Stop Focusing on the Black Dot

This week, I want to share something powerful that came up recently, both in my Uber ride to the airport and in a conversation with someone who took my digital course.

It started when my Uber driver told me, “Don’t focus on the black dot on the white wall.” That stuck with me. We’re all guilty of this. We focus on the one small misstep, the rejection, the failure—while forgetting the bigger picture. That black dot? It’s not your whole career, just like a setback isn’t your entire story.

We’ve all felt the weight of rejection. It’s especially tough when you’re deep into a job search. But here’s the thing—how you bounce back from those moments is what really defines you. I had someone who took my course suggest adding specific tips to help deal with job-seeker blues. And while there’s a lot of great advice out there (like the “Morning Pages” technique she mentioned), let’s try something different.

The Black Dot Mentality
We often let one bad moment outweigh all the good we’ve accomplished. Think of someone who gets rejected from a job. It’s like staring at that one black dot on the white wall. But guess what? It’s just a dot. The rest of the wall is still clean. Someone who shifts focus—acknowledging the setback but keeping their eye on the bigger picture—moves forward. They build resilience.

Person A lets rejection paralyze them—they stop applying, thinking they’re not good enough. Person B? They see it as feedback, adjust, and keep applying. One person stays stuck, the other turns it into momentum.

Reframe Rejection as Redirection
Rejection doesn’t mean failure. It means a redirection. That job wasn’t meant for you, and that’s okay. When you start thinking of rejection as a tool to sharpen your focus and guide you toward better opportunities, you become unstoppable. (And if you need a boost, throw on Sia’s Unstoppable—I often rock out to this tune when I need to feel, well, unstoppable.)

Someone who reframes rejection sees each “no” as a step closer to the right “yes.” They ask themselves, “What can I learn from this?” and they use that insight to power their next move.

Don’t Wait—Take a Micro-Action
Sitting and stewing on rejection isn’t going to change anything. Action is the antidote. One small, meaningful action can shift your entire perspective. And in a job search, momentum is everything.

A person who takes immediate, small actions after rejection—like sending a follow-up email or researching another company—feels in control of their journey. Compare that to someone who sits back and waits for things to change, losing confidence with each passing day.

Warmup: The 2-Minute Rule
Here’s something new and actionable for this week: after every rejection or frustrating moment, commit to taking a micro-action that takes just two minutes. Send a quick follow-up email, reach out to someone in your network, or make a small update to your resume. It’s about taking action because it helps you feel more in control of your situation. The more you act, the more power you feel over the process.

This 2-minute rule will help you break out of the paralysis that rejection often causes, and it will keep you moving forward. The point is to stay in motion, because the more you move, the more confident you’ll feel.

I hope you start seeing rejection not as a stop sign, but as a signpost. It’s telling you where to go next. Every small action you take brings you one step closer to your next big opportunity. Keep moving, keep growing.

You’ve got this.