Theo didn’t just casually send out a few résumés. He set a goal to collect 500 “no’s.” Why? Because he wanted to get over his fear of rejection. It’s like eating a thousand sour candies until your tongue goes numb—except the candy is a polite email saying, “Thanks, but no thanks.”
He documented the whole journey on LinkedIn. Each rejection became a badge of honor. Five hundred times he heard the door slam, and five hundred times he stood up, brushed off his knees, and wrote about it.
The Secret Sauce
Here’s the kicker: Theo didn’t just send generic applications. He sent bold, sometimes hilarious pitches. One time, he applied to be a “professional snoozer” for a mattress company. Another time, he offered to write video scripts for a brand—in the form of a rap. Most of these got rejected, but a few got him interviews. That was the point.
He wasn’t looking for a job; he was looking to desensitize himself to “no.” It’s like flinching at a punch thousands of times until you can finally turn it into a handshake. Except with less physical pain and more existential dread.
