So, the summer of 2020-2021 was an interesting one for me. Six months earlier I had left my job. No, not just a job, a career. Eight years working as an intelligence analyst in the Air Force and I was finally getting to a position where my skills, experience and reputation were paying off; people knew who I was and respected my work… but I wasn’t happy.
Now cut to my summer of rejection. I have finished my first semester of my Master of Public Health, I am bright-eyed and bushy-tailed, and brimming with confidence in my abilities and my new career path. I know how to write a resume - I actually have things to put on my resume. I’m thinking, ‘getting part-time work is going to be a breeze’. And what do you know, my dream job was advertised! Two days a week, working as a sexual health educator for teenagers and parents. It’s the role I was born for! So, I tailor my resume, put on my most youthful outfit for the one min video and eagerly await the email asking for an interview. But… it never came. Instead, I got the 'thanks, but no thanks email.'
'Oh well,' I think, 'I’m a grown woman, ask for some feedback, get better and move forward! The next opportunity is just around the river bend!'
So, I apply for another amazing job, working on the phone lines for an abortion and contraceptive clinic. I think, ‘so what if I don’t have all the experience they are looking for, I’m a hard worker who is eager to learn! So, I apply, and this time… nothing. And I think, ‘ok, they found someone who has all the same qualities and passion for women’s health, but, they also had call centre experience’, I can accept that.
This was a nice bubble, a very safe and peaceful bubble I was living in. Until a few weeks later, what do I see on ethicaljobs.com, but the same ad! They never found a candidate! But surely, they got my resume?? Maybe they just didn’t see my mental health training, or I didn’t emphasize how my studies complement this role enough? So, I improve my resume and apply again. And again… nothing. And now, I face the fact that they did see my resume, twice in fact, and still… no interest.
This wasn’t the only rejection I faced in the summer of 2020-2021, there were others. And it all made me start to question my worth. Maybe I don’t have anything of value, maybe it’s just me they don’t want… I should ask for my old job back!
But then, I saw the Womendeavour ad. And finally, the fit was right. Not only did I get the job, but they asked me to step up into one of the strategic positions. I realised that my summer of rejection had taken all my confidence and made me feel so small that I couldn’t see my value anymore. I assumed I had nothing to bring to the organisation, completely discounting my years of hard work and experience.
My key takeaway from my summer: stop seeing your worth through the opportunities you don’t get. There are so many reasons why we do or don’t get a job. Yes, learn from those moments. Get feedback where you can, keep expanding your experiences, so the next time your dream job comes along, you are the perfect fit. But don’t let those rejections define your value. They are just stepping stones on your career journey.
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