"Rejecting Without Dejecting."
An editor once received a neat compliment from a writer who said that his paper had the knack of rejecting a manuscript without dejecting its author.
That knack is necessary in all the walks of life, and not merely in the dealings of editors with contributors.
It is often necessary to say "No" to advice, plans, methods, suggestions. Advice is easy to give, and it is not always carefully weighed before it is given. Always the person in the midst of a set of conditions knows more about those conditions than anyone outside them can know. Frequently a suggestion that seems eminently wise to the maker is manifest nonsense to the recipient.
But advice is usually meant kindly, even when it is nonsense. A harsh rejection of it is unjust and unnecessary. It embitters the adviser, and sends him forth with a hardened heart.
Go through the world, brother, with the comfortable assurance that most people mean to do their best, by you as well as—of course—by themselves. If you must reject their well-meant contributions to any field of activity, reject them so as not to deject. Add a touch of praise to the rejection; there is something to praise in everything. Add a word of thanks for the offer. If you can, add a bit of hope for the next time.
I have had such rejections, and they actually did me almost as much good as acceptances!