Unstoppable In the Face of Rejection

Rejection is a difficult thing to deal with in our professional life, our personal life and even when it comes to growing a business. Rejection is an obstacle when you are in the midst of a job search, It is a speed bump that can hinder your progress. Especially if you allow it to stop your momentum. Here is an excerpt from Unstoppable Women by Cynthia Kersey, about Michele Hoskins. She was working on getting a contract for her business. I like this story. It demonstrates a woman who could allow rejection to hinder her progress or she could use it as a catalyst to springboard her business into a huge contract. She chose the latter. What will you do when they tell you no? Giving up is not an option! As I tell my students often – No surrender! No retreat! When you get a “no” let it be fuel in the furnace of you heart to find a new way, a creative way to move through your job search process into a “yes”! Someone will hire you!! You will be successful, no matter how many times you hear the “no”! If you don’t believe me, ask Michele Hoskins.

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Michele Hoskins’s recipe for success came from her great-great-grandmother’s honey cream syrup. But persistence was the major ingredient. She won a $3 million contract with Denny’s after calling them every single week for 2 years straight.

“At the time I got the idea to market my honey cream syrup to Denny’s restaurants, they were known as the worst company to do business with for minorities, and they were experiencing a lot of bad press and discrimination suits. I was a woman and a minority, and I made a great syrup, something they sold a lot of. I believed that they needed me as much as I needed them.

Each Monday morning at 10:30, I’d call their corporate office. Over a period of time, everyone in the organization knew I wanted their business. The receptionist would say, ‘Michelle’s on the phone. Who’s talking to her today?’ I talked to a lot of people, all promising to get back with me, but they never did. I spoke with the receptionist, secretaries, people in the diversity department, procurement, product development, sales – anyone who would listen.

They really didn’t know what to do with me, but they continued to take my calls. After two years, they got a new CEO, Jim Adamson, who restructured the company. He was very interested in making Denny’s a diverse organization and improving their reputation. He had heard about my story and asked, ‘Why aren’t we doing business with this woman?’

I ended up getting business from their diversity division and doing what I set out to do, not only delivering syrup to their 17,000 restaurants, but helping their image by becoming their poster child for diversity.

The funny thing was that at the time I was approaching them, I was a small manufacturer in Chicago making syrup locally. I wasn’t remotely prepared to manufacture and deliver my syrup to more than 17,000 restaurants. But I thought once I got the business, I’d figure out how to do it. I’ve learned that anything the mind can conceive, can manifest through hard work, perseverance, and faith.”

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The next time you get rejected in your job search, step back re-evaluate and continue to move forward. Your “YES” is just around the corner! How long it takes for you to hear it will be determined by your willingness to persist, to work hard, and to believe!!

Image Credit: Newscom

Tags: Interview Chatter, Unstoppable, Rejection, Michele Hoskins, Perserverance, Faith, Denny’s, “YES”, Job Search, Speed Bump, Diversity, Persist, Work Hard, Believe

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