You might have heard someone tell you to “protect your yes.” Meaning, you should not feel obligated to agree to do things, participate, or take something on that you truly don’t want to do. If it doesn’t fulfill you in one way or another, why do it? In business, sometimes you can’t protect your yes, though. Sometimes, if you don’t say yes, you don’t have customers. But you can’t say yes to everything… Or can you…?

“We did just about anything,” Paul Rathnam says. “I said no to nothing. Like my dad taught me growing up, just say yes to everything and figure it out later. So, I often quoted things like plumbing and stuff. I had no clue how to do it. And then I'd go to the plumbing store and ask them how to do it. And they kind of have somewhat of an idea anyway, the story of my life. 

Rantham is the owner of ModPools, a multi-million dollar company that builds swimming pools out of shipping containers. And, as you can tell, he took saying yes to a whole new level. But while Paul was busy saying yes, throughout his life, he heard a lot of nos. And even though his just-say-yes strategy eventually paid off, saying yes to everything had its pitfalls. We’ll get into all of that on this episode of The Journey.

Main Takeaways:

• Exceeds Expectations: Throughout your life, people will place expectations or limits on you. But you should never let what other people think dictate where you wind up. Even if you lack certain skills in one area does not mean you can’t be brilliant somewhere else. Find your passion and let that guide you beyond what anyone else thinks is possible.
• Yes To All: Saying yes to every request is a strategy that many entrepreneurs have tried. When you say yes, you gain business and accounts. But if you say yes, you have to be willing to do all the work necessary to do the job properly, otherwise you’ll be left with not just dissatisfied customers, but a bad reputation as well.
• All It Takes is One: Whether it’s an idea, a design, or a word of encouragement, sometimes all it takes to keep going is one small thing. When you are on the brink or struggling, that one small thing could be right around the corner. Persevere and be open to wherever that one spark could turn into a wildfire.

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This season of the Journey is produced by Mission.org and brought to you by UPS. To learn how UPS can help your small business, go to UPS.com/pivot.