Have you ever received the dreaded "we regret to inform you" email for your grant proposal?

"We had a lot of great applicants, and the competition was fierce... blah blah blah." If you've received this email, you know what comes next. Your grant isn't getting funded.

The rejection email is most people's biggest fear in grant writing. It's a reason people don't start and a reason they don't submit. And I get it. Rejection hurts. It's scary.

But you shouldn't be afraid of rejection in grant writing. Here's why.

1. Rejection means you're brave.

   You’re trying. As Brené Brown would say, you're not in the cheap seats; you’re in the arena. (If you have 3 minutes, watch her TED Talk excerpt because it will pump you up!) Grant writing is a creative endeavor, and you are putting your ideas out there to make your world a better place. That is courage.

2. Rejection makes you better.

   You are not going to win every time. I love this 2-minute interview clip with NBA player Giannis Antetokounmpo, who shares passionately that there is "no failure in sports" but only steps toward a goal. Same in grant writing. Even if you're not funded, you get feedback that will make you better, your team better, and your next proposal better.

3. Rejection helps find your fit.

   In his hilarious TED Talk, Jia Jiang shares how he actually sought out rejection - for 100 days! My biggest rejection was being laid off from a job where I didn't fit, and it was the best gift because I got to create my own thing. What about you? What was your biggest rejection, and what has come of it? In grant writing, I see people try for grants that just don't fit (mission-wise or budget-wise). A rejected grant proposal might just help you find a better fit with a different grant or funding agency.

So don't let a fear of rejection stop you from writing or re-writing your grant. If I can tweak the popular saying...

Life is short - take the trip, buy the shoes, write the grant.