What an amazing thought! Embrace rejection? Why would anyone do something like that?
Rejection we are told is a primary fear of the human being. We yearn for acceptance. Our hearts seek to join others in a way that confirms our value. To be rejected burns to the core of our being.
But what might happen if we took rejection into our open hands? What if we accepted it as a gift
Our mind is an amazing thing. We make determinations with lightening speed. We move quickly with the understanding we took from our families as a child. Once we have made a determination, we hold onto the judgment with the tenacity of a small dog guarding his bone. We know we are correct. We know there is no other way to view the events and emotions of our life.
But that is a lie. We are believing a deception. We have the ability to view every situation in our life in two ways. We can view it in the quick, comfortable way that we have used since we were children. Or we can take the time to change our perceptions.
I have a friend who is a wonderful editor. She takes the creation of a writer and applies her magic to the words. A little change here, a word moved there and like a magician – the creation the author had given her now shines like a polished stone. It is still recognizable as the work of the author, but now it has a polish and strength it didn’t have before.
When we meet rejection, our first thoughts usually lead us to self-doubt. We doubt ourselves, we can doubt our dreams, we can doubt we are even worthy to dream.
But we can take the rejection into our hands and search it out. We can look for little bits of truth and little bits of lie. We can then apply the editor’s tool and apply it to the rejection. We can take the rejection and see it not as information telling us that we have no worth, but as a promise of something better, wiser, more important to come.
I remember trying to teach my children about the values of coins when they were quite young. One time I gave my five-year old five shiny pennies. I told him he had five cents in his hand. Then I showed him a dime. It was old and dull compared to the pennies. I explained that even though it was only one coin, I had more money in my hand than he did. I offered to trade my one dime for his five pennies. He wouldn’t trade. He knew he had more money than I did.
The truth is that often when we feel rejected, we see only pennies. We miss the fact that it just may be a dime. WE can choose to think in new ways and see rejection as giving us the freedom to accept something better for our lives.
Once I was rejected for a job I wanted very much. I felt terrible when I opened the rejection letter. At first I started down the old paths of thinking I had learned as a young child. What had I done wrong? Was there something the matter with me that others could plainly see? A few days later I was offered another job. It was a much better position than the one that had caused me so much heartache. I realized that the rejection had allowed me to be able to accept this better job. It had been a gift!
Many years later I went through a divorce. Initially I felt rejected and was filled with grief. Then I made an intentional decision to embrace the rejection. It has given me a freedom to create a life better than I had even imagined.
So, when rejection comes your way, consider embracing it as a gift. Look at it carefully, untie the velvet ribbon and take off the lovely gift-wrap. Open it and receive a wonderful gift.
Embrace rejection? Absolutely! It just might set you free to create a fabulous new life.
Melissa McCutcheon is a personal life coach and a licensed clinical counselor. She specializes in coaching people in life transitions to rediscover their passions and strengths to create new and joy filled lives. Helping people who are struggling with the emotional earthquakes of divorce find a new life of fulfillment and peace is a special joy to her. Read more of her articles, find contact information and subscribe to her free online newsletter visit http://www.makechangegreat.com
Tags: divorce, fabulous, gift, rejection, treasure
