Something to readChanging jobs
Rejection Proof
A book about seeking rejection for 100 days, and what it taught one entrepreneur about asking
Why it’s worth your time
At work the asks that matter most, a stretch project, a referral, a raise, are easy to keep postponing. After an early setback as an entrepreneur, Jia Jiang spent 100 days asking strangers for things he expected to be refused, and this book is what he learned about making requests and about being told no. It's built from stories rather than research, which is part of why it can leave you wanting to make one ask of your own.
How to get over the fear of rejection
The book · About 5 hours of reading · Buy or borrow
How to get it
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- Read the book.
Take it a few stories at a time, and notice what he does after a first no.
- Make one ask you've been putting off.
Choose a real ask at work, nothing grand: a stretch assignment, twenty minutes with someone senior, a referral. Say what you want and why it would help them too. If they say no, find out the reason before the conversation ends.
Good moments for this: before an ask you keep avoidingearly in a job searchafter a no that stung
Keep going with Truest
Small actions add up. Truest helps you find the next thing worth doing, make the space to do it, and keep a record of your progress. It’s a private place to work on your career, and it’s yours, not your employer’s.
- It actually happensWe’ll put it on your calendar and remind you before it starts.
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Making it work for you
Every workplace is different. Here’s what to think about before you start, and what might get in the way.
Things to think about
A request that's easy to grant, fifteen minutes or an opinion, can build the habit before the one that counts.
What might make this harder
Keep it short and specific, say why you picked them, and make it easy to decline. A clear ask with a time limit tends to get further with a near-stranger than an open request to pick their brain.
Questions people ask
What is Rejection Proof about?
Jia Jiang's account of 100 days of deliberately courting rejection from strangers. It argues that the fear of hearing no had held him back more than any actual no did, and the publisher describes lessons on how to ask, whom and when to ask, and what to do with a first no.
Is there a shorter version of Rejection Proof?
A TEDx talk he gave in 2015, What I learned from 100 days of rejection, tells the start of the story in about 15 minutes. It includes two of his lessons: ask why after a no, and voice the other person's likely hesitation yourself, first.
What is rejection therapy?
A game created by the Canadian entrepreneur Jason Comely, as Jiang describes it in his talk: you go looking for one rejection a day for 30 days so the sting of hearing no fades. Jiang's 100 days were his own, longer version.
How can I stop fearing rejection at work?
Practice on small asks where a no costs little, and keep track of the asks you make rather than only the answers.
What it says, and how it holds up
Jia Jiang grew up in Beijing wanting to be the next Bill Gates, moved to the United States as a teenager, and spent years in a corporate marketing job before quitting to start a company. When he was turned down for an investment, the no hit hard enough that he nearly quit. Instead he borrowed an idea called rejection therapy and spent 100 days asking strangers for things they'd probably refuse, filming many of the attempts. The book's argument is that his fear of rejection had been a bigger obstacle than any single rejection.
According to the publisher's description, the book turns the experiment into lessons on how to make requests, how to pick the right person and moment, and how to turn a first no into something useful, and it carries those lessons beyond business into friendships and family.
Jiang himself says on his site that it isn't a self-help book so much as his own story. Kirkus reviewed it too. If you'd like to try the idea before committing to the book, his free TEDx talk on the same experiment is a quick way in.
Jiang practiced on strangers, where a no cost nobody much. Inside a team, an ask can put a colleague in an awkward spot or land on someone already stretched, so each request carries a cost on both sides. There, fewer and better-timed asks may serve you better than a daily habit of them.
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Picked by Truest and described in our own words. The original belongs to its creator. Last updated October 9, 2026. We sell a career membership; where that’s relevant above, we say so.