Navigating Rejection in Business: How Childhood Trauma Shapes Our Professional Fear

In this deeply vulnerable June episode of "Pass the Mic," Tiffany Ball gets raw about the psychology of rejection in business and networking. Drawing from her painful childhood as the middle of five children in an impoverished, unstable household with a teenage mother, Tiffany reveals how early experiences of feeling "not worthy of love" created lasting trauma around rejection that still affects her business decisions today. Now 10 years sober, she shares how her recovery journey taught her to recognize these patterns while acknowledging she still struggles with asking for help, making sales calls, and putting herself out there professionally. Through honest storytelling about ghosting, avoidance, and the fear of hearing "no," Tiffany explores why rejection feels so personal in business and offers insights on reframing rejection as part of the human experience rather than a personal attack on our worth.

Tiffany Ball is the founder of Grow Networking and a 10-year recovering alcoholic who has transformed childhood trauma into business wisdom. Growing up as the middle child of five in extreme poverty with a teenage mother who was estranged from her family, Tiffany experienced early rejection and abandonment that led to substance abuse as a coping mechanism. She got sober on April 6, 2015, at age 33, and spent the next decade healing and learning to recognize how her core beliefs of being "not enough" affected every area of her life. Through her recovery work, she developed insights into human behavior, communication, and the psychological barriers that prevent people from taking risks in business. Her approach to networking and business relationships is deeply informed by her understanding of trauma, rejection, and the universal human need to feel worthy and accepted.

Key Topics Discussed:

• Childhood Trauma and Business Impact: How growing up feeling "not worthy of love" affects professional risk-taking and relationship building
• The Middle Child Experience: Feeling overlooked and rejected in a chaotic household with an overwhelmed teenage mother
• Addiction as Coping Mechanism: Using marijuana and alcohol to numb feelings of inadequacy and rejection
• Recovery and Self-Awareness: 10 years of sobriety work revealing core beliefs and behavioral patterns
• Fear of Rejection in Sales: How childhood wounds prevent asking for business, help, or support
• The Psychology of Ghosting: Why people avoid saying "no" directly and how it affects business relationships
• Reframing Business Rejection: Understanding that "no" is usually about money, value, or timing—not personal worth
• The 51st Yes Concept: If you knew success came after 50 rejections, how quickly would you get through them?
• Growth Through Discomfort: Why facing rejection and discomfort is essential for business and personal development
• Communication and Boundaries: Learning to have difficult conversations with kindness while protecting your emotional well-being

Powerful Quotes from the Episode

"I grew up with that. And it manifested in my teenage years in alcoholism... I used to tell people I went to I didn't go to high school. I went to school high."

"I realized how absolutely fucked up I was mentally, emotionally, I was like emotionally the age of a 12 year old, maybe six."

"I had to look at who I was... and I found out a lot of it came from just my underlining core belief that I was not enough. And that myself worth was dirt."

"That fear of the feeling of rejection stops me from doing things like reaching out to people and asking them if they want parts of my program because I got to make