Rejection: A Good Thing That Happened To Me!

Image Credit: TheDigitalArtist

In my book We Are Poetry, Lessons I Didn’t Learn in a Textbook, I spoke a little about my experience with rejection. Whether with toxic relationships, jobs, or writing submissions, no one wants to feel like they are not accepted, denied, and do not belong. Rejection is something that will either make you or break you, but it’s your choice. Why is it your choice? Let me explain how I got over the hurt, pain, and anger of being rejected all these years. I watched others shake off rejection so easily and move on. At first, I couldn’t do it because I allowed someone else’s opinion to determine whether or not I should be worthy of acceptance. I kept those writing submission rejections in a binder and periodically looked at them, all too often second-guessing myself.

You might think that was torture. Perhaps it was. Why not tear those letters of rejection up and trash them? Why torment yourself by revisiting their riveting message of being turned down or turned away? Now, I don’t have masochistic tendencies. I’m not crazy about pain. Fear said to throw away those rejection letters, but courage said to face them and prove them to be a lie. I recently looked at a line from the movie, “Second Act,” starring Jennifer Lopez, where her character Maya says, “Our Mistakes don’t limit us, our fears do.”

Well, had it not been for those rejections and an attitude adjustment, I would not be here, right now, talking about it with you. I would be swallowed up and wallowing in self-pity from high-intense frustration had I not dropped my “Woe is me attitude.” How have you turned your rejection into acceptance on a different highway? If you haven’t yet, how can you and when will you?