Humans fear rejection. For our ancestors, being expelled from the tribe could mean certain death. While our society has evolved, our response to rejection typically hasn’t.
We all face the prospect of rejection throughout our careers. From employees hating new training approaches to failing to achieve the promotion we wanted, the opportunities for rejection abound.
A matter of perspective
Rejection can be interpreted in two ways. The first is taking it personally, which means believing that the outcome reflects your individual worthiness and value as a person. The second perspective is that rejection is just information from which to redirect your energy and activities.
The difference between these two approaches is profound. When a person feels their value being threatened, they become highly emotional and typically find it difficult to make clear-headed decisions. Whereas when a person interprets rejection through the lens of information-gathering, they will be able to make better decisions from a grounded place.
