Three Ways to Bounce Back from Rejection

We know it all too well. You apply to a job online and think you're a slam dunk candidate as in a no brainer to interview. Lo and behold, a few days later you receive a form letter e-mail indicating the company will not be interviewing you. What gives? Here at MediaJobsDaily we like to chalk it up to the "it's not me, it's you" approach. As in, anything could be going on internally. It could have been filled by an internal candidate, the hiring manager could have changed his or her hiring needs, the job could be put on hold soon unbeknownst to you, the boss' boss' nephew could have slid in the door. Anything could have happened so please don't take it personally. That said, when you're pounding the pavement and hitting slammed door after slammed door, sometimes it's hard not to move on. (And if you're interviewing and getting close to a job offer several times and still haven't gotten the coveted jobs, well in that case you don't want to be remiss in looking at your interview style and realizing hey, it is you! But that's a whole other blog post coming soon.) According to Dr. Lynn Joseph, columnist at The Washington Post, there are a few things you can do to bounce back from initial rejection. 1. Visualize. She recommends a visualization exercise called Future Self, according to one of her recent columns. In fact, studies have shown people who imagine future success actually outperform people who envision themselves as future failures. Interesting, yes? Simply close your eyes, relax, and picture yourself in an ideal job as if you're currently employed. Imagine the details and feel free to get excited! "Mentally celebrate with your family and friends," she writes. Convinced yet? Dr. Joseph adds, "We conducted a study with job seekers using this and other visualization techniques, and five times more participants landed jobs within two months compared to those in a placebo group." 2. Join support groups. Another avenue involves joining groups of job seekers. If they meet regularly, all the better. You can support each other and share information, triumphs as well as tribulations. "Even if it’s one friend that you have coffee with once a week or connect with by phone, this can help considerably to stay positive." Just try to take the temperature of the room at the first meeting if you choose to go a more formal route than calling one person on the phone. If the energy is doom and gloom, sure you may be sharing information and support but it may not be healthy to be surrounded by pessimists. Focus on staying positive, okay? 3. Do something you enjoy. Like to play tennis? Go for it! How about gardening? Running? Volunteering? In addition to getting your mind off the job search, doing something you love and something you're good at doing will boost your spirits. It'll also give you confidence in case you start to take rejection personally.

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Three Ways to Bounce Back from Rejection

Vicki Salemi

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Vicki Salemi