There is no penalty for asking. You can apply to the same thing 10 times and no one’s gonna get mad at you. You can advertise something on the Internet and even if 99% of people think it’s dumb, 1% might think it’s really cool. You are always doing things for the one person who will give you the yes. And often one yes is enough. I’ve been trying to reframe my relationship with rejection from avoiding it to literally looking for rejection—going out there and risking the NOs. I’ve been doing it in really silly ways, like trying to buy an staff-only hoodie at my favorite grocery store and walking into restaurants when there are no reservations available, but also in meaningful ways like proposing writing collaborations and meeting new people. It’s so fun! I can’t believe I’ve been running away from it for so long.
Ava on looking for rejection:
This reminded me of Anonymous[1]’ post on how to become more agentic.
The replies to the accompanying tweet also have some fun examples of people asking for stuff—and getting it.
I know who wrote it because I’ve read the post before, but I want to respect their privacy.