How To Make Rejection Work For You

by Elizabeth Jennings | Sep 12, 2019 | INSPIRATION

Okay, so now if you’re like me or how I would say I used to be, I’m still working through these things. Rejection is not something that I have enjoyed. I don’t think most people enjoy rejection, but it wasn’t something that I necessarily feared, but it definitely isn’t something that I wanted to happen. So sometimes I would avoid certain situations just because I had the fear of being rejected. So I didn’t even put myself out there. I wouldn’t even try.

But I want to talk about how you can use rejection to your advantage especially as an entrepreneur, which is what I am, and using rejection as your revenge. Now, as you may or may not know, I am an entrepreneur specifically in the beauty industry and I have been since 2008 when I started my business years ago. I didn’t really start my business because I felt like I needed to be an entrepreneur and this was what I really wanted to do. I did want more freedom. I definitely wanted to get out of the legal field, which I was in for 12 years prior to becoming somebody in the field of beauty and relaxation. But I was rejected a number of times, because when I started my career as a certified eyelash extension stylist where I was located, there were not many people doing what I was doing.

I was one of the first in the state and I applied at many different businesses; salons and spas; wanting to be an employee and wanting to have this as what I provided on their service menu. But it wasn’t something that people gave me the opportunity to do. So I was rejected a number of times.

So let’s talk about rejection a little bit. When you’re rejected, whether it’s in business and personal situations whether you got ghosted by a friend. And if you don’t know what ghosted means, it means somebody that you were communicating with and it was all of a sudden, it’s like they dropped off the face of the planet because they stop messaging you, they stop calling you, they stop returning your calls. You, you know, reach out to them. You don’t hear from them anymore. You get ghosted by a significant other, somebody you were dating, and you were rejected.

Somebody at some organization, some person, whatever it is, you have extended yourself to, they say, “Nah, I’m good.” The rejection is not so much you personally, so do not take it personally, but you have to be able to face it. Once you’re able to face it, then you can learn from that experience. But if you can’t face it, then you’ll never learn from it. But when you’re rejected, you will gain knowledge from that experience. And then you’ll know what to look out for if you have similar experiences in the present, future or in the further future.

So being rejected is something that can help you and it’s something that you can gain a lot of knowledge from. And it’s honestly for your good. Because what I have learned in a spiritual sense was that, oh, sometimes we don’t see the full spectrum, we don’t see the full picture. And it’s God’s way of protecting you when he will allow either people or situations or opportunities that you wanted to have in your life to not work out. It’s to protect you. So look at it as a positive. It’s something to prevent you from some harm or danger in some way, shape or form.

The more you’re rejected, the more confidence that can build. And I can say that was my experience. Again, rejection didn’t feel good at first. I didn’t say I enjoyed the rejection, but I was able to face it and I was able to learn some things from it. And also not only can it build your confidence, but it can also build your creativity level. When I became an entrepreneur, it wasn’t so much that I was set out to be a business owner. I much would have rather worked in someone else’s established business and help their business to grow and help them to be better while I was helping myself. But those situations didn’t work out. But the rejections, it built the confidence level of me to say, you know what? I know that I can do this. I know that I’m good enough to do this, so why not try? And that’s what I did. And it built up the creativity level of me to be able to start my own business. So I was able to create a business name and register that business name. I got a vision for what I would want my business to look like and then start out small. And that’s what I did over the years. I didn’t start out with this glamorous spa. Some people are able to do that and that’s great, but that was just not in my financial language. So it wasn’t what I was able to do, but I’ve made what I was able to do work. And it worked out for my good because of the rejection, it boosted my confidence level and my creativity level because there was something inside.

Most of us, when we are rejected at first we feel bad. At first it, you know, it stings a little bit. But then after a little bit of time, whether it’s five minutes later or five weeks later, you’ll start thinking within yourself and you’re like, wait a minute, now I know that I’m good enough. So why am I going to let this person that rejected me or this person that told me no or this person that told me I couldn’t do it let that be the final say over my life. I’m going to do it anyway. I’m going to move forward anyway. I’m going to be great anyway!

And that’s exactly what I did. So the rejection helped to build up my confidence level and it helped to build up my creativity. So that’s something that rejection can do for you. And that’s how rejection can work for you. And you can use rejection as your revenge because I created this business not to compete with the other businesses that I applied for jobs at and I was rejected. But I built my business in spite of them. And honestly, I didn’t look back. I didn’t look to the left or the right. I didn’t look around me. I didn’t even think about them. I just focused on what I was doing and my business became a household name. Just simply focusing on what I was doing because my confidence level had been built up so much that it wasn’t something that I really needed to look around to see if I would have the ‘okay’ from these other businesses that say, you know, Kudos, you’ve got this, you’re doing good.

I didn’t need their critique. I didn’t need their support. I didn’t need any of it. All I needed was to have that confidence level within myself to say that I could do this. So those are just some ways that you can, and you should make rejection work for you as an entrepreneur, even if you’re not an entrepreneur. This can apply to anyone and use the rejection as your revenge. I’ve been rejected by some people, even as an entrepreneur where I’ve helped other people out, and they may have rejected me later on down the line. But you know what? It may hurt for a moment, but I’m using that rejection as revenge and I’m going to be greater in spite of them. And you can be greater in spite of any rejection you have received or experienced.

Beauty, Blessings & Prosperity,