"Emotional challenges can be fatiguing, depending on the circumstances, but such challenges are rare in my professional life. I think it all boils down to your perspective and emotional maturity. Something like bearing through the loss of a loved one or emotionally supporting a loved one through a tough time deserves special consideration. But with something like suffering a professional setback, like competing for a promotion, you need to learn from and move on.

For example, I talked with a coworker recently who took it hard when someone else was promoted into the position they were competing for. Their performance after that setback suffered a little. But I explained to them that it was an opportunity to study where they still needed to develop and grow. The fact that they took it so hard informed me that they weren't ready. But it wasn't my decision to make."