Rejection is not failure

So, today I had my first scary big time interview. I was nervous but made sure I was chatty, acted confident, smiley and professional. There were 6 of us and 3 of us were cut after the first part of the interview. That wasn't me. I was chosen to do both parts (which I'm quite proud of).

But unfortunately, I didn't get it (mainly because there was an internal candidate!!!!). Now, I've already had a little sob and felt sorry for myself. But, being rejected from a job is not failure. I didn't do anything wrong. The first part of the whole process I was great at, but they thought I didn't have enough experience in the field and they chose the internal candidate.

Jobs come and go, there are millions out there and millions of people get rejected from them daily.

But what is rejection?

Rejection is in a way exclusion because you are excluded from the group. It's a real and horrible feeling. A feeling that you're not good enough, people are way better than you and that you just suck at life (what I'm feeling now). But, just because you've been rejected, doesn't make you any less of a person and doesn't define who you are.

But, it also stops me from believing in myself.

I thought it would be a good idea to write out a blog post on my job and rejection, and how to start believing in myself again.

You should know that you are valuable and worthy. Some of these suggestions will help in achieving things and bringing back your self-worth:

Volunteer:

Nothing makes you feel better than helping others and making their day. I've done tonnes of volunteering in my time and it's been such an eye opener. Feeling useful and wanted builds self-worth and confidence and you can actually learn new things about yourself.

Make a list:

Make a list of all the things you have already achieved and overcome in your life. It makes you grateful that you've had all these experiences. Also, seeing what you've accomplished in black and white can empower you and make you feel like you've achieved a lot.

Surround yourself with people who support you:

If you have critical people in your life, they definitely affect how you see yourself (tell me about it). Surround yourself with people who bring you higher (:. Who support your ideas and opinions and who push you to the best you can be. Sometimes you just can't do things alone.

Take on challenges and set goals

Succeeding in new things is great. Setting yourself new goals and taking on challenges expands your experiences and will make you feel like you've accomplished tonnes of new things. If you stick to your usual goals and hide away from challenges, you won't ever know if you're good at them or not. 

Stop comparing yourself to other people

It was so easy to compare myself to the other 5 candidates today at the interview. But I stopped myself. My experience, accomplishments, qualifications and appearance are all my own.

So just because you didn't get the job or you've been rejected by a guy or whatever, just remember that rejection is not failure.

If you believe in yourself, you can grow stronger from rejection and then anything is possible!!