Rejection Is Only Temporary

‘Dear Megan, thank you for expressing interest in us. Although we are impressed with your background and experience, we have decided to pursue other applicants who more closely fit our criteria for this position. Best of luck with your future job endeavors.’

They all sound the same.

I sat in my study room staring at this e-mail, this e-mail that seemed all too familiar now. This slew of sentences that was meant to sound respectful, but we all know what the main point is.

You’re rejected.

You’re not good enough.

Rejection can honestly surround us all. In the brightest streets and in the confines of our own minds, we are rejected daily. Rejected by a boy or girl, rejected by a friend, rejected from a job, rejected from a school, rejected from a family member. Credit cards get rejected and so do passport photos. Yet we are told constantly to stay positive because someone, something, somewhere is made for you.

But what if I really am rejected?

I mean, this must have been the 15 th e-mail I got that said this if it wasn’t the first. I’m so used to hearing “no” that “yes” seems like a foreign word. It’s so hard to go day-to- day getting told “No” or “Maybe later” or “We regret to inform you.” It’s so hard to know that around any corner stands the chance of being rejected.

It’s so hard to move on from past rejections knowing the future only holds more. Because rejection feels like hitting a concrete wall, and concrete walls hurt. To slam into a concrete wall over and over, to keep bruising the same bruises over and over, to continually end up hurt over and over really hurts. So where do we draw the line?

When do we stop ourselves from running full speed into the concrete wall? When do we allow ourselves to stop being destroyed by the biggest, most degrading monster of all? When do we tell ourselves that we aren’t rejected when we have the bruises to prove it?

I don’t have the answer, but I really wish I did. Instead, I feel as though I’m trudging through quicksand, sinking instead of moving forward. It’s always the same thing, two steps forward and three steps back. It’s so hard to not take rejection personally when the intent is to personally tell you no. It’s always the same thing, just try harder, try next time, there’s always tomorrow.

There’s always tomorrow.

Granted, tomorrow isn’t guaranteed for anyone, but in the grand scheme of things, there is always a tomorrow. Tomorrow could start in 24 hours or tomorrow could start in five minutes. Tomorrow holds promise, tomorrow holds hope, tomorrow holds the chance of not being rejected. Because someone, something, somewhere is made for you.

When I learn the secret of not letting rejection sting like salt on a wound, I’ll be sure to share it with you exclusively. But for now, I’m learning about tomorrow. I’m learning how to welcome tomorrow with open arms, with my head up and a go- getter attitude.

Maybe today wasn’t my day and maybe this week wasn’t my week, but there’s promise in the future. The unknown can be one of the most beautiful things out there because it holds so much uncertainty, so many dreams and so many chances to not be rejected.

Rejection is temporary, but the future is infinite.