Raise your hand if you’ve ever felt personally victimised by rejection. *Whole unified artist community raises its hand*.

You can’t truly count yourself as a musician until you have survived the pain of rejection and lived to write a song about it. No one in this world is immune to it, and in a profession that entails wearing your heart on the sleeve of your leather jacket and then singing about it, you learn to accept it, respect it and then weaponise it.

Thanks for the tragedy, we wrote the songbook for it

Musicians have written and performed countless soundtracks dedicated to the joys and sorrows of human existence. Whether it's rejection from heartbreak, loss, missed opportunity, or being overlooked or expelled, there exists a song that illustrates the silver lining to our dark clouds if you dare to embrace the weather and play the game. Badass.

You are part of a community built from rejects, so consider yourself lucky, my friend

Whole genres of music were created by society's outcasts and dedicated to the pain of life. It wasn’t that long ago that musicians weren’t allowed to play because of the colour of their skin or their gender stereotype. We still struggle with gender pay gaps in the entertainment industry even though it is no longer male-dominated, and it blows my mind that aesthetics still rule the world of sound.Ella Fitzgerald couldn't even get in the door because of all the reasons listed above, plus the fact that she "looked" like a struggling artist. Madonna lacked substance, Ed Sheeran was too ginger, and the Beatles didn’t have "it".People will give you a million subjective reasons why they don't think you're good enough. It’s up to you to decide whether or not to listen.You are too tough to die, fam!

Speaking of, Self-rejection is the real dream-killer

Love yourself the way Kanye loves Kanye. The real tragedy happens after you go home and stop creating and putting yourself out there because you believe that you aren’t good enough. Not everyone will see your potential, and even if they do, it doesn't mean you'll be awarded a chance.Marilyn Monroe rallied for Ella to play at a nightclub that wouldn't allow black entertainers, but after her first night, it was evident she would never play a small lounge show again because of her talent. Imagine if Ella had turned it down because she knew that the larger society had not yet accepted her? She was there for herself.

Don't take yourself out of the game just when things might be getting good

And if you need more perspective, think of all the successful people out there with questionable talent, living their dreams. The only difference between them and you is that they believed in themselves enough to go for it.

Write your own definition for rejection

Just like we write our own definition of success, accept that rejection is a part of our vocabulary, but luckily it’s up for interpretation. Instead of personalising rejection and turning it into failure, use it as an opportunity to reflect and reevaluate so you can grow from your experience. See it as a sign that’s redirecting you to an even better path.Now, when someone tries to mess me around and I get that gut feeling that something doesn't align with my values, I will pull the plug. Sometimes rejection means having the power to reject situations for yourself.

If your urge to create is stronger than your urge for success, you’re going to be just fine

Like all things in life, success will come and go as fast as the seasons, but your love for creating is the thing that will keep you going in the tough times. You didn't pick this gig because it guaranteed you the sweet life, however, it did promise you that you would feel something. After all, there were easier paths to get there.

If all else fails, remember, you rejected stability and chose the infinitely stimulating chaos of music instead

You chose it because you felt it was worth the risk of uncertainty to live a life full of passion and creativity that could only be accomplished as a musician. Or maybe you had the intense urge to express yourself in a way that you just could not in a well-written contractual agreement. Otherwise, you would have gone on to pursue a career in IP law after you graduated instead of getting your knuckles tattooed. - True story, ask my mum about her daughter (me).