“REJECTION ISN’T A MEASURE OF YOUR WORTH.” -PATRICIA CORNWELL

Oooh, rejection stings. We all know it well. Whether as a child or as an adult, from friends, family, or within our profession, rejection bites and burns. Rejection stays with us and runs storied laps in our heads. And when we can step aside and imagine the story someone else is living we can plainly see that the opinions of others have absolutely no value in worthiness. How could it? Human beings are “only human” and make mistakes with every breath. How many of those flippant, off handed comments that felt like enormous rejection were moments of poor judgement? Mistakes are rungs in a growth ladder yet to be climbed by an unknowing, dare I say, ignorant, offender? How sad is it to take that innocent (or even malicious) comment, that poorly placed rejection and give it the enormity of defining our worthiness?

Rejection is nothing but a word. A word we use to define an action. It has no bearing on our value and our worth. Who gets to decide my worth, anyway? Who gets to decide yours? All I know is that rejection cannot and will not stop me nor define me and I implore you not to let it define you. Rejection will come. Even if everything you say and do is incredible and beautiful and enormously loving. You will still step straight into rejection one day. And another and another. We all do. And it will not define you and it must not stop you.