How to Deal With Rejection As A Sensitive Person

The idea of rejection horrifies everyone, there’s no doubt about that. In this article, we’ll cover how to deal with rejection so it’s not so scary. If you let it, the fear of rejection can hinder you in many ways. It can stop you from taking chances, missing opportunities like applying to a job, or trying a new hobby. It can also make you hesitant to establish meaningful relationships with others.

A lot of the fear associated with rejection is rooted in how we perceive ourselves, our self-confidence, and our capacity to receive information that is considered constructive or negative in nature and how affected we are by the information.

In an ever more competitive world, we’re often faced with news that we might not welcome. We apply for jobs we don’t get, we’re turned down by a crush, friendships could end, or even familial ties. There’s ample opportunity to face rejection in our lives and it seems unavoidable, but that’s only because most aren’t equipped to deal with it properly.

Deal With Rejection
Frequent rejection can leave us feeling scarred and less confident with who we are.

Don’t Take It Personally, Ever.

It’s easy to feel very offended when you’re rejected, let’s be honest. But that’s because we’re conditioned to think the rejection was directed at us as a person. That could be the case, but it isn’t the most likely one, believe it or not. Rejection more often than not has nothing to do with who we are as a person, it’s about the rejector making a decision that’s best for them.

In any situation that you feel rejected, don’t assume that it’s meant to be personal. Think about the motivation behind the rejection itself. Did you meet the requirements of a position you applied for? How about sharing the same interests as a crush that rejected you. Could they have felt that you didn’t connect romantically based on that? People are different in nature. You can’t assume that what makes someone approve of you, is the same way that you approve of them.

Instead of feeling hurt and focusing on that, realize that you will always have more opportunities in the future and outside of present circumstances. Rejection is a natural part of life and it’s not you alone who faces it, we all do. And it’s a necessary act to make the best choice for ourselves. Wouldn’t you hire the person you felt most confident in? Would you date someone without sharing interests or hobbies? It’s about making a decision best for yourself, not the other person.

Related: 10 Jobs You Can Definitely Bear As An Introvert

Deal With Rejection
It’s intimidating to put ourselves in situations that risk rejection, but it makes us stronger.

Learning to Deal With Rejection Head On

Our first instinct is to shrink away from rejection, but what we should be doing is facing it. When we doubt ourselves, it’s easier to feel hurt by rejection and to have it affect us negatively. If you don’t want to be affected by the fear of rejection, you need to live life ready to face it and move on

If the rejection is related to a job you wanted, you should politely respond to the turndown email and thank them for their time. Don’t think of it as failure—but a sign that it wasn’t the right fit for you.

We avoid rejection and fear it because we think it’s a bad thing, but it’s not. Sometimes being told no is exactly what we need to hear. You might like the “idea” of something, but when you’re faced with rejection, it can be a wake-up call. Maybe you fell for someone wrong for you and it was best that they didn’t reciprocate your feelings. It can also encourage you to work even harder to achieve something. If you’re aiming for a highly competitive position, you’ll want to increase your chances and you’ll invest time and effort into earning it. Which actually does influence your odds of achieving a goal.

Deal With Rejection
Dealing with your feelings of being rejected will make things better, not worse.

Deal With Rejection By Building Up Your Self-Confidence

When you don’t feel like you deserve acceptance or success, you take rejection a lot harder. Without self-confidence and respect, the sting of rejection can cause you to make those long-term decisions that stunt your growth as a person. You decide not to take risks, you’re controlled by the fear of being rejected and it limits your potential.

In order to face rejection properly, you have to believe in yourself. Build up confidence by remembering your past achievements and what you like about yourself. Even the smallest things matter, so don’t take it for granted. You’re incredible for just being you. You might be a little down following a rejection, but you don’t let it put you down for long or keep you from future opportunities.

If you do feel like the rejection affected you strongly, you’ll feel secure enough with yourself to accept it wasn’t meant to be. You can look at the situation more objectively and see what really factored into the outcome of rejection. You know what you bring to the table, you also know that anyone who doesn’t see that isn’t worth your time. What’s truly important is not that they accept you, but that you know that it doesn’t change who you are and what you’re worth.


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Deal With Rejection

Hana Othman

Hana Othman is the founder of SimpleHermit.com and identifies as an INFJ. Most days you can find her typing away or reading a book. Beyond that, she keeps busy as a dog and cat mom.