I was on a client call last week.

He recently launched a new offer: a six-month executive coaching program. The first clients interested weren’t a perfect fit—they were after different outcomes.

He was happy that business was coming in, but wasn’t sure if he should say yes.

He was concerned about spreading too thin.

One reason he’s working with me is that he likes how focused I am.

So he was surprised by my answer when he asked, “Should I take them on?”:

Hell yes.

I’m a big advocate of focus.

Saying no is a superpower. The person who does one thing well will far exceed the person who does 10 things poorly.

But there’s a crucial step in the focus journey that is often overlooked:

The messy middle.

Everyone wants to ‘find their thing’.

But few people want to roll up their sleeves and do the unsexy, often painful work to get there.

The messy middle is when you step into the unknown.

You:

• Try skills you’re not good at
• Take on clients you’re not sure about
• Solve problems you’re not an expert in
• Run offers you don’t know will work

Because everyone doing well has gone through a phase of “f*ck it, I’ll figure it out.”

When I started making money online, I said yes to everything (except OnlyFans—contrary to popular belief).

My first 6 figures were a combination of:

• Coaching
• Consulting
• Ghostwriting
• Digital products
• Group cohorts
• Advertising
• Affiliating

It was a chaotic 12 months. My hairline was racing my sanity for what would go first.

You might argue that I wasted a lot of time.

But only if you look through the lens of what society expects: perfect execution, overnight success.

These things are an illusion.

Because the perfect offer?

The perfect niche?

Your life’s purpose?

This is not a one-time decision. It is an evolution.

Evolution requires feedback.

Feedback requires contact with reality (every plan is perfect until you get punched in the face).

I mean, hell, I would never have found writing if I hadn’t tried stand-up comedy first. I wouldn’t have tried comedy if I weren’t a dentist.

(Making people laugh is appealing after 8 years of making them cry.)

You should treat life and business as a series of experiments.

The key is to pay attention to the results.

Like Jack Butcher puts it:

Make noise and listen for signal.

But don’t outsource your judgment to external results like dollars and followers.

These are important. But they’ll lead you down the wrong path if they are your top priority.

You must pay attention to how you feel.

What did you enjoy?

What did you not?

What was fascinating?

What was boring?

Because your mind is sending you signals.

If you listen, it will take you somewhere great.

Then you get to say no. You won’t need to ask permission. ‘No’ becomes easy when work feels like play.

I’ll leave you with a saying from Bruce Lee on this process that I think about often:

Absorb what is useful, discard what is useless, add what is specifically your own.

Say yes until you find a reason to say no.

Hope this helps,

Kieran

P.S.

Feedback is crucial for product development too.

You must validate before you create.

Because you don’t build great products on paper. You build them with people.

That’s why the second module of my upcoming course Productize Your Knowledge shows you how to hold a Transformation Test Run (including picking the right problems, designing curriculum, and finding clients).

If you want to make an impact with your ideas, you’ll love what I’m cooking up.

The launch is July 1st.

​Join 1,131 people on the waitlist here.