Learning To Say Yes To No

When Ryan Westwood was interviewing Eric Morgan, the then CEO of Workfront, about the characteristics of successful entrepreneurs, he was given a piece of advice that would eventually change his life.

Say no.

Ryan wanted to know how Workfront had gone from being a project management software for everything to only serving marketing agencies while growing the business by 5x.

Eric's explanation? "We found our differentiator, focused, and said no."

Following Eric's lead, Ryan started saying no ruthlessly. Simplus, Eric's Salesforce implementer company, went from being a "broad Salesforce implementer" to focusing on one Salesforce technology. They became great at one type of implementation and built an amazing reputation.

With this experience under his belt, Ryan began to apply his ruthless no's to his own life and leadership. He said to himself, "You have to stop and think about how you're spending your energy and your time."

So, he started only pursuing anything related to Simplus. He said no to anything related to his writing, podcast, or anything that did not promote Simplus. And the company thrived. Simplus landed contracts with the biggest companies in the world—all by focusing and differentiating.

Simplus changed as a result of Ryan's focus. The rest of the Simplus leaders and executives followed Ryan's lead. They narrowed their efforts, and the organization was more focused than ever before. The multiplier effect from his focus and the inertia gained by his no's led Simplus, then a company with 600 employees, to a 250 million dollar acquisition by Infosys in just five years.

By focusing on Simplus, there was a shift in Ryan's identity—his role was no longer what he did but was a part of who he was. This shift marks him as a metamorph—someone in the fourth stage of the S Curve of Learning. Part of the sweet spot, the up-swinging middle of the growth curve, this stage can be thrilling because everything is working. Competence is achieved, and progress is rapid.

We experience a metamorphosis, the changing from one thing into a completely different one.

During the Metamorph stage, we need to be deliberate about what we focus on to complete our transformation. This stage of smart growth requires focus and a concentration of energy. Distraction is our nemesis. It breaks our focus and depletes our resources.

How do we stay focused?

One of the best ways is to follow Ryan's example—say no to yes.

This can be easier said than done. Saying no doesn't always feel good, and sometimes it costs us emotionally. But to successfully reach the top of our S Curve, we have to learn how to say no without nagging regret or hurting relationships. Yes is an essential word, but so too is no.

Sometimes, the cost of saying no will be accepting that we will inevitably disappoint others—often those whose approval matters to us. It can involve painful identity adjustments. So, we must be clear about our values and our why so we can learn to say no to the things that matter less.

How does Ryan say no without feeling bad? When I interviewed Ryan on the Disrupt Yourself podcast, he shared how he does it: focus on delivery, showing deference, and respect.

When entrepreneurs reach out to Ryan, he often says no to their requests. But he also lets them know he isn't ignoring them and that it's not that he doesn't like them. He simply shares he is currently involved in something that he is heavily focused on and asks them to reach back out at a later time. He shows them they are heard while still holding a firm no.

Learning to say no is part of maturing as a human being. Everyone will do it differently, but smart growth requires that everyone learns how to prioritize no.

What do you need to focus on to continue up your S Curve?

How can you start saying no in order to say yes?