yes then no

Mario Schulzke -

Early on in my career, I said "yes" to just about any opportunity that came my way. I treated every opportunity like a door that needed opening.

  • Publish a book on how to write complaint letters? Yes.
  • Help open a German restaurant in LA? Yes.
  • Go door to door selling cookbooks to Italian delis on the East Coast? Yes.
  • Build and host dozens of blogs for friends and coworkers? Yes.
  • Help start a sausage company (made of salmon, and I hate fish)? Yes.
  • Sell dog bowls on the Internet? Yes.
  • Sell ties on eBay in Germany? Yes.
  • Give an Ignite talk on why Germans love David Hasselhoff? Yes.
  • Emcee and event at Austin City Limits and give Robert Rodriguez some big award? Yes.
  • Teach an online course at the Academy of Art University? Yes.
  • Move up and down the West Coast a few times? Yes.
  • Join an improv comedy group in LA to improve my public speaking? Yes.
  • Drive across the country with three dudes I met on the Internet to organize an event in every state? Yes.

When I was early on in my career, I always said yes to every opportunity. Looking back, it allowed me to level up and get better much faster than if I hadn't. However, it also took a ton of time and a serious toll on my relationships and probably my sanity. Also, most things I tried didn't work. Most things I tried failed. And some things really worked.

Regardless, I always learned something. It's not all good or bad, but I seriously believe that early on in your career, it makes a ton of sense to say "yes" a lot. It will help you level up, sometimes in the most painful of ways, but you'll be better.

Now, I say "no" to just about everything, not because I can't get better but rather because there are more important things in my life now. I am a senior executive in an incredible company. I have a wife and a kid. My metabolism is slowing down, so working out isn't optional anymore.

I'm deeply grateful for the ability to say "no." It feels like a hard-earned luxury. But here's the paradox: I can only say "no" with confidence now because I said "yes" so frequently then. Those early years of constant motion and perpetual experiment weren't just random chaos – they were the foundation upon which I built everything else.

But I only get to say "no" because I said "yes" so much early on.