You Want to Say No, so You Can Say Hell Yeah

You have worked hard to deliver that project on time and under budget. The team is satisfied. The boss is happy. The customer loves the new service.

You are now ready for a one-week vacation. Why only one-week? It is the only thing the boss would approve, so: The five-star destination is picked. You are booked in business class. You are checked into the fancy hotel. You change into your bathing suit. You claim your beach chair near the water but not far from the bar.

You sit back in the chair, close your eyes, and think, you can do this for the rest of your life. The words echo in your mind, "I can do this for the rest of my life."

You open your eyes as wide as saucers and repeat out loud, "I can do this for the rest of my life."

Then you quickly scribble down on a white napkin a rough plan:

• Have little to no debt.
• Build an emergency fund that covers two years.
• Your service offering is already defined.
• You have a small network, which you can grow.
• Add a few more skills like public speaking and negotiation.
• Legally incorporate.
• Build a website.
• Invest money.

You sit back in your beach chair. The plan is basic, but "I can do this for the rest of my life."

The goal is not to work for the rest of your life but to retire early. The goal is to retire early and move somewhere European. The goal is to retire early but not retire from work.

The goal is to say "No." to everything else so you can work on projects that make you say, "Hell yeah!"

The writer Derek Sivers pens, "When you say no to most things, you leave room in your life to really throw yourself completely into that rare thing that makes you say - Hell yeah!"