a business owner. As an employee, that rejection is oftentimes rerouting you to a bigger and better opportunity. Even as I write this, I’m getting tested with rejection after rejection. Yet still, I stand firm in knowing better is on the way. 

Without the lows, you can’t appreciate the highs and be grateful for the great moments.

As a business owner, there will be countless times partnerships will get turned down and/or you won’t get that grant you so desperately wanted. However, in the process, you will build resilience and patience even while your faith is being tested; this is the process it takes to see if what you say you want is what you really want. 

3 Tips To Grow Your Faith Through Rejection

Create a brag book.

Write down every great thing someone has said about any of the work you’ve produced, your work ethic, personality, etc. This can be comments from old managers, clients, etc. This will do you justice when you begin to doubt yourself and your capabilities. You can create this on Google Docs or get artsy on Canva.

Get spiritual.

I don’t know your religious beliefs, nor do I want to push anything on you, but I will say God always has your back. He will make things happen even better than you imagined. Pray about it, turn to a Bible plan, talk to whatever higher being you believe in about your current situation, and I promise you’ll feel better. Sometimes, you must let those emotions out and find faith in your higher power.

Surround yourself with the right people.

Sometimes, you will need to be picked up by friends when you’re feeling down. Your real friends will become your family and be there for you when facing these rejections. Lean on them for support. Don’t feel like you have to take it on alone.

The older you become, the more grateful you’ll be for those failures and reroutes that led you to where you are today. It’s only in retrospect when things make sense. I remember while being a sales rep, I hated my life, and now I couldn’t be more grateful to have started my career in sales because I’m reminded that if I can handle daily rejection, I can weather any storm that is to come, and you can too! 

If you're facing uphill battles like myself, have faith that better days are coming. The storm can only last so long.