So when I was kid, I remember loving a song from Sesame Street called "The Subtraction Blues."
(from the 21-23:30 min. mark)
I would hang out on the front porch of my house with my brother and sister, leaning casually on the steps, and listen to David (the second African American male cast member on Sesame Street) croon out the BLUES.....well the kiddie Blues. Back then I really thought I had an idea of what it was like to truly feel down in the dumps about the hard knocks of life. I mean what kid wouldn't understand having to give up or lose slice after slice of his own personal pizza?
For those of you who are unfamiliar with the song I'm talking about, David just couldn't seem to catch a break...or keep his pizza from disappearing in front of his very eyes - he took loss after loss until his beloved pizza was gone and he was left with nothing but the blues..."The Subtraction Blues."
In my current state of perpetual rejection – in the form of rejection emails, rejection voicemails, and the oh so subtle "YOU SUCK SO BAD we won't waste the time it would take to formally reject you" cold shoulder – I was brought back to this moment in my life. I really have a deeper understanding of the blues as a result of my constant encounters with rejection; rejection from jobs in my career field but especially those oh-so-coveted jobs at OLD NAVYs, DRESS BARNs, and WALMARTs all across America!
While I have been perfecting my never-ending tango with Rejection, I have come to realize that corporations and companies have perfected the art of rejection. Clearly they all have taken the same seminar on "How to Make a Desperate Unemployed Person Feel Even WORSE" and passed with flying colors. Was this a prerequisite for moving into upper-middle management? Did I miss the memo?!
Just for your entertainment (a few horror stories of my own):
Would you believe me if I told you that I walked into a place to apply for a job and the same man that told me that he was the manager (gave me his full name and business contact information) turned around and told me that I would need to speak to a manager when I called back to follow up on my job application? Well it did...there have to be laws against that sort of thing. Right? (nevertheless it happened)
Or better yet, would you believe me if I told you a company blew off all of my phone calls to check up on the status of my application, hung up on me regularly when I called, and then – after finally getting through to the manager– flat out told me they weren't hiring?! (This after the manager [the hiring manager] told me to my face that they were! She even too my application herself) I mean come on!!! Unemployed people have feelings too. We have dignity! I mean even bugs put up a fight when they are being swatted down left and right. Employers should extend common curtesy to potential employees or at the least try to think twice before blowing us off with such a lack of kindness...
Everyone knows rejection is a part of life. Sometimes people we like won't like us, we won't always get what we want, and there will be times when our best efforts won't ensure that we succeed. Despite these facts, I think we all deserve a few breaks every now and then and a kind let down is one of them. As the traffic to my Inbox seems to be dwindling and my voicemail box remains empty, It seems like I will have to continue this dance with Rejection. Until this pattern ends, I'll just have to keep singin the blues.....
"The Rejection Blues."
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