Rejection hurts. There’s no way around it. It can make you never want to put yourself out there ever again, and can make you question everything about yourself.
The truth is—rejection is a part of life and although one that isn’t funny, it will certainly come calling, the question is, when rejection comes, what will you do? Let these 19 quotes inspire you.
1. “The better you are at communicating, negotiating, and handling your fear of rejection, the easier life is.” – Robert Kiyosaki
2. “Nobody gets through life without experiencing some form of rejection, which is why everybody knows how awful it feels.” – Adena Friedman
3. “Almost more than talent you need tenacity, and an infinite capacity for rejection, if you are to succeed.” – Larry Kramer
4. “Learn to eat rejection; it will make you stronger.”—Bob Ragland
5. “Character cannot be developed in ease and quiet. Only through experience of trial and suffering can the soul be strengthened, ambition inspired, and success achieved.” – Helen Keller
6. “Rejection doesn’t have to mean you aren’t good enough; it often just means the other person failed to notice what you have to offer.” – Ash Sweeney
7. “Most fears of rejection rest on the desire for approval from other people. Don’t base your self-esteem on their opinions.” – Harvey Macka
8. “You need to develop, somehow, a huge amount of faith and confidence in yourself, because there’s a lot of rejection throughout life and you have to believe in yourself more than anyone else.” – Stephen Collins
9. “Rejection is a common occurrence. Learning that early and often will help you build up the tolerance and resistance to keep going and keep trying” – Kevin Feige
10. “The only difference between successful people and unsuccessful people is extraordinary determination.” – Mary Kay Ash
11. “Character cannot be developed in ease and quiet. Only through experience of trial and suffering can the soul be strengthened, ambition inspired, and success achieved.” – Helen Keller
12. “You may not realize it when it happens, but a kick in the teeth may be the best thing in the world for you.”—Walt Disney
13.“Every time I thought I was being rejected from something good, I was actually being re-directed to something better.” – Steve Maraboli
14. “My advice to everybody – never give up and have great resiliency. Don’t take the rejection personally, but listen if it’s intelligent and make changes if they’re needed and then move forward.” – Sherry Lansing
15. “Remember: when people tell you something’s wrong or doesn’t work for them, they are almost always right. When they tell you exactly what they think is wrong and how to fix it, they are almost always wrong.” – Neil Gaiman
16. “The size of your success is measured by the strength of your desire; the size of your dream; and how you handle disappointment along the way.” – Robert Kiyosaki
17. “There are no real successes without rejection. The more rejection you get, the better you are, the more you’ve learned, the closer you are to your outcome… If you can handle rejection, you’ll learn to get everything you want.” – Tony Robbins
18. “So many people will tell you ”no”, and you need to find something you believe in so hard that you just smile and tell them ”watch me”. Learn to take rejection as motivation to prove people wrong. Be unstoppable. Refuse to give up, no matter what. It’s the best skill you can ever learn.”―Charlotte Eriksson
19. “The biggest hurdle is rejection. Any business you start, be ready for it. The difference between successful people and unsuccessful people is the successful people do all the things the unsuccessful people don’t want to do. When 10 doors are slammed in your face, go to door number 11 enthusiastically, with a smile on your face.” – John Paul Dejoria
