Smorgasbord – Posts from Your Archives – Rejection: the Ultimate Teacher by Tina Frisco

Welcome to the series where you can share four of your links from your archives here on my blog to a new audience. Perhaps posts that you wrote at the beginning of your blogging experience that deserve another showcase. If you have book promotion posts then please contact me separately for other options. Details of how to get in touch with me at the end of the post.

Today Tina Frisco puts a different spin on rejection. It is rare for anyone to go through their lives without some form of this hurtful action from others. Tina however looks at this as an opportunity to grow and evolve as a person.

Rejection: the Ultimate Teacher by Tina Frisco

Image is courtesy of Lucie Stastkova

Rejection comes in many forms, from many places, and is very painful. What makes rejection so devastating? What causes us to react in a particular way? How can we use rejection to our advantage?

On a purely instinctual level, rejection threatens to extinguish our life force by depriving us of vital nourishment. No being can truly thrive without some measure of love and acceptance.

Rejection devastates when we attach our personal worth to someone or something outside of ourselves. Feeling worthy only when liked and accepted by those with whom we engage sets the stage for rejection.

When feeling disliked or ignored by another, it is wise to step back and view that person’s behavior as a mirror of our own subconscious mind. Often the things we do not like in ourselves are reflected back to us by others, giving us an opportunity to examine what prompts us to react and how we might change. This not only buffers the impact, but also opens the door to personal growth. Becoming the witness rather than the victim allows us to determine if our behavior rather than our essence is being rejected, or if the other person’s bias is in play, and/or if we simply are misreading all the cues.

Behavior learned throughout childhood is largely determined within the context of the example set by the adults in our lives. When we incarnate, we become blank slates to be imprinted upon by everyone and everything around us. We react to external stimuli positively or negatively, based on whether our basic needs are met or neglected. As we mature, we learn we have choices. Those choices include how we feel and whether we react to or act on those feelings.

The key to using rejection to our advantage lies in remaining objective. However, behaving as an unattached witness can be difficult when our impulse is either to strike or withdraw. If we recognize impulse as being instinctual – a reflex action rather than a thought process – then we are taking a first step toward understanding our feelings and turning rejection into a positive learning experience.

When observing animals in the wild, it becomes clear that instinct is, in part, a survival mechanism. Although we humans do not live in the wild, we find it impossible at times not to react. Generally speaking, however, our survival does not depend on ‘fight or flee.’ Most often we have the advantage of time and space within which to consider our options and teach ourselves to behave differently. We are capable of changing our behavior and, quite possibly, our feelings. With a little practice, we can move ourselves to the threshold of choice: act or react. Success in achieving this pivots on focusing our intention.

Change occurs in three stages: (1) we witness our behavior after we have reacted; (2) we take note while we are reacting; (3) we stop ourselves before we react. When we reach the final stage, our behavior reflects choice (act on) rather than reflex (react to). Since most change occurs over time, perseverance becomes vital to success. Yet once we are rooted in firm resolve, observing ourselves can be fascinating.

In order to use rejection to our advantage – in order to grow from what would otherwise be a devastating experience – it is imperative that we detach the measure of our self-worth from anything external and instead focus our attention inward. We start by witnessing, acknowledging, and owning our behavior; then we commit to changing the behavior and persist until we reach the level of choice; and finally, we consciously manifest the change.

Deciding not to change is also a valid choice. Either way, the key element lies in remaining objective and being our own best witness.

Emotions are raw and capable of consuming us. It is important to recognize what we feel and what we do as mutually exclusive. Feeling rejected is arguably an instinctual response, while wallowing in rejection is a choice that wastes precious time and vital energy.

The line between feeling and wallowing is of the utmost importance. It is on this line where we acknowledge, examine, and own all of who we are and how we behave. It is where we give voice to what we feel and allow that voice to be heard by our body, mind, and spirit. It is where we accept ourselves in totality and recognize self-acceptance as a vital element in the process of change. Without recognition, negative emotions infest our subconscious and compel us to wear a false face in the world, for we are controlled by that which we refuse to acknowledge.

Gratitude is equally as important as recognition and acknowledgement. Just as food sustains the body, raw emotions serve in sustaining our life force. Thanking them before letting go and moving on will put the subconscious at ease, discourage it from seeking a detrimental substitute, and encourage it to welcome and accept the changes we have worked so hard to achieve.

Even if we are unable to change our raw emotions, we can change how we act on them. Owning all of our behavior and accepting ourselves completely makes it easier to view another’s behavior toward us as a mirror of our own subconscious mind.

What we think, we become. Raw emotions can become a force for positive change. Rejection can be experienced as a welcomed teacher. Energy follows thought.

Until the next time, my friends,

Namaste ❤ 

© Tina Frisco 2017

About Tina Frisco

Tina Frisco is an author, singer-songwriter, RN, activist, and student of shamanism. Born in Pennsylvania USA, she attended nursing school in New York and lives in California. She began writing as a young child and received her first guitar at age 14, which launched her passion for music and songwriting. She has performed publicly in many different venues. Her publishing history includes book reviews; essays; articles in the field of medicine; her début novel, PLATEAU; her children’s book, GABBY AND THE QUADS; and her latest novel, VAMPYRIE. She enjoys writing, reading, music, dancing, arts and crafts, exploring nature, and frequently getting lost in working crossword puzzles.

Books by Tina Frisco

One of the most recent reviews for Plateau

Spiritually Moving and Uplifting By Madelyn Griffith-Haynie on September 14, 2017

FIRST I must say that I loved this gentle little book. I devoured it in a single evening, so entranced by the story that I didn’t want to stop to read the inspiring quotes from Lynn V. Andrew’s Power Deck that began each chapter. Once I reached the end of the book I had to go back for the quotes, skimming each following chapter a second time.

NOW I must say that I have struggled with how I could possibly write a review — I’ve never read another book quite like it.

Other reviewers here have given you as much as you need to become familiar with the book’s “environment” – if I can call it that, introducing you to a few of the characters – so I won’t repeat similar content. But they can’t convey the deeply spiritual, uplifting essence of the book that, to me, is what makes it remarkable. Plateau never pontificates, but rather seduces the reader to come to his or her own spiritual realizations as the story unfolds.

I suppose the most impactful thing I can say is that I was infused with a sense of well-being when I finally put down my Kindle and turned off the light. I was in such a calm and totally relaxed positive state of mind that I transitioned easily and almost immediately into a deep sleep – a rare experience in my life.

Read all the reviews and buy the books: https://www.amazon.com/Tina-Frisco/e/B009NMOFNY

And on Amazon UK: https://www.amazon.co.uk/Tina-Frisco/e/B009NMOFNY

Read more reviews and follow Tina on Goodreads: http://www.goodreads.com/author/show/6497599.Tina_Frisco

Here is how you can connect to Tina on her website and social media.

Website ~ http://tinafrisco.com
Amazon ~ http://hyperurl.co/3vme2a
Facebook ~ https://www.facebook.com/TinaFrisco.Author
Twitter ~ http://bit.ly/14VXY49
LinkedIn ~ http://linkd.in/1aAGwXl
Google+ ~ http://bit.ly/1Fc1Uzn
Goodreads ~ http://bit.ly/165vmVp

My thanks to Tina for sharing this post with us on rejection. She will be in this slot on Saturdays for the next two weeks. I hope you will head over to her blog and read her more current posts too.

If you have up to four blog posts in your archives that you would like to share with my audience, then send the links to sally.cronin@moyhill.com.

Thanks for dropping by.. Sally