I Accept that Rejection is Redirection

Summary

Podcast Summary: "I Accept that Rejection is Redirection"

Mantra with Jemma Sbeg
Host: Gemma Spag
Release Date: May 26, 2025

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Overview

In this enlightening episode of Mantra with Jemma Spag, host Gemma delves deep into the empowering mantra, "I accept that rejection is redirection." Aimed at helping listeners reframe their perceptions of rejection, Gemma shares personal insights, psychological perspectives, and practical tools to transform setbacks into stepping stones for personal growth and fulfillment.

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Host’s Personal Reflections

Early in the episode, Gemma opens up about a personal struggle with sleep deprivation, highlighting the importance of rest for overall well-being. This candid share sets a relatable tone, emphasizing that even while navigating life's challenges, embracing growth remains paramount.

"[05:13] Gemma Spag: I have been having the worst sleep ever for the past two weeks. ... I need 7 to 9 hours of sleep within the next few days, or I'm seriously gonna lose my marbles."
— Gemma Spag

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Deep Dive into the Mantra: "I Accept that Rejection is Redirection"

Understanding Rejection as Redirection

Gemma introduces the week's mantra, emphasizing the concept of viewing rejection not as a hindrance but as a guiding force steering individuals toward more aligned opportunities.

"[07:07] Gemma Spag: I accept that rejection is redirection."
— Gemma Spag

The Pain of Rejection and Its Root Causes

Acknowledging the inherent pain in rejection, Gemma explores the human instinct to seek acceptance and validation. She discusses how society conditions us to take rejection personally, making it feel like a reflection of our character rather than an external circumstance.

"[08:05] Gemma Spag: We have to acknowledge this to begin with because no matter how skilled you become at managing rejection... your first instinct is always going to be one of hurt."
— Gemma Spag

Dysfunctional Responses to Fear of Rejection

Gemma references a Harvard Business Review article, outlining two dysfunctional patterns stemming from the fear of rejection: entitlement and resignation.

1. Entitlement: Feeling deserving of certain outcomes without recognizing the realities of each situation.
2. Resignation: Avoiding new opportunities due to the fear of rejection, leading to a stagnant life.

"[10:52] Gemma Spag: Resignation. We avoid situations when we might be rejected because we see rejection as something extremely painful."
— Gemma Spag

Embracing Rejection as a Pathway to Growth

Shifting the narrative, Gemma highlights how successful individuals often attribute their achievements to the rejections they've faced. She encourages listeners to view rejection as a necessary component of striving for meaningful goals.

"[11:58] Gemma Spag: Rejection is a doorway, not a dead end. It shifts you onto a different timeline, one that I believe will always be better because what is right for you won't necessarily miss you."
— Gemma Spag

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Personal Stories of Rejection and Redirection

Gemma shares a poignant personal story about being rejected from a coveted consulting job right after university. This setback led her to take a hiatus, during which she launched a podcast—The Psychology of Your 20s—which eventually became her dream career.

"[21:19] Gemma Spag: When I was finishing university, I really wanted this one job... I didn’t get it. ... I started the psychology of your 20s. And I had to work on this little side project that just brought me joy."
— Gemma Spag

Through this narrative, she illustrates how rejection can pave the way for unexpected and fulfilling opportunities.

"[24:19] Gemma Spag: The path just seems so much more clear in hindsight."
— Gemma Spag

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Practical Tools and Challenges

Journal Prompts

To help listeners internalize the mantra, Gemma provides thoughtful journal prompts:

1. Reframing Rejections: Identify rejections viewed as personal failures and reframe them.
2. Moving Forward: Consider what awaits if you let go of the need for closure.
3. Trusting Redirection: Envision your life without the fear of rejection and the new paths you might pursue.
4. Bonus Challenge: Reflect on how your life would change if you disregarded rejection for a month.

"[35:10] Gemma Spag: Firstly, are there any rejections you've internalized as personal failures that you can now reframe or release?"
— Gemma Spag

Weekly Challenges

Gemma introduces challenges designed to help listeners actively apply the mantra:

1. Symbolic Closure: Identify and symbolically close a past rejection.
2. Rejection Therapy: Engage in activities that deliberately invite rejection to build resilience.

"[36:24] Gemma Spag: Identify one opportunity, relationship, or version of the past that you've been mentally circling and commit to symbolically closing that door."
— Gemma Spag

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Conclusion and Final Thoughts

Wrapping up the episode, Gemma reiterates the transformative power of viewing rejection as redirection. She emphasizes gratitude for past rejections, recognizing them as catalysts that have led to more fulfilling paths.

"[38:56] Gemma Spag: Trust the redirection. Let it show you what's waiting for you on the other side of your fear."
— Gemma Spag

Gemma encourages listeners to embrace this mindset, assuring them that every rejection holds the potential for a new, more aligned beginning.

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Notable Quotes with Timestamps

• Reframing Rejection:
  "[14:44] Gemma Spag: Rejection is a badge of honor. It is proof that you tried and that you are further along just by trying than not at all."

• Trust Over Ego:
  "[24:53] Gemma Spag: Ego is a mask for insecurity and much deeper, darker fears. ... we need to counteract ego with trust."

• Cognitive Reframing:
  "[30:17] Gemma Spag: Cognitive reframing is the ability to reinterpret a situation in a more empowering light."

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Final Thoughts

This episode of Mantra with Jemma Spag serves as a powerful reminder that rejection is not the end but a transformative redirection toward more meaningful and fulfilling endeavors. Through personal anecdotes, psychological insights, and actionable challenges, Gemma equips her audience with the tools to embrace rejection as a vital part of their growth journey.

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For more reflections, practical tips, and inspiring insights, be sure to listen to the full episode of Mantra with Jemma Spag on Apple Podcasts or your preferred podcast platform.

Transcript

[Unknown]

Foreign.

[Gemma Spag]

This is Open Mind. Welcome to a brand new week.

Here is your mantra. I accept that rejection is redirection. I'm your host, Gemma Spag, and I'm here to guide you toward a more.

Centered and fulfilling life.

Each week I'll share personal stories and insights that are focused on this specific mantra, plus general prompts and a weekly challenge for all of us to help.

Put it into action.

Think of Mantra as your mental reset button, a way to stay centered as you juggle work, school, family, whatever else life throws at you. Each mantra is a simple but powerful phrase you can repeat to refocus your thoughts and bring a bit of calm into your day. It's a small tool with a big.

Impact, clearing your mind, lifting your mood.

And rooting you in the present.

If you've listened to my other show.

The psychology of your 20s, you'll know I'm all about those little nuggets of insight that make a big impact. So whether you are looking for some extra inspiration or just trying to ground yourself amidst the chaos, you have come to the right place at Open Mind. We value your support. Share your thoughts on social media and remember to rate, review and follow Mantra to help others discover the show. For more exclusive exclusive content, monthly bonus episodes, early access and ad free listening.

Join our Open Mind plus community on Apple Podcasts.

This week I'll catch you up on.

What'S been going on in my life.

And then we'll dive into today's Mantra. I accept that rejection is redirection. It's a big one, and it's all about reframing the setbacks we experience not as dead ends, but as powerful detours that are actually secretly guiding us to something that is even more aligned. Stick around. We'll be right back after this short pause. Hey, it's Gemma and I'm so excited.

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Welcome back. We are going to get into this.

Week'S mantra in just a few.

But before we do, you guys know it's time for our highs, lows and who knows? Today I'm coming at you with a low. Not a significant low, just a small low. I've been having the worst sleep ever for the past two weeks. Yeah, I would say around two weeks. It's been awful. I cannot get more than four hours.

Of sleep at any one time.

I have tried everything, and I mean everything.

Melatonin gummies, a new alarm clock. I even made my dog sleep on.

Her own bed, which I never do. Because she is an angel. But I just, like.

I cannot do another sleepless night.

I know how important sleep is for.

Me and my health.

None of this has worked, and I think I've come to the realization that I'm just never the right temperature and it's because of my duvet. This is probably very unnecessary information for you all, but I have one of those in between season duvets that, like, never actually works for any season now that it's getting colder in Sydney. Not extremely cold, but colder. It's just not cutting it.

Like, it's not keeping me warm enough.

And when it's really warm outside, it.

Doesn'T keep me cool enough.

I'm just, like, at a loss. So this is a weird request, but I need bedsheet or duvet recommendations. Like, if you are passionate about your sleep setup or your sleep situation, I.

Need to know what you're doing. I need to know your secrets.

Please DM me.

Please leave a comment below.

Help a girl out, because I desperately.

Need seven to nine hours of sleep.

Within the next few days at least, or I'm seriously gonna lose my marbles. That's really where I'm at right now in my life.

It's all I can think about.

I know that doesn't have anything to do with today's mantra, but honestly, I am very excited for this one nonetheless. This week's mantra is, of course, I.

Accept that rejection is redirection. I have been patiently waiting for the time to come when we could talk.

About this mantra, because I have millions of thoughts when it comes to this.

Philosophy, and I'm dying to share them with you.

I feel like this has showed up.

In my own life time after time.

After time, and it's definitely taken some.

Trial and error and some forgetful moments.

On my behalf to realize that this is the case. That rejection is never a closed door. It's another door opening.

But now that I have, I feel.

Like it is such a liberating feeling.

To know what is meant for you. Won't necessarily miss you. Even if you think you really want.

Something and you don't get it, maybe it's because there's a better thing out.

There for you or you don't know.

What that rejection is protecting you from rejection. Let's be completely real here. It is always going to be a little bit painful.

We have to acknowledge this to begin.

With because no matter how skilled you become at managing rejection, no matter how.

Much you appreciate the many doors it.

Ends up opening, no matter how much.

You lean in your first instinct is always going to be one of hurt. It hurts because it naturally taps into a very human instinct to be accepted, to belong, and in some cases to be validated by someone else's approval of you and your choices.

In that way, rejection feels like, I.

Think, nothing short of a personal reflection of our character. Even when it has nothing to do.

With you, that person who rejected you romantically, they truly might not be ready to date yet the job that you didn't get.

It truly might be the case that they just found someone with a few.

More years of experience, your friends, they.

May have just been hanging out by accident, not to deliberately exclude you.

Yet it still really, really hurts.

No matter how many rational thoughts we.

Have about it, no matter how much.

Evidence we have that this rejection was.

May neither personal, intentional or that much of a big deal.

Most of us have been conditioned to.

Feel this way, to approach rejection irrationally and personally. It's what we call a pro social instinct. So something within us that naturally arises to keep us in check, to keep us behaving the way society wants us to imagine. If you did not feel weird at all about being rejected, it would also mean that you didn't need social approval.

But you also wouldn't care or consider others opinions or feelings.

You can really see how far that could go in the wrong direction. We do kind of need this semi understanding and reaction to rejection to keep us friendly, to keep us as a.

Functioning member of society. But here's the other extreme direction it.

Can go in as well.

Being so paralyzed by the possibility of.

Rejection that you and your life stay entirely still.

Every big action, decision, pursuit of anything.

Worthwhile having, it comes with the possibility of being rejected.

It comes with the possibility of it not working out.

So if you fear rejection, essentially you.

Will end up fearing life.

You'll end up fearing anything new or uncomfortable. There was an amazing article published in Harvard Business Review a couple of years ago titled Rejection is critical for Success. That explains how a fear of rejection is actually going to keep you trapped in an invisible life.

This article essentially says that when you fear rejection or you can't handle it.

It can result in two kinds of dysfunctional patterns.

Entitlement or resignation.

Entitlement.

[Morgan Absher]

We'll talk about that one.

[Gemma Spag]

First is when we feel like we deserve certain benefits no matter the reality of the situation. Our feeling of rejection comes from not.

Getting what we think we're entitled to.

With no appreciation for maybe the reality of the situation or the fact that.

Rejection is part of life.

Something we all have to encounter this reaction is not as common as the.

Second kind of dysfunctional thinking, which is resignation. We avoid situations when we might be.

Rejected because we see rejection as not.

Just an absolute certainty, but something extremely.

Painful and we cannot bear the possibility of it occurring.

This is where the possibility of an invisible life comes in. It occurs because you never put yourself in a position to receive what you.

Truly deserve and desire because the chances.

You'Re probably not going to get it the first time round, you would have to deal with rejection. You can't handle that, meaning you don't try at all. But my friends, rejection is a doorway, not a dead end. It shifts you onto a different timeline.

One that I believe will always be.

Better because what is right for you won't miss. You ask any single person you admire and they will tell you a story.

Of rejection and a story of rejection.

That ended up changing their life for the better. They probably will even have multiple examples.

Any successful person has to thank rejection for where they are now because it probably pushed them, it motivated them, but it also.

There's a great possibility that it ended up protecting them from a life they were convinced they wanted when something bigger.

Was out there all along. You know, they have been rejected from.

Schools, they've been rejected from funding rounds, their music has been rejected, their manuscripts.

Have been rejected, their art has been rejected. And despite all of that, it turns out the path they took to be where they are now was the one.

That needed to happen all along. Trust me, every single person you admire.

Has a story like this.

Rejection is a necessary part of any dream life.

Because if you are being rejected, it.

Means you're trying for something that isn't.

Immediately available to you, I. E. You're.

Not just trying for the easiest option. You're trying for more. And that's a good thing. You're asking for more. You're wanting more for yourself. Maybe you're not getting that straight away.

But one day something will click. Someone will say, yes, it's going to.

Work out for you. And it means that you haven't settled for something that was less than what you wanted.

You've put yourself out there, you've asked for something more. Psychologically, the more we tolerate rejection as.

Well, the less we fear judgment, the more we can be directors of our own life. And the more we have a mindset of growth and opportunity instead of fear and stagnation.

Think about this for me right now.

Where would you be? What could you have? What would you ask for? More importantly, what would you be doing?

If you didn't fear rejection, if for the next year you suddenly did not.

Fear rejection, what kind of life could.

You build and what would be the.

First thing that you would try?

This possibility is one that we really.

Need to invest in.

And I think that this thought exercise.

Really allows us to see that we miss more from a fear of rejection than from being rejected. Because we miss opportunities where the answer may have easily been a yes by telling ourselves no.

It's so simple. You may roll your eyes at me.

But if you don't ask, the answer.

Is always going to be a no. Therefore, you've actually self rejected before you.

Even got to the start line, before you even gave anyone else an opportunity to doubt you, you have doubted yourself. Rejection is also not a failure. Please, I need people to see it.

This way, that rejection is a badge of honor. It is proof that you tried and.

That you are further along just by trying than not at all.

And it's also a mirror for what you want.

If something stings, if you feel let down by an opportunity you didn't get romantically, in your career, in your friendships, in your life in general, financially, in terms of your art, whatever it is.

That would not hurt if that was not something that you desired, and if that is not something that is going to motivate you in the future, it is a mirror to what you truly value and what you truly want to invest your time and energy in.

It's also a motivator.

Nothing motivates people more than having someone.

Tell them no and wanting to prove that it should have been a yes.

It might not be the healthiest thing at all times, but it's definitely something that's going to get stuff done.

It's definitely something that's going to put.

A flame under you to move forward.

And to do more and to seek.

More opportunities for yourself. When we think about rejection, I don't.

Think these reflections are immediately what comes.

Up, because our initial reaction is dominated.

By quite a primal feeling of fear.

But when we start to actually interrogate.

The purpose, the meaning behind rejection, but also the blessing that it sometimes is.

We can think about it more expansively.

And maybe with time.

This helps us feel like any ending is actually quietly the start of something.

A lot more aligned.

All right, coming up, let's get personal. I'm going to share some of the moments in my life when I was rejected, full stop, only to realize later on it was the exact redirection I needed.

Stay tuned.

We'll be right back after this brief, brief pause.

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Now that we've looked at the meaning behind today's mantra, I accept that rejection is redirection. It's time to get personal with you.

Guys and share some of my own.

Insights and reflections about this phrase. I wish I could tell you the amount of times I've been rejected.

I wish I could give you that list, but the list is way too long.

People who have rejected me romantically, jobs.

I didn't get, opportunities I was turned.

Down for, apartments I didn't end up renting, friends that excluded me. I'm actually Very proud of those moments.

Though, because they have made me so much stronger.

They've also brought me to where I am today. And you know what?

I love my life.

And that means I have to be.

Grateful for what got me here, including the things that I thought I wanted.

And I didn't know any better when I didn't realize what was coming.

You can, of course, still mourn those things. I was sad in those moments. Sometimes I was sad for months afterwards.

But what would I have missed instead? And is there really any way of knowing that my life would have, in fact, been better if I had gotten my own way?

[Morgan Absher]

The answer is no.

[Gemma Spag]

But I can reflect on the fact.

That I'm happy right now and allow.

That to be evidence that it worked.

Out in my favor.

I also think that at some stage.

All of us are going to be able to look back and think, all along, this was the right direction for me. All along there was this path forward.

And I only was able to see it clearly.

In hindsight, sometimes it's shocking.

I'm like, how did I not see this?

How did I not know? How was I not aware that this was the great thing that was coming for me and I was ignoring it? I was turning my back to an incredible life and incredible things because I was begging for something. I was begging for opportunities, relationships, people who didn't want me, but also who.

Weren'T meant to be in my life. Sometimes you just have to lean into the chaos and lean into the confusion.

Of rejection and just know that even.

If right now you don't see a.

Reason in this, I promise you, at some point, you most certainly will. I actually want to tell you a story of something like this happening to me.

A story of something I desperately wanted.

Back in the day, but that didn't work out, and. And in hindsight, I'm very grateful that it didn't. I want to talk about this job. So when I was finishing university, I really wanted this one job. I'm not going to say the company.

But it was a big consulting company.

And I really wanted to work for them. All of these people were working for them, who I really admired.

It was good money.

I just was a little bit lost in my career, and it was kind of a nondescript job that I felt qualified for. And I put everything into this application, and I didn't get it. Actually, the person who ended up getting it was someone who I went to uni with and someone who I knew, and I was so jealous of them. I was like, wow. But I worked so hard. I know I have better grades than you. Like, I know I deserve this. All ego, ego and pride talking. And because I didn't get that job, I felt very downtrodden, and I went away and I took a couple weeks off to hang out with my grandma. I'd also just been through a breakup. It was a hard time. And in response to maybe a combination of experiences, I started a podcast. I started the psychology of your 20s. And I had all this free time now because I wasn't starting in this position to work on this hobby that.

I had to work on this little.

Side project that just brought me joy. The thing is, I did end up getting a consulting job. And only two years into that job, I quit a for the podcast, the podcast that I had started when I.

Was rejected from the very first job.

The podcast that is now my career, my dream job, everything that I had hoped for in a profession, in a job title.

And all along here I was grieving.

This life and grieving this opportunity that I thought was going to make me happy, when it was truly the biggest blessing, the biggest. It didn't happen for me. And I don't know what that person who got that job is doing. I really hope they're having a great time, and I'm sure that was what worked out for them. But I'm also sure that there were.

Rejections that got them to there as well.

Each of us is on our own path, and rejection is really a fork in the road. And it's the thing that provides us with direction. If you think about it, if you got accepted or approved or said yes to every single time you asked for something, every single time you wanted something, what kind of story would that be? It wouldn't be a great story. You'd be very comfortable, I'm sure. You also wouldn't be extending yourself. You wouldn't be pushing yourself. You wouldn't know what it felt like to have the reward of asking and getting a no and a no and a no, and then finally getting a yes. And how sweet and incredible that is. Now, did I know that this was gonna happen? I didn't know it was gonna happen. But it's funny how in hindsight, the.

Path just seems so much more clear.

You know, you can't see it in the moment because fear and ego is up in our brains, binging away, trying to deal with the ambiguity and the.

Unknowns by stirring up even more anxiety for us. But what we need to counteract that with is trust. Now, I'll say Ego and rejection go hand in hand. When we are rejected, it really inflames the part of us that of course.

Feels we deserve what we asked for, feels we deserve what we wanted.

Ego is also coming from a place of insecurity.

Ego is a mask for insecurity and much deeper, darker fears. And when we are rejected and we feel that, you know, real downward surge of confidence and we feel really awful.

Sometimes we need the artificial arrogance of.

Ego to boost us up, to bolster us up and to make us feel confident and strong. It also makes us feel entitled. It also stops us from humbling ourselves and going forward with an open mindset and a mindset of acceptance towards rejection.

Knowing it's going to happen, knowing that it's important. Like I said, this is where we.

Need to counteract ego.

A fear of rejection with trust.

Trust that the right thing will find you.

Trust that you are perhaps capable and deserving of more than what you are asking for.

Trust that what is coming is better.

Than what has been.

Trust that even if a situation doesn't work out the way that you want it to, even if you are rejected.

You are going to make the most.

Of what has occurred, you're going to make the most of your life, and.

You'Re going to find beauty and joy.

In any situation that you end up in, even if it's not the ideal one.

Secondly, I think we really need to make rejection more of a practice.

You know, I think a lot of us go through the early stages of our lives not really being rejected in quite a critical, severe way. That can mean that the older we get, if we've been perhaps a little bit concealed from the world or wrapped up in bubble wrap by our parents, when rejection finally does happen, it's so big and scary and it holds so much more weight and power than it needs to. I don't know if you've heard about this practice. It's called rejection therapy or rejection exposure therapy. It's a practice that a lot of people are adopting where they deliberately put themselves in situations where they know they're.

Going to be rejected as a way.

To not avoid it in the future, as a way to feel comfortable with.

The sensations that will come up and treat them as normal.

So these people do things like ask people on the street for $50, knowing that no one's going to give them $50, or they will busk and sing terribly, knowing that no one is going to donate any money to them. They'll ask a really attractive person out on a date. Some people Even do things like ask for their groceries to be free, like things that are never going to happen, that someone is going to say, no way. And then they are allowed to adapt to the fact that they're fine. The feeling of being rejected is, at the end of the day, still temporary. And essentially it's like cold water therapy. Like, the more you experience it, the more you take the plunge, the less the shock is when it happens for real. I would also say keep your focus on the next thing. Keep focusing on what is coming around the corner, on what next opportunity you.

Can pursue, on the future relationships, the.

Future friends, the future whatever it is that you want that you're not even aware of yet.

Don't ruminate on everything that you've lost in the past.

Keep your eyes on the future. And instead of making rejection, this opinionated.

Personal thing, instead of feeling like you.

Need to blame yourself or blame someone.

Or that life is unfair, neutralize this.

Experience of rejection by saying statements like, okay, well, that needed to happen.

That obviously wasn't right for me. Then I'll learn from these circumstances.

I'll be grateful for it one day.

Things happened outside of my control that have nothing to do with me.

Rejection doesn't need to be this all in personal experience that completely destroys your.

Confidence and destroys your sense of self.

And is a complete personal reflection of you. It's allowed to be a neutral experience that's just happened to you. The way that rain just happens to you. The way that a bad day sometimes just happens to you. Sometimes rejection just happens to you.

And with all that in mind, I'd.

Love to share our deep thought of.

The day which comes from the Dalai Lama.

Are sometimes not getting what you want is actually a wonderful stroke of luck.

When we're deeply invested in a goal.

An outcome, a person, it's obviously natural.

To feel crushed when things don't go our way. But what we often don't see in that moment is that, yes, rejection may be sparing us from something that wasn't right for us.

And therefore it is a magical stroke of luck.

I think about this relationship that I.

Really wanted to be in when I was 20 with someone who was just so not right for me and it hurt so much when it didn't work out. But I think if I had been in that relationship, I might be married now. I might be with someone who actually didn't even like me. I might be with someone who wasn't going to take care of me, who wasn't actually what I wanted. And I would have tried anything to.

Fit myself into their life and into.

Their perception of me. I think that's quite a curse. And the rejection, although at the time.

It stung, saved me from that life. And over time you gain that clarity. I think having this mindset as well of rejection as redirection also allows us.

To be resilient and allows us to partake in something called cognitive reframing, the.

Ability to reinterpret a situation in a more empowering light. It allows us to find meaning in hardship, and sometimes that's the best antidote.

Or best soother there is to just.

Know that even if something is painful.

There is something deeper going on below the surface. There is a trust that we have to have in the unknown that perhaps.

Is unnatural, but it's going to mean.

That we suffer less now and in the future. Now I'd like us to really take.

A few moments to pause and sit with this mantra. In just a moment, you'll hear a custom music track to help create space for you to absorb today's insights and consider how you might bring this mantra into your week, maybe even beyond.

If this practice isn't your style, if it doesn't resonate with you, that's totally okay.

Feel free to Skip ahead about 30.

Seconds, but as you settle in, keep.

Our mantra in mind.

I accept that rejection is redirection. Let it guide your thoughts, think about previous times you've been rejected, where it's ended up being a great thing, and just give yourself a moment to reflect.

And connect with what this mantra means for you. I love this practice.

It's always so beautiful.

It brings so much up for me.

After this break break, we're going to talk through these reflections even further and.

Turn them into something tangible.

I'll share some journal prompts and our weekly challenge to help you bring this mantra to life, so stick around for more after this short break.

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[Gemma Spag]

Welcome back.

Now that we've explored the meaning behind.

Today'S mantra, let's talk about how it can show up in your real everyday life.

Starting with a few thoughtful journal prompts.

Based on this week's mantra, I accept.

That rejection is redirection.

Firstly, are there any rejections you've internalized as personal failures that you can now reframe or release that you can now neutralize? Secondly, what are you still waiting for closure on and what would happen if.

You gave yourself permission to move forward.

Without it and accept that something bigger and better was coming your way?

And finally, if you trusted that every.

Rejection was actually redirecting you towards something better.

What would you stop chasing? And what would you start welcoming instead?

I want to add a final bonus question on here, which is, what would.

Your life look like if, for the next month, you didn't care about rejection at all?

What is the first thing you would go out and do?

And listening to this mantra? Do you feel more prepared to go.

Out and do it every week? You guys know I also share a challenge inspired by our mantra, to help.

You take what we discuss and turn it into real, actionable steps in your life.

I'd love to hear how it's going, actually. So reach out to me at Mantra openmind each month. You guys also know I respond to.

Your questions and comments in our special.

Bonus episode, which is available exclusively on Open Mind Plus. So, please, when you're doing this exercise, keep me in the loop. I want to know. But this week, I want you to identify one opportunity, relationship, or version of the past that you've been mentally circling. And this week, I want you to commit to symbolically closing that door, whether through journaling a voice memo, deleting an.

Old message thread, or simply acknowledging that it's time to move on. How can you feel better about the fact that. That perhaps this rejection is taking you somewhere else?

I'm going to give one more bonus.

Challenge as well, which is I want you to practice that rejection therapy we were talking about. I want you to do something this.

Week that you know is going to get you rejected, or maybe even a.

Couple of things, and just see how you manage that experience.

And as a reminder, reach out @mantra.

Openmind on Instagram to share how this challenge is working for you.

All right, as we wrap up this week's episode, I want to share a.

Few final thoughts about this mantra.

I accept that rejection is redirection. I really do believe that.

Sometimes we don't know what's good for us. Sometimes we don't actually know what we want.

We're kind of like blind children who would eat all the candy in the world if we could get our hands on it. We're chasing these things that are actually going to make us feel terrible.

[Unknown]

Terrible.

[Gemma Spag]

And when we don't get them, we.

Feel equally terrible in that moment.

But it's saving us from future discomfort, future hurt. A path that maybe we really didn't actually want to take.

Rejection is painful.

You are allowed to mourn those opportunities. But I can think of more examples where rejection has saved me than it has harmed me in my own life. And I'm reminded of that, that every single day it can feel like an ending.

But more often, please remember it's the.

Beginning of a different story that you.

Never saw coming, that you never expected.

That just might be even more brilliant. Yes, everyone's path through life is different and it might twist and detour or stall. It's still leading you somewhere meaningful. So this week and beyond, trust the redirection.

Let it show you what's waiting for.

You on the other side, the of of your fear.

[Kin Moore]

Thank you for joining Mantra, an exclusive Open Mind original Powered by Pave Studios. At Open Mind, we value your support, so share your thoughts on social media and remember to rate, review and follow Mantra to help others discover the show. For ad free listening and early access to Mantra with me, Gemma Spag. We invite you to subscribe to Open Mind plus on Apple Podcasts. I will share another insightful and introspective Mantra with you next Monday. Until then, keep showing up for yourself and your journey. I'm Gemma Speg. See you next week.

[Gemma Spag]

Mantra is hosted by me, Gemma Spag.

[Kin Moore]

And is an Open Mind original powered by Pave Studios.

[Gemma Spag]

This episode was brought to life by the Mantra team.

[Kin Moore]

Max Cutler, Kristin Acevedo, Ron Shapiro, Stacy Warren Kerr, Sarah Camp and Paul Lieberskin.

[Gemma Spag]

Thank you for listening.

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[Kin Moore]

Just search Clues wherever you listen to podcasts.