How You Can Recover from Rejection: Learn Science-Backed Strategies to Reclaim and Advance with Dr. Michael Gervais Discover how he recovered from a devastating rejection to become one of the best in his field.

By Terry Rice Edited by Dan Bova

Opinions expressed by Entrepreneur contributors are their own.

Courtesy of Dr. Michael Gervais

Dr. Michael Gervais is a high performance psychologist and the author of the USA Today Bestseller The First Rule of Mastery: Stop Worrying About What Other People Think Of You. He's also a friend, mentor, and the inspiration behind the Reclaim + Advance podcast.

As a sport and performance psychologist, Dr. Mike coached the best in the world – but how did he recover from a devastating rejection to become one of the best in his field? I sat down with him here in New York to find out.

In today's episode, you'll hear Dr. Michael Gervais delve into the fear of other people's opinions (FOPO) and how eliminating this fear is the key to high performance.

Key Takeaways:

  • How fear of other people's opinions (FOPO) stems from our evolutionary need to belong and be accepted.
  • The three phases of FOPO: anticipation, checking, and responding.
  • Overcoming FOPO by aligning purpose with mental skills.
  • How to access true freedom by upgrading the "software" in your mind.
  • How Dr. Mike recovered from hurtful professional rejection.

Click here to listen on your platform of choice, or tune in below.

About Reclaim + Advance

Reclaim + Advance is a social impact podcast where we host vulnerable conversations with modern high performers. In each episode, we explore the lowest points of our guest's personal or professional life, how they recovered, and their life on the other side of hardship.

We have two goals:

First, if you're going through a tough time, you'll get the inspiration and guidance needed to continue your journey in a meaningful way.

Our second goal is to give you practical tools and science-backed frameworks that empower you to seize and even create opportunities, regardless of the associated challenges.

Tune in and subscribe wherever you get your podcasts.

Terry Rice

Author, Speaker and Business Coach

Terry Rice is a keynote speaker, performance coach, and author who helps leaders and teams break through barriers, embrace discomfort, and unlock their next level of personal and professional growth.

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