It sucks to hear the word "no."
Even when you've gotten rejected thousands of times (as any successful person has), it's still discouraging.
When you hear the word "no"— when a proposal of yours gets rejected — it's easy to think that there might be something wrong with the proposal. Or worse, you.
So it's helpful to remember that everyone has heard the word "no."
Lots of investors passed on Facebook, Google, Twitter, et al, for example.
Lots of publishers sniffed at "Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone" (the U.K. title of the original book before one brave U.S. publisher finally bought it).
And at least one record company, it seems, rejected the early recordings of an unknown teenage Dublin band called "U2."
U2, needless to say, is one of the most successful bands in history. And the record label that said "no?" They're almost certainly toast.
So have a look at this U2 rejection letter that @uberfacts just tweeted around every time you get rejected. Use the feedback to improve your proposal or presentation, perhaps. But don't spend a single second doubting yourself just because you heard the word "no."
A rejection letter Bono received from a record label in 1979. pic.twitter.com/iUL7Nah9t9
— UberFacts (@UberFacts) March 4, 2014