When I applied for my first internship, I had already been running my own company for a while. I had been getting quite good grades and almost all classes were pretty simple. I felt awfully good about myself. So when they decided not to offer me a position, I was quite devastated. Their feedback: “you beamed neglect and you were inattentive, so we’re not offering you a position right now”. Yikes. In other words: I had been a dick in the interview and this was not something they were going for. Points for them for not hiring me at that time.

When something like this happens, it is easy to keep going over and over the meeting you had. The movie of the specific situation keeps playing back in your head. One way to snap out of it is to really process it by talking to someone or by using pen and paper. I wasn’t keeping a journal at that time (which works really well for stuff like this), but I had a couple of friends and a thoughtful girlfriend who I could talk to, blow off steam and process what happened.

By sharing with someone or something, your mind can start to let go of the specific details and you can focus on what’s ahead again. Pick up journalling if you’re not already doing that. Writing every day makes writing when things suck big time easier too.