How many times have you wanted to ask a question but fear of rejection stopped you? ....(Hopefully not a lot.) How many times have you heard the word, "No"? ....(Wow all those times, and look at that you are still alive!) Don't let rejection kill you! Yes it might hurt, cause some tears, and spark depression, but don't let it strip away your sparkle. You all have no idea how many times a day I have to repeat the "Don't Die Afraid" motto internally. Every time I think there will be a negative outcome to something, I have to remind myself, "Go for it, what the hek are you afraid of? You're not living fearlessly! Snap out of it!"

These negatives thoughts usually materialize in the face of competition....Mental competition that is, my mind distorts reality sometimes to make everything into a competition. My brain works in odd ways, so let me break it down for you. About a month ago I saw an Instagram post calling for DC Bloggers to attend the Ultimate Brown Beauty Retreat. Initially, I thought, "Yay, that's me!....But what if they are looking for someone with a larger audience? I'm convinced Google Analytics overestimates my numbers...What if they want a media kit?....I haven't been writing frequently enough this month....They aren't looking for small bloggers like me, I'm not going to email them. I'll just buy a general ticket." 

Do you see how problematic thinking like that can be? I made assumptions about why I wasn't worthy. What is the worst that could have happened? I e-mail them and they say, "No sorry, you don't fit into the demographic we are looking for." Then I would have just bought a regular ticket and called it a day, it wouldn't have been the end of the world.

After reminding myself to live fearlessly, I sent the e-mail and was overjoyed when I received a response inviting me to be one of the guest bloggers! Well, look at that! If I would have let all my unjustifiable concerns prevent me from reaching out, I would have missed an amazing opportunity. What I learned from this experience is that you'll never know what the response is until you ask the question.

Have you found yourself in a similar situation lately? How do you handle someone saying, "No"?