{"id":34679,"date":"2014-10-29T09:55:48","date_gmt":"2014-10-29T14:55:48","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/inalj.com\/?p=34679"},"modified":"2014-10-29T09:44:43","modified_gmt":"2014-10-29T14:44:43","slug":"response-to-rejection-a-networking-opportunity","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/inalj.com\/?p=34679","title":{"rendered":"Response to Rejection: A Networking Opportunity"},"content":{"rendered":"

by Veda Darby Soberman, former Head Editor, INALJ Hawaii<\/a>
\npreviously published 8\/7\/13<\/em><\/p>\n

Response to Rejection: A Networking Opportunity<\/span><\/h3>\n

\"veda.darby.soberman\"<\/a>All job seekers will have been rejected for a position or two\u2026or many.\u00a0 Those letters, phone calls or emails can each feel like a stab in the heart of to one\u2019s hopes and dreams, but it doesn\u2019t need to be the end.\u00a0 Rather than looking at those employment rejections (or even internship and volunteering rejections) as proverbial \u201cDear John\u201d letters signaling a permanent parting of ways, I prefer to look at them as break ups of the \u201cHey, let\u2019s still be friends.\u00a0<\/strong> Maybe one day\u2026you never know\u201d-type.\u00a0 I won\u2019t delve into the psychological aspects of coping with rejection here (read Rejection Letter to the Rejection Letter<\/i><\/a>, or Dealing with Rejection<\/i><\/a> for more of that take), but let\u2019s talk about how to actually formulate correspondence in response to a job rejection.\u00a0 Responding well to rejection can be a great way to build a relationship with an organization and to network.\u00a0 Here are some tips:<\/p>\n

    \n
  1. Don\u2019t respond to all rejections<\/strong>.\u00a0 In general, I would say to reserve your response efforts for the positions for which you were interviewed.\u00a0 If you haven\u2019t made it past the initial screening your efforts to network may fall on deaf ears.\u00a0 Of course, there may be exceptions such as when it was for a volunteer inquiry, or if you have had some sort of contact beyond a simple submission of an application, such as you conducted an informational interview at the organization.<\/li>\n
  2. Convey your appreciation and professionalism.<\/strong>\u00a0 This is easy to do in a formal business letter or email.\u00a0 Just remember to keep negative emotions out of your correspondence.\u00a0 However, it can be tricky if you are put on the spot by a rejection phone call.\u00a0 So, be sure to have a canned verbal response to a rejection that has a positive tone, and keeps any feelings of anger or major disappointment in check.<\/li>\n
  3. Take advantage of a rejection letter\u2019s generosity.<\/strong>\u00a0 Often rejections are full of phrases that seem to be inserted to help the rejected feel better (i.e. \u201cThere were many wonderful candidates, you among them.\u201d; \u201cPlease apply for any other positions in your field at our organization in the future.\u201d; or \u201cIf our budget allowed, we would have loved to have you be a part of our team.\u201d).\u00a0 Maybe they are just trying to break it to you gently that they just aren\u2019t that into you, but maybe not.\u00a0 They may be leading you on, but you can still hold them to their kind words and say that you are glad to hear that they liked you even if they won\u2019t be hiring you this time around.<\/li>\n
  4. Remain future-oriented.<\/strong> \u00a0Express that you\u2019re looking forward to any other available opportunities for which you may qualify for in the future.\u00a0 This is very important.\u00a0 I know we hear this al the time, and sometimes it may feel like it is a delusion when rejections come one after another, but often one may have been rejected because it just wasn\u2019t the right fit for the position, or the right time for the organization or you.\u00a0 More often than you think, they would genuinely love to have you be a part of their team in the future.<\/li>\n
  5. Keep rejection letters and maintain correspondence.<\/strong>\u00a0 Add rejections to a file you maintain on the organization you have applied to.\u00a0 The rejection correspondence will have important contact information, and will be helpful to reference for any future contact with the organization.\u00a0 After your initial response to rejection is made, don\u2019t be afraid to contact past interviewers later down the road when a new position is posted or simply to inquire of openings.\u00a0<\/span><\/li>\n<\/ol>\n

    There are many stories of repeat applicants finally being hired by an organization after multiple tries.\u00a0 Keep plugging away (read Failing to Succeed<\/i><\/a> for some inspiration).\u00a0 Be fearless in your job search, and don\u2019t let those rejections seal your fate.\u00a0 You are actually just another step closer to that job you are meant to have.<\/p>\n

    Good luck!<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

    by Veda Darby Soberman, former Head Editor, INALJ Hawaii previously published 8\/7\/13 Response to Rejection: A Networking Opportunity All job seekers will have been rejected for a position or two\u2026or many.\u00a0 Those letters, phone calls or emails can each feel like a stab in the heart of to one\u2019s hopes and dreams, but it doesn\u2019t…<\/p>\n

    Read more \u2192<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":9,"featured_media":58834,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_jetpack_newsletter_access":"","_jetpack_dont_email_post_to_subs":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_tier_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paywalled_content":false,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[145],"tags":[69,3592,3607,356,4885,5070,3941],"class_list":["post-34679","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-articles","tag-article","tag-blog","tag-inalj-hawaii","tag-networking","tag-rejection","tag-responding","tag-veda-darby-soberman"],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"https:\/\/inalj.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2014\/01\/veda.darby_.soberman1.jpg","jetpack_shortlink":"https:\/\/wp.me\/p1WoMK-91l","jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/inalj.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/34679","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/inalj.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/inalj.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/inalj.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/9"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/inalj.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=34679"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/inalj.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/34679\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/inalj.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/media\/58834"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/inalj.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=34679"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/inalj.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=34679"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/inalj.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=34679"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}