The Word No
Regardless of our age or station in life, we rarely welcome the word no. Whether you are a toddler wanting a toy, a young man asking a girl to dance, or an entrepreneur seeking additional capital from investors, the word no brings with it the denial of what you want in that moment. This denial often brings with it a high level of intense emotion: the child will scream, saying that they are never leaving their room, the young man will swear off love, and the entrepreneur may lose faith in their idea and even themselves.
Fear of rejection is one of the most common fears adults have. This is tragic on the individual level, and a loss on the collective level as well. How much great art, how many novels and plays will never be seen because the artist was afraid of being told no? How many great business ideas and innovations never came to pass because the person was told no once, and never pursued the idea again? If fear of rejection and failure did not exist, our world may look very different than it does now.
Don't count yourself among the fallen souls who give up on their dreams and passions because someone may tell you no. If you engage in real estate investing or other entrepreneurial endeavors, then you are likely to hear no numerous times. One of the cornerstones of real estate investing is making offers in which the entire premise is that you will be told no far more than you will be told yes. Even knowing that, there are still people who are afraid to make those first real estate offers because it might be rejected. For those that have this fear of rejection, it needs to be dealt with head on.
Increasing Your Probability of Success
If you are crippled by the fact that you may hear a no to your idea, then you need to change your mind set. Robert Kiyosaki has stated, "the more I risk being rejected, the better my chances are of being accepted." This is a diametrically opposite way of approaching the same situation that cripples those paralyzed by fear. Instead of focusing on the possibility of a no, it focuses on the possibility of a yes. Let's use an example to further illustrate this point.
An entrepreneur has a business idea that will require a certain amount of business capital in order to start. The dreams of the entrepreneur are big, have been well thought out, and now, just need a touch of capital to get going. This would-be entrepreneur has identified five sources of potential investment capital. It is very easy to calculate his chance to succeed if he is too fearful to make a presentation to these potential investors, as it is zero. This entrepreneur's chances of acceptance go up the more willing the entrepreneur is of being rejected.
Once this process starts, it generally feeds off itself. Most fears can be overcome through prolonged exposure to the source of the fear, or through repetition of the fearful act. That first no may truly be emotional and hard to deal with. The fifth no may cause frustration. However, at some point, after hearing no enough, character traits such as determination, perseverance, and tenacity start to form. In your quest in searching for that yes, as long as you don't stop trying along the way, you are likely to emerge a much stronger person than you were before. Often times the only way to get started is to put ourselves out there time and time again. Whether it is making offers in real estate or pitching your business idea to investors, you have no chance if you don't make the attempt. Search for that yes, search for that acceptance, and grow off of each no you hear.
Furthering Your Chance of Success
Human beings are not a mathematical equation nor are they a game of chance. If, on your next proposal, you do exactly what you did on the most recently rejected one, then you have done nothing to increase your chances of hearing a yes. Instead of wallowing in your rejection misery, when you get home, or to a place where you can think, analyze what might have gone wrong. A no can come for a variety of reasons, and often times turned into a yes if a couple of variables were changed. Here are a few questions to ask yourself after a rejection:
Were you clear and succinct in your proposal?
Did they like you?
Did they trust you?
Did your proposal fit their needs?
Did you stop to inquire what their investment goals were?
Based on their input, what changes could be made to increase your chances of hearing a yes next time?
Understanding, likeability, and trust have been cornerstones to business relationships for a long time. In many cases, an offer on a property receives a yes or a no simply on whether the person liked the potential investor or not. Whether the reason you heard a no was the numbers or a personality trait that transcended the numbers, take the time to analyze what went right and what went wrong. You will feel more confident the next time you go out and try again.
The Proper Mindset
Very few people read Robert Kiyosaki's books or take Rich Dad Coaching and view the world in the same way they did before embarking on the Rich Dad journey. Those that are exposed to the Rich Dad philosophy expand their mind, have a clear idea of what they want to accomplish, and engage the world in a more positive self-determining fashion. It should not be surprising when this improved mindset leads to success.
For those that are fearful of rejection, use this mindset to help overcome these fears. What do you want to accomplish, and what do you need to do to get there? When you have your destination in mind you will be far more likely to make those dreams manifest themselves in reality. In twenty years, you are likely to shake your head that you were ever intimidated by something as little as a two-letter word.