Rejection Is Only a Key to the Door of Relentlessness

Author: Andrada S., Student (Miami, USA)

The idea that rejection is nothing but destruction is deeply embedded in our being. We take it personally, and we spiral into a self-inflicting journey where instead of finding ways of achieving our dreams we end up being lethargic. Yet, rejection is nothing but a big, fat gift.

My rejection journey started pretty abruptly when I packed my bags and moved to an alienated country – the United Kingdom. After the honeymoon stage (which lasted about a week) where everything around me seemed new and exciting, I got hit in the face by a humongous, red, double-decker bus called rejection. It was brutal!

Culturally and socially, most things were a shock to me, even the famous British “politeness” that seemed to have faded. If you just visit London for a couple of weeks, you would probably love it (I would too). When you are trying to settle down as an immigrant, it is obvious that the British politeness doesn’t wait for you with its arms open. If you have a strong accent, the majority of British people tend to be more judgemental than you would expect and you might be met with disapproval and criticism. (Now, imagine the noise you hear when a contestant on America's Got Talent gets an X.) Beep! Rejected! When socializing and expressing my opinions  in regard to family and female/ male roles, I was often met with objection. Beep! Rejected! The UK is a highly individualistic country and if you come from a collective culture, you might feel rejected at every corner as everyone is fighting for themselves and they are less willing to help you adapt. When applying for jobs I was met with the same type of disapproval. I was rejected by many industries, including the cleaning and the hospitality industries which don't require many academic skills, yet I still couldn’t get employed.

All the values I followed my whole life were scattered and it made me overly conscious about what I can say or not/ do or not. I wasn’t able to portray who I truly was or what I have to offer because I felt that my ideas and attributes weren’t a fit with the culture or anything at this point. I fought the rejection of others with my own rejection when I should have answered back with persistence. 

However, all the walls that I faced, transformed me into a much better person and one of the things that helped me move past all the rejection was educating myself.

After feeling rejected on all fronts, I started analyzing why I was being rejected and how I can use rejection to my benefit. In a way I was blaming the British culture for my failings. Yet, I had to understand that every culture is different and adapting to it is going to take time and effort. Once I shifted my mindset, I started putting in more work in improving my speech/pronunciation, in writing better resumes and in accepting change. Slowly but surely, things got better, I found a job and got accepted into a university.

At the end of the day, rejection is only a key to the door of relentlessness, and relentless is the door to a room filled with success.