Back in 2018-ish, I was deep into the freelance life - five years of it, to be exact. Sounds amazing on paper, right? Total freedom, being your own boss, all that good stuff.
But let me tell you something nobody really talks about: it got lonely. Like, really lonely.
That freedom I thought I wanted? Started feeling pretty empty after a while.
So I decided to switch things up and go after full-time roles. But I wasn't about to settle - I went for the big ones only.
Deliveroo - rejected
Revolut - rejected
Google - man, that one stung. Made it to the final round, was literally ready to pack my bags for San Francisco. Rejected.
Before all this, me and my co-founder had this tech startup we were pouring our hearts into. Lost count of how many investors we pitched to.
Finally got a yes from this big-shot founder everyone knows. Dude wanted 50% of the company. Yeah... had to walk away from that one. Some opportunities look great until you see the fine print.
All this was happening with a baby in the house.
Total chaos.
We were walking on thin ice for years - every penny went into something nobody believed in. Talk about pressure.
Then life threw another curveball - I lost my dad to a stroke during this period. The kind of loss that shakes your whole world…
There I was, dealing with rejection after rejection, trying to keep the dream alive, and suddenly having to navigate grief on top of everything else.
2015 to 2019? That was basically Rejection: The Series for me.
It became my new normal. Some days it really got to me, you know?
You keep pushing because you have to, but it drains you. Then you start thinking maybe it's time to throw in the towel. But that feels even worse because you're basically giving up on yourself.
Here's the weird part though - looking back 5 years later, those rejections were actually doing me a favour.
They led me to Pony, which feels like exactly where I'm supposed to be.
Sure, it's still challenging as hell some days, but it matters to me in a way those other opportunities never would have.
So when you're feeling down and nothing's working out, remember this:
Everyone's got their own path. What works for them might not work for you - and that's fine. Stop comparing your chapter 1 to someone else's chapter 20.
Time is weird. Some find their thing at 60 and rock it for 30 years. Others find it at 20 but barely get started. There's no "right" timeline. You're not behind - you're just on your own schedule.
Rock bottom teaches you who's really in your corner. Those who stick around during the mess? They're gold. Keep them close.
Most "overnight successes" are actually 5-10 years in the making. The grind isn't glamorous, but it's real. Nobody posts about the hard parts on LinkedIn.
Sometimes the best opportunities come disguised as massive failures. You just can't see it yet. Trust that the dots will connect looking backward.
The "no"s aren't personal, even though they feel that way. They're just redirecting you somewhere better. Sometimes rejection is protection.
Keep going! Your thing is out there.
It might not look like what you expected, and it definitely won't come when you think it should. But it's coming.
Just stay in the game long enough to find it.