How to cope when you're rejected after a job interview

Rejection is hard for anyone to take; it's a natural human urge to be wanted. Unfortunately, if your rejected after a job interview, it can be particularly hard to take - especially if you really wanted the job, or you are unemployed and desperately needed the job to pay the bills. However, if you let yourself get too dejected, then you will find it hard to keep yourself going and your job search could suffer as a result. However, provided that you are prepared to push yourself on, you should be able to cope when you're rejected after a job interview. The following tips should be of assistance.

*Give yourself a day to wallow

It's OK to feel low for a little while; in fact, ignoring your feelings of rejection could make you feel worse in the long run. Spend a day or so investigating your feelings, talking about them to a friend or other half, and then accept that the opportunity has passed and that you have to move on. If your feelings start to get out of control, then do something about it. Plan a weekend away, or have a good night out with friends. A change will help you focus on the future.

*Learn from any mistakes

In your day of wallowing, consider what, if anything, you might have done wrong during the interview. If you know you were nervous and may not have answered questions well, then you know you can work on it in the future. If you weren't told the reason that you didn't get the job and you really aren't sure why, it might be worth ringing or emailing the interviewer for information. You may find it was just that there was a better candidate, but you may also receive some helpful information.

*Keep on with the job search

When you've been rejected, it is easy to want to avoid putting yourself in a similar position again, for fear of more rejection. Unfortunately, searching for a job often involves rejection. However, you will learn from your experiences and eventually, you will find a job that is right for you. Keep applying for jobs and going for interviews that you're offered and sooner or later you will hit on something that suits you. And you'll feel all the better for it.

*Accept that it may not have been anything personal

Rejection is not always personal. It could be for all sorts of reasons. You may not have as much experience as another candidate, or you may not have the qualifications. If it is personal, it may just be that you didn't click with the interviewer and they preferred the way that another candidate performed in the interview. For all you know, you may have been too highly qualified and the interviewer felt that you wouldn't have stayed in the job for long. Accept any mistakes you made, then look forward, not back.

*Ensure you have broad interests

If your entire life is focused on finding a job, then the rejection is bound to be all the more painful. Make sure that you develop plenty of other interests, so that it is not the only thing on your mind. Go out and meet some new people and make the most of the ones you already know. This is a time when you should be networking anyway, and you may just find someone you meet knows of a job on offer and recommends you for it. New hobbies could provide you will something else to add to your resume.

Don't let interview rejection bring you down too much. Nearly everyone is rejected for a job at some point. Look upon it as something that will help you to grow and move on.

Source: HERE (Article by Sun Meilan)