How do you deal with manuscript rejection?
One of the soft skills that people don’t talk about at all, not typically listed on a resume but quite crucial in preventing burnout.
Peek into your own thoughts
My top coping strategy for any emotion and all emotions: journalling. Here’s what I do after every manuscript rejection:
- Set a timer for 26 minutes (my Pomodoro default) and just write down everything that’s on my brain, distractions and all. Begin with just 5 minutes of writing if this seems daunting.
- Take a break! (Drink water, stretch, snack). I’ve just dumped all of my emotions out and that’s … a lot.
- Once I’m ready, I read over what I’ve written and reflect on recurring themes.
For me, my two strongest themes have been nicknamed imposter syndrome and perfectionism.
My imposter syndrome looks like: “Am I a bad researcher?” “I’m never going to make it in this field.” “I just don’t have the talent and now they’ve found out.” Sound familiar?
My perfectionism rears itself as ugly rumination: “I should have changed this analysis.” “I should have chosen the right words explain this part better.” “I should have known, everything, under the sun.” This stuff never ends because this faux problem-solving is my way to cope…
