Photo: fizkes / Shutterstock & Reddit
If Michael Jordan did it, so can you!
By Ethan Cotler — Written on May 24, 2023
One company was scrutinized for how they dealt with rejection—proving that kindness is not always appreciated! Getting a ding letter can be a crushing feeling. It’s never an easy email to read, from being rejected from your dream college to your dream job. So, many companies and universities choose the wording carefully to let you down as easily as possible.
This company went a step above garnering some positive and some negative reactions. It left applicants with hopeful reminders, but people had mixed responses.
The rejection letter shared examples of successful people who overcame rejection.
A person posted a screenshot of the email on Reddit’s “r/antiwork,” a subreddit described as a place “for those who want to end work…and want personal help with their own jobs/work-related struggles.” They sarcastically captioned it “rather inspiring,” saying that it’s “full of hope.”
Photo: Reddit
The rejection came from the software company DoorLoop out of Florida. It started with the standard messages, which thanked the applicant for their time and applauded their expertise but clarified that they were not getting the job. “Although it was not an easy decision for us as we were impressed by your experience, we decided to go in another direction for this role,” it wrote.
Though, the company followed it up with something unique—a few examples of famous people who failed and overcame it. First, it gave a famous anecdote from one of the most recognizable names in the entertainment industry.
“Walt Disney was fired because his editor said he ‘lacked imagination and had no good ideas,’” the email reads. Before finding success, Walt Disney wrote for Kansas City Star newspaper before his firing in 1919. He founded the beloved entertainment company just four years later.
Next, DoorLoop gave an example of a more recent mogul.
“Elon Musk was rejected from a number of emerging tech companies, including Netscape,” it wrote. Netscape was an internet browser in the 1990s but soon lost its prowess after Internet Explorer and others came along.
The last hopeful reminder it imparted on the applicant is of a very famous basketball icon. “Michael Jordan was cut from his high school varsity team,” it wrote. However, this one isn’t exactly true. Instead, the Chicago Bulls star was placed on the junior varsity team to develop more before getting a spot on the varsity squad.
Before wishing the applicant good luck, the software company explained why it shared these iconic people’s failures. “All of them turn setbacks into success stories. We try to do the same at DoorLoop and encourage you to do the same,” it wrote.
Though a job offer would’ve probably been even better, this rejection letter was at least emotive instead of the repetitive ones job seekers are accustomed too — and that's if they get a formal rejection at all.
Even though some people critiqued the letter, others felt it wasn’t mean-spirited.
“I kinda appreciate that message. They understand success and know you will find it elsewhere,” one person replied to the post.
“I actually have a little bit of respect for them because of this,” another added.
Many commented that it was better to get that than “radio silence” when a company doesn’t move forward with an applicant. Though, some critiqued their logic, which would make for a hilarious response. The applicant could write back that if the company believes in all these examples, why would it risk not hiring them as they could be the next Michael Jordan?
Ethan Cotler is a writer living in Boston. His writing covers entertainment, news and human interest stories.