"We're sorry to inform you that..." One of the most devastating sentences you will ever read. Whether it comes to dating, friendships, academics or your professional endeavors, rejection hurts. A 2013 study from the University of Michigan found that the brain treats rejection similarly to how it treats physical trauma, triggering the release of natural painkillers. The feelings of inadequacy that come with rejection have a way of haunting us long after the actual rejection takes place, following us for days, months and even years. Still, despite the pain that accompanies rejection can have hidden perks that not only can make the rejections a little easier to tolerate, but can actually provide more motivation moving forward.

Rejection can inspire us to assess our situation, skills or plans.

Although it can be easy to wallow in self-pity after a rejection, the process allows us to hold a mirror to ourselves. A major part of accepting and learning from a rejection comes from first accepting our flaws, by looking at what we did wrong and reflecting on how we can improve. Clearly there was a reason we were not hired for a job, asked on a second date or selected for that award. Maybe they thought someone else was better suited for the position, maybe they thought the culture wasn't the best match for your personality, maybe it's plain and simple favoritism.

Either way, the experience provided reliable feedback, even if they didn't explain why you weren't picked. You weren't as good, driven, smart, experienced, polished, etc. as the other candidate. Facing rejection forces you to look back on your choices and examine where you could be better. From there you can look at how you can grow.

You might need to take a step back and look at your end goals. Are you passionate about this field? Is this someone you really want to spend the rest of your life with? Is there another opportunity that might be better for you? No matter how you look at it, there are always lessons that can be learned from rejection. Rejection itself just proves that these lessons are worth learning in order to move forward.

Being rejected makes us stronger.

Facing rejection keeps us working harder. At the same time it can really prove our internal strength. Yes, you may have been rejected. Yes, it hurts. But you have the tenacity and drive to move on, and push yourself onward. Not only will the experience keep you motivated, but it shows you how resilient you can be.

It allows us to explore other options.

After being rejected, it's easy to feel like you have nothing left to lose. While this can certainly be disheartening, it can also give us the opportunity to look at our choices and figure out where we want to be. Rejection allows us to step back and examine our path. Rejection can be the world's way of telling us to reexamine where we see ourselves going. It gives us the distance to reflect on our goals to see if they really are our best options.

Facing rejection keeps us humble.

Occasionally, it can be easy to get caught up in our own worlds. Rejection reminds us that there's more to learn, explore and experience. It keeps us from thinking too highly of ourselves, reminding us that there are more ways to learn, develop and evolve to realize our best selves.

At the same time, rejection can serve as a unifying force, inspiring empathy for others in their struggles. Every person in the world has felt rejected at some point. It is a common experience that all people share. As a result, rejection can remind you that you too are human, and can bring people together through the uniting disappointment it brings.

It can be a blessing in disguise.

No matter how much a rejection may hurt now, the act of not being chosen can save you pain in the future. There is always a reason you weren't picked. This reason is typically due to the inference that you weren't the best option. Someone else was more equipped, experienced or attractive than you were for this particular role.

Once you actually took the position, you may have found yourself under-qualified, out of sorts or poorly skilled for your role. You may have had different values than the sorority you wanted to rush or different life goals than the person you hoped to date. No amount of hoping to be chosen could erase these fundamental differences.

Instead, you should see these rejections as a blessing. Have faith that you will end up where you're meant to be and keep trying until an even better option appears. The key is to keep moving forward.

Rejection shows you're trying to improve.

Yes, it's brutal, but at the end of the day, rejection means you're constantly striving to be better. Although you might not be the best choice, getting rejected means you have the courage to reach out of your comfort zone, taking a risk and embracing the fact that you may fail.

Once you stop getting rejected it means you've stopped pushing yourself to do more. You will always learn more from failure than stagnation, so instead of fleeing from rejection, embrace it as a valuable chance to learn a lesson, a lesson you would never learn if you just stayed home.

It's one step closer to yes.

To steal Nicolas Cage's anecdote from "National Treasure," when Edison was asked about his many attempts to create the incandescent lamp, he replied, "I didn't fail; I found out 2,000 ways how not to make a light bulb."

This rejection doesn't mean you've failed. Instead it means that you've found a possibility that wasn't the right fit. After being rejected you can lick your wounds, learn from the experience and, finally, move on in order to find the option that works for you.