Never lose faith in yourself, and never lose hope; remember, even when this world throws its worst and then turns its back, there is still always hope. Rejections are faced by everyone, but how we overcome them matters the most. One of the many rejection stories that I encountered in recent months was getting rejected for a US visa twice, which shattered my confidence. This story starts when I was back in India, got admitted from several universities, and applied for a visa. It was mid-November, during the time of student week when I got my first interview date. I went all prepared with all the documents, went through all the security checkpoints, and reached the visa officer. He went through my passport and I20 and started asking me some basic questions like which university you are going to, where you have applied, and which course you will study. Then, he handed me the 214(b) slip, which means that your visa has been rejected this time due to one of the following issues.
After the first visa rejection, I thought it's nothing. Several people get rejected. I will get in the second attempt, so I started seeing for the slots. I got another appointment around December first week. I prepared again for the interview try to overcome some mistakes that I might have made last time and went for the interview. But the ending was the same. I got rejected again and started doubting myself and my abilities to present in interviews. After the second rejection, my confidence went down. I started thinking about if I couldn't even pass my visa interview, how I will survive in the USA, and how I will present myself there. These things started circling in my mind for few days, and I even thought of not applying again and coming in peace with not getting a visa. But after sharing my thoughts with my friends, they asked what can happen worst than not getting a visa, I said nothing. So, they said then try again till the deadline of entry in the US for classes. If you don't get at worst, you will work here, which you already thought of, so nothing terrible can't happen.
After this, I buckled up my confidence, started searching for my next appointment, and got my next interview date for 30th December. This time, I had a positive attitude that if I didn't get my visa this time, too, I wouldn't come from Delhi until I got my visa or my deadline had crossed in either of those conditions only I would be back home. So, I went with a positive mindset for my 3rd visa interview. This time my interview went for around 10 minutes, and I was able to say all the answers calmly without thinking of my past rejections. After those 10 minutes, I finally heard the golden words your visa approved and collect the passport in a few days. There was no limit to my happiness as I jumped in front of the visa officer. After seeing me, she smiled. Then, in excitement, I asked her a ridiculous question about when I could book my tickets for the USA. She smiled and said, as soon you get your visa, you can fly from here. I walked fast, sprinting to reach the embassy gate, call my parents, and give this news.
So now, when I think about this experience and what I gained after getting rejected several times, no matter how many times you were rejected, what matters is your attitude after that and how you react to that rejection. In this instance, I put faith in myself, set aside the self-doubt that I started to have inside me, and overcome the rejection. I wouldn't have done that then till today. I would have been in self-doubt, questioning my ability to present in front of people. It all changed with the positive mindset and putting faith in myself.