Accepting Rejection & Embracing Failure: A Path To Success

Facing rejection and failure is a common challenge, particularly for entrepreneurs launching new ventures. Whether seeking funding for a project or opening a new company, the journey is fraught with setbacks. However, understanding that rejection and failure are inherent parts of the learning process is crucial. How we respond to these challenges defines our journey.

FAILURE IS NORMAL

Every day we’re faced with rejection and failure, they’re two of the most powerful forces we will encounter. Understand that rejection and failure are normal, they’re part of the process of learning and becoming better. How we handle rejection and failure is crucial; our response defines our journey. We mustn’t be afraid, and we must build an immune system against rejections, and embrace failures. We can’t grow if don’t fail, and one of the worst things a creative can do is to be comfortable.

The French Philosopher, Montaguie once said, ‘A man is not hurt so much by what happens, as by his opinions of what happens. Our opinion of what happens is entirely up to us.’

ARNIE

When Arnold Schwarzenegger lost his first Mr Olympia competition, he went to his hotel room later than evening and cried himself to sleep. The next day he woke, told himself off for crying like a baby, and turned his setback into motivation, returning to the gym to train for the following years competition. He went on to win that year and for six years after that. Arnie’s success continued as he embarked on the film industry, becoming one of the highest earning movie stars of all time – earning an average of 30 million dollars per movie.

HOW TO REACT WHEN FACING REJECTION

When confronted with rejection, and failure you have a choice of how to act to react. You could react in one of two ways. You can either, begin to accept your limiting beliefs, and give in to your negative internal monologue that will tell you something like, ‘I suck, I can’t do this.’ Then ultimately give up. Or, you can be strong and say to yourself, ‘They’re wrong, I’m going to prove them right.’ Then take action.

To effectively deal with rejection and failure, acknowledge them as part of the process. Remember, that they are normal. Everyone, including the most successful individuals have been rejected and failed multiple times. The only difference is, that they learnt from it and kept going until they became successful. The sooner you understand this and accept it the better. You must understand life, and entrepreneurship is an ongoing process. We are rejected when applying for jobs, by our kids, girlfriends, friends, family, businesses, and everyone in between.

IMPORTANT

The important thing is not to dwell on it, and beat yourself up about the rejection, or failure. You must remember, that you aren’t a failure at everything. It’s important not to focus on your failures but to train your thoughts, and focus, on your successes in your life. Be grateful for them. Acknowledge the things you do well, to improve your life and that of others.

After rejection, adopt a, ‘their loss’ mindset and keep moving forward, it’s vital you keep pushing towards your goal. Recognize that every step in the right direction is a step closer, no matter how small that step is. Grasp the fact, that when one door closes, another one opens. However, bear in mind, that not every failure is an opportunity.

Transform every rejection, or failure into a challenge to make you stronger. Ask yourself, ‘How can I make this a good thing?’ or, ‘What can I learn from this?’ If it helps, journal, and externalise your failures. Look back at the times you failed, note what happened, what you did to fix it, and how did you proceed afterwards. Then, highlight any patterns, or similarities. Once you’ve made some notes, take a hard look at your product, service, or the task you were trying to achieve, and ask yourself, can you improve on what you are offering, can you list ten improvements? The improvements can either be to your product, offer, or even to your approach to the task. For example, can you improve on your sales pitch to gain funding for your new idea? Or, can you improve your PowerPoint presentation the next time you speak to potential new clients? It’s important to externalise, and brainstorm the possibilities, then test the new methods.

OVERWHELMED

If you are feeling overwhelmed, or stuck with your process, seek advice. Sharing your experience with someone can be empowering and enlightening. However, you must be open, and honest, and say why you think you were rejected. Having someone’s perspective will bring a new light to the situation, and should help you discover the reasons behind your rejection, or failures.