How can job rejection be a good thing?

Rejection can sting a little. After all a job interview requires a lot of preparation and time from you. Sometimes after you put in all the work, you may get your hopes up and think you absolutely smashed the interview and then you get the dreaded email or phone call and it can seriously knock your confidence. However, don’t think you are alone in this. Every job seeker will get rejected at some point in their career and you need to see it as just another stepping stone to getting the right job for you. After all, if this one wasn’t for you, the next one may be. Job rejection may sting at the time, but it can be a good thing for you as a person and your job search.

It’s not personal

Being rejected for a job role is very rarely personal, after all the interviewer has probably only met you on 1 or 2 occasions. Sometimes rejection can trigger negative thoughts about yourself – don’t think this way. Sometimes there may be people that are more qualified or just had a better interview. It happens and although it can be upsetting, dwelling on it will get you nowhere. Pick yourself up and carry on.

Ask for feedback

Often, interviewers, if asked will be very happy to provide you with feedback on your interview. There may be a few things you can work on, such as;

• Were you dressed appropriately?
• Did you plan some of your answers?
• How well did you answer their questions?
• Did you make sure to ask them questions as well?
• Were you confident?

Sometimes you can have everything planned and ready to go, but pre-interview nerves can get the better of us and you can lose your focus. Sometimes it’s not entirely your fault, the interviewer is there to make you feel comfortable and when in the wrong environment, it can throw you off. However, if you are uncomfortable is it really the right job for you? Asking for feedback can give you an insight to what the interviewer experienced and using to work on yourself and your interview technique can help you land a job in the future.

Rejection – Redirection

Sometimes being rejected can allow you to see where you are going wrong with your interview technique, but also if you are looking in the right place! Often, job seeking can be a very long and sometimes tiring process, so you can start looking in the wrong place. Use rejection to make sure you are applying for jobs that are right for you and that you are passionate about. You need to be able to show your passion and the love you will have for your role in an interview, this will help you greatly.

Build resilience

Being an active job-seeker will definitely help you build your resilience and rejection can only help you build on this further. You can work on your weaknesses and continue to build on your strengths. If you don’t get offered a job role, it just wasn’t meant to be. But what you shouldn’t do it stay down about the situation. You should work on accepting rejection and moving on from it. It should drive your ambition and keep you going. Resilience can be hard from the beginning, but you will build on it throughout your job search and you will become a better professional for it.

Be proud of yourself

No matter what the outcome of an interview, you should always be proud that you put yourself out there and took the leap. There is a lot of work in job seeking and even more in interview preparation. You have to spend hours working on answers and researching the company, you should be proud of the work you did! Rejection doesn’t mean the end of your job search and the work you have done is not wasted. You can build on the preparation you have already done for the next interview you have. Plus, practice makes perfect. Interview experience should never be frowned upon and if you keep working on it, you will find the perfect job for you.

Job rejection may happen more than once in your job search, but it is important to let it fuel your ambition and help you work even harder. There are many resources you can use to help with your job search, including job boards and LinkedIn. Use these to help you find jobs and network as well as interview prep, talking to other professionals can help you more than you would think.

You’re not the only person to ever be rejected for a job role. So, use the experience and become a better job seeker. E&TJ have a number of resources you can use to help you with your job search and find the job for you.