It won’t kill you.

You think it will.

You think that if you ask and you are rejected, it means something bad about you.

That you are less than: less than worthy, less than others, just less.

So you don’t ask.

You choose not to go for it: the job, the client, the project, the deal.

It’s safer where you are.

Right?

Actually, no.

It’s not.

Not safer.

Not more satisfying.

Certainly not more gratifying.

It’s just you, stuck, for fear of failure.

For fear of someone saying no.

For fear of the dreaded rejection.

But here’s the message that will set you free.

Rejection won’t kill you.

It won’t.

It may sting a little. It may feel like a setback. It might even hurt for a while.

But you won’t die.

You will survive it.

If you keep moving and trying and hoping, it will get you to your next thing, your next opportunity, your next yes.

The no’s you receive along the way to your dream are the no’s you need to become who you’re meant to be.

Pile them up. Pin them on the wall. Celebrate every single one of them.

Say a quiet thank you.

Stephen King’s first published novel Carrie was rejected so many times that he collected the rejection notes on a spike in his bedroom. It was finally published in 1974 with a print run of 30,000 copies. When the paperback version was released a year later, it sold over a million copies in 12 months. King to date has sold more than 350 million books.

Kathryn Stockett, author of The Help, was rejected by more than 60 literary agents before finally gaining representation. Her debut novel has since been published in 42 languages, sold more than ten million copies and spent more than 100 weeks on the New York Times Best Seller list.

Sara Blakely, founder of Spanx, was taught by her father that failure is required on the path to success, a lesson that served her well. As she was trying to sell a concept for her hosiery product when she was 27, she was rejected from every company she approached. They didn’t see the value in her idea. Then one man said he would back her and the rest, well, you know what they say. Sara should know about success: Spanx net worth is valued at more than a billion dollars.

Failure is part of the process. It’s required learning.

So what will you do?

You could just choose to go for it.

Regardless of the outcome.

Rejection won’t kill you.

Failure won’t stop you.

Unless you let it.