Rejections make us stronger
Rejections make us stronger💪 inside, not the other way around. Every one of us would have experienced rejection at one or another time in our lives. It could be in profession threatening our career or social lives, causing significant inconvenience and hurt.
How do you handle such rejections without hurting yourself?
Exactly 7️⃣ years back, I had this uncomfortable moment after having helped a customer navigate a critical milestone for organizational transformation.
We created a SWOT team⚔️to help a key customer navigate an organization’s transformation initiative. After working hard day and night for a first-of-the-kind deal, after proving the success on the pilot initiative, on the verge of success, the client decided to award this deal to another company as they quoted less price than us. It was a 💲 multimillion-dollar deal for us.
Was I crestfallen? Of course, Yes.
How can we get dumped after such good work?
Opinions apart, the reality is there will be times when things happen that cause you hurt.
There will be people who reject your work and may potentially cause you depression😔.
After we lost the deal, my leadership team’s priorities changed as the deal got off the table.
You are left to search for your next role as things dont matter anymore. It was such a low feeling.
How do you get past those horror moments?
At the Senior level, finding good roles within the organization is difficult.
This was precisely when my network🧑🤝🧑 saved me.
One of my close friends was also an influencer to a BU Head, and he was very empathetic to me and knows exactly what happened to me. He tapped into his network🕸️ for me.
At Senior level roles, people look at your capabilities than whether you are fit today. Trust matters the most for them, even though you are not 💯% ready for the role.
Before I moved out of the position, I asked for honest feedback from the decision maker. He responded they felt safer with other service providers and additional expenses savings.
Shit happens, so learn to treat it as transactional.
Precisely 1️⃣ year into the new role, I learned that the new vendor miserably failed the client, and they approached us to split the deal.
A couple of years later, I was at the same client place, drawing great respect and appreciation from the same set of people that were party to rejection.
I must say, I have outgrown myself from this rejection.
Do not undermine yourself. Get your best self out to navigate the journey 👊.
And, Surround yourself with a strong supporter network.
The icing is that one of the core customer leaders is now my coaching client. He joined my community of leaders the moment I announced it.
Rejections are often proven good👍 for you as they provide opportunities to rediscover your 🆕self.
Just like mine.
