I’d be lying if I said I’d experienced a lot of rejection in my life. I’ve probably experienced a relatively reasonable amount in the grand scheme of things. Nevertheless, the times it has happened, I remember feeling utterly deflated, introspective and would proceed to take apart aspects of my personality that led to my dismissal bid to prevent it ever happening again.

Over the years I’ve discovered that although sometimes the fault may lie with you and you can continue to “change” or “improve” yourself until you become an inoffensive shadow of your former self (which I think is no way to live), rejection isn’t the end of the world.

In the moment it’s difficult to see past the fact that someone; whether an employer or love interest, didn’t want to start/continue a relationship with you. However, the universe could ultimately be preparing you for much bigger and better things. I know this sounds like something people tell you simply to make you feel better but trust me it carries weight.

In her article, Marianne Power used Anna Wintour, editor of US Vogue, as the prime example of taking a rejection and turning it into something far more positive. Anna Wintour admitted that she was once fired while working for Harper’s Bazaar. She said it was one of the best things that ever happened to her and suggested to the group of young aspiring fashion editors that she was addressing, to all get fired at some point as it was a great learning experience.

Startling and rather unconventional advice but when you really stop and think about it, it makes sense. Few people achieve success without experiencing a number of failures along the way that they are able to learn valuable lessons from. “Successful people learn to thrive on knockbacks and harness the power of no.”

In the city, investment bankers, hedge fund managers and other high powered jobs are sometimes passed up for promotion unless they’ve experienced some sort of setback. Why? Because a fall from grace is usually the only way to eliminate the bravado and the feeling of invincibility that comes with having never failed at anything.

Take Elvis Presley for instance. Back in 1954 he was kicked out of the Grand Ole Opry and told to stick to his day job driving trucks. Winston Churchill failed the Royal Military entrance exams twice and Walt Disney was fired for lack of imagination. Margaret Mitchell’s Gone With the Wind was rejected by 38 publishers before it finally got accepted. Similarly, J.K. Rowling was sacked from her job as a secretary for “daydreaming”. She then had Harry Potter turned down by a dozen publishers and it was only printed after one publisher’s eight year old daughter begged her father to do so.



Had the aforementioned notable names in history accepted their fate and given up on their dreams, the world would be a different place. I think it’s crucial to fight for what you want and rejection is just part of the course. In certain circumstances, rejection can actually help you to focus whilst making you even more determined to prove your critics wrong.

Rejection is harrowing and is one of the worst pains someone can go through. However sometimes we get rejected because we’re not yet up to the task at hand. The key is to be wise enough to accept when this is the case. Be honest with yourself and then put your efforts into improving for yourself. Giving up is not an option. For if you give up, you rob yourself of potential success and learning a new life lesson.

The simple act of someone saying “no” can hurt more than the moment warrants. But if you can harness that emotion and channel it into something positive such as an unrelenting resolve to move on, succeed and be happy, then you’ll be a winner in the end.