What are your best tips for handling fundraising rejections?

Fundraising success is closer to a baseball batting average than it is a task completion. Even the best ball players in the world do not bat at 100%. Of course, it is disheartening to strike-out. Catch your breath, take a minute to re-evaluate your swing, and get ready to get back to the plate!

If fundraising results are effecting you personally, you need to look inward and ponder why rejection feels “bad”. What is the source of your original rejection, how might that origin be effecting you now? When we are performing work tasks on behalf of employers or even causes we deeply believe in, we must understand that these tasks are not personal. Meditation on who the central “you” is and your innate worth and value outside of what you can do for others can be useful here. You are a beautiful sovereign being and need not produce anything for anyone in order to increase your worth and value. Once you truly understand this, what you choose to do for work is simply an expression of your creation, not a reflection of your worth and value.

IMO, in any personal or professional life, reframe rejection as a learning opportunity. > focus on factors within control - the quality of the pitch itself, targeting the right investors, passion/preparation > timing & outside variables (economic conditions, investor mandates) affect decisions & are out of control > an objective post-mortem on losses to identify process improvements for future pitches > look for value-add in every interaction - advice received, connections made, visibility gained emotional intelligence & tenacity, fundraising rejections become productive detours rather than dead ends. Each “no” brings us closer to a “yes.”

I like to think that rejection means redirection in the sense that it can lead to the improvement and refinement of the project design, with a tailored approach to the funding requirements, in order to meet its target, enabling a more comprehensive idea and concept of the scope of the intervention.

Remind yourself that it actually helps when you have both successes and failures with a funder because you are gaining valuable intelligence about what interests them and what kind of applications succeed. You won't find that in any fundraising database so that is exactly the expertise we are selling.

This is such an important mindset shift. Rejection hurts, but it's rarely a judgment of our abilities or value. As fundraisers, we take things personally because we passionately believe in our cause. But funders evaluate opportunities based on their own constraints. Seeking constructive feedback shows emotional intelligence and professionalism on our part. It can reveal ways to improve our messaging or alignment with funder priorities going forward. Each "no" brings learnings to win the next "yes."

I had a colleague that used to insist on putting on a party hat and leading a conga dance line around the office everytime she had a major success. Crazy? Yes, but it made her, and really all of us feel happier.

2021 was a challenging year. At Bilgrami & Associates International I faced eight consecutive proposal rejections for a single client, which tested my fundraising abilities. Doubt could have consumed me, but I chose to view each rejection as a learning opportunity. So, I refined my approach and got back on the saddle. My outreach efforts paid back when the U.S. State Department showed interest in the cause. Months of preparation paid off with a significant donation, surpassing the fundraising goal. This journey taught me resilience: setbacks don't define us; they propel us. In fundraising, as in life, rising after a fall is what truly matters.

Also, building resilience and having a growth mindset allows us to persist through the inevitable rejections. Our worth comes from inner sources, not outward validation. Maintaining self-confidence and courage serves us and our mission. Thanks for the thoughtful reminders on dealing with the emotional side of fundraising. Keeping perspective protects our spirit while making us better fundraisers in the long run. Onward!

As other contributors have mentioned, investors rarely base their decision not to invest in your startup on their opinion of you as a person. Receiving a quick "no" after pitching an investor is a blessing, as you don't invest more emotional energy wondering if you should wait, or talk to more investors etc. You can reduce the number of times investors say no by investing more time before you start fundraising on creating a vetted list of investors. By that I mean by ensuring that every investor on your list a) has capital to invest, b) has a mandate to invest in your sector vertical stage of growth, and c) has invested in a company that could benefit from your solution, and d) knows someone you know - and they then introduce you.

Over the past 23 years I've done 6 start-ups and raised hundreds of millions of dollars from Angels and Venture investors. One consistent theme in successful capital raising is to Think Like an Investor. Investors, rightfully, often see outsized risk in the investment compared to the potential reward. Real or perceived high risk/low reward is at the core of what prevents an investor from giving a company funding. And that’s no surprise when 75% of venture-backed companies never return cash to investors. Founders must recognize this major statistic and address investors’ concerns in a message that mitigates risks through well-crafted, impactful storytelling.

Sometimes being rejected is the best thing that can ever happen to you. It builds new muscle and character. It's key, however, to not just walk away. If you're turned down for financing, give it a few days for a cooling off period, but feel confident to approach the investor and ask for the key reasons why they took a pass. It may be that the size & scope of your company is not a great fit, but it could be that they didn't like your pitch, presentation, opportunity, or didn't feel your enthusiasm. Most investors will have no issue being candid, especially after a few days.

Sometimes "No" is the first step on the road to "Yes." Think about how to keep communicating. Ask the prospect if it is OK to add his/her name to the mailing list. If the project discussed moves forward, let the prospect know if his/her comments made a difference.

Engage with the funder where that is permissable. Sometimes you learn that your application was great but there were other factors such a sectoral or geographic balance that edged your application out. Other times they will alert you to some very obvious mistake or omission you made and you can prevent that in the future.