From rejection to victory — three important takeaways and reflections

In March 2015, I was in a pickle. It was the end of my junior college’s co-curricular activities (CCA) application, and I had nothing. (In Singapore, it is common, sometimes necessary, for every student to be involved in at least one extracurricular activity.)

It was my fault. I had applied for one and only one club, my school’s entrepreneurship club, the closest thing to the field of business which I had decided was (and still is) my passion and future career. I had set my mind on giving my all into this club, and only this.

And I had been rejected.

What happened? Honestly, I don’t know. Perhaps I just didn’t make the cut. I am not so entitled as to think I deserved to be in.

At that time, it was a devastating blow. Joining a club would have meant networking with those of similar interests, to be able consult experienced seniors, and have access to helpful resources to develop one’s knowledge and skills in this area. Such a valuable opportunity was gone in one fell swoop.

I was determined not to let go of this opportunity, or at least be absolutely sure I had tried my utmost, so I appealed.

But I was unsuccessful again.

At first, I didn’t know what to do. But what I did know is that no one, and no result, would dampen my aspirations and motivation. If I couldn’t join the business club, I had to learn business knowledge and develop my business skills through some other means.

It was then the Internet — that resource we all have and should therefore leverage on — truly revealed its glory. There were countless business reviews and commentaries, educational videos on YouTube and books from the library which more than covered various business strategies, theories and case studies. It was also then I was humbled into the realization there was so much more to learn and I could never be complacent in the pursuit of knowledge. (Takeaway #1)

But developing one’s skill required something else. It required practical experience. It was then I learnt another lesson: the importance of questioning assumptions and taking the initiative. (Takeaway #2)

The club was training and sending its members to participate in various business plan and entrepreneurship competitions, but there was nothing which said only club members could join. By simply making an effort to find out about these competitions, and sending an email enquiry to the organisers about whether I could join, these experiences can also be made available. At the worst, you get a non-response. There’s no harm and little cost in simply asking.

At first, though, it seemed hopeless. I was in it alone, whereas club members had seniors with experience and advice. I hadn’t gotten past the quarter-finals for some of them, while club members made it into the finals.

But again, there’s no harm in trying. The past competitions had been educational, so it’ll be a learning experience regardless. A year later, I joined the national Youth Innovation Challenge, organised by Singapore Management University (SMU). It was the last competition I could join before revision for the A Levels had to take precedence.

After a few months, of training by the organisers and valuable advice from our mentors, of advancing from the preliminaries to the semifinals to the finals, somehow, undoubtedly with massive good fortune, I managed to win the Senior Category of the competition.

The school’s club had also sent a team to participate in the competition, and they were great participants. They had gone through the same months-long process, and passed every hurdle as well. I know some of them personally as friends — we were from the same class. They got second place.

Now, I am certainly not gloating. The competition was close. Their idea and strategy, from development to presentation, was just as good, and it could have gone either way. In that sense, my victory was arbitrary, and certainly did not mean I was better (I’m certainly no expert.)

But I will not deny I was happy. I was happy not because of the victory itself, even if it did sweeten the deal. I was also happy not because I had proven ‘them’, whoever they are, wrong. I was happy simply because I had taken the initiative to grasp the opportunity to be there, to give myself the experience. (And the food at the finals was great too!).

As I left the competition venue that day, upon reflection, I stumbled upon that simple and cliché lesson. The last takeaway I had is the classic one we were taught, but which has remained true since: Persevere. Never give up. Don’t let failures and disappointments (and I’ve had many more since), get you down. (Takeaway #3)

After all, I’m now pursuing my studies and interest in business. Being rejected from the club in junior college had absolutely no effect on my pursuing my passion in university, and beyond. Maybe they even spurred me on.

That’s not to say the sting of failure will not be there, but it should serve as a motivator. If you really want something, you’ll work for it. And the good things never come easy.

And there’s more than one, in fact many, ways to succeed. So, if you meet a hurdle or obstacle that you can’t surmount, learn from it, and try again. Keep learning and keep trying. You’d improve, and when you eventually cross the next hurdle, the previous one wouldn’t matter much.

Perhaps you’d think I’m over-exaggerating this minor junior college-level competition. Who cares if I had gotten in, and won?

And yet, at that time, for an 18-year old who had to take action by himself, outside the bounds of the status quo, and without the explicit approval of authority, it was a personally-defining life experience, one that not only taught, but showed me, those three key principles that guide me to this day.

(Of course, I could say this with the hindsight of having gotten a victory, but even if you don’t believe me, whether I had won or not didn’t really matter in the end. After all, even if I didn’t win, I don’t think my current pursuits would be any different. What really mattered were the lessons I took away, and continue to live, since.)

*This was originally published on LinkedIn, minus some edits, on 28 February 2020.