[nprincigalli]

Without asking, you are already living the path of the "no". If you realize that, it becomes a lot easier to change your mindset.

I'd even say it's not about being hardened by rejection, but rather standing up for yourself. Speak up. Dare to ask something. Dare to want something. Then learning that taking risks increase your chances of getting a "yes". The famous "you lose 100% of the shots you don't make" :)

[Goosey]

Very insightful! I have long been trying to integrate the "You miss 100% of the shots you don't take." way of thinking (this is the Gretzky quote, btw :)), but I never fully reasoned it out all the way: Not only am I passing up the chance, but I am receiving the same result as if the chance resulted in failure. In this way I now realize avoiding rejection is the same as being rejected. Powerful stuff.

Edit: Another anecdote that pops into my mind is Edison needing 10,000 tries to make the light-bulb. This means he failed 99,999 times. But we remember him for the success he had. (Queue pedants correcting the details of this anecdote ;))