Early in our journey, we said yes to everything. It almost killed the company.
The Yes Trap
When you're building a consulting practice, every opportunity feels precious. A client wants something outside your wheelhouse? Say yes and figure it out. The budget is tight? Say yes and make it work. The timeline is impossible? Say yes and just grind.
This approach has two problems. First, it produces mediocre work — because you're constantly operating outside your zone of excellence. Second, it trains clients to undervalue you — because you've shown them you'll accept anything.
What Saying No Actually Means
Saying no isn't about arrogance. It's about alignment. When we decline a project at Unbothered, it's because we've learned that misaligned projects produce bad outcomes for everyone.
Bad fit projects drain your best people. They generate scope creep. They lead to disappointed clients who leave bad reviews despite your best efforts. The economics only work on paper.
The Filter
We evaluate every potential project through three lenses:
1. Can We Be The Best Option?
Not a good option — the best option. If another firm is genuinely better suited for this project, we refer them. Our reputation is built on outcomes, not revenue.
2. Is the Client Ready?
Some companies need branding. Others need to figure out their business model first. We won't sell branding to a company that hasn't validated their market. It would be taking their money for something that can't succeed yet.
3. Do Values Align?
We work closely with our clients. If there's a fundamental mismatch in values, working style, or expectations, the project will suffer. Chemistry isn't a nice-to-have — it's a prerequisite.
The Results
Since implementing this filter, three things happened:
- Quality went up. Every project gets our full expertise and attention.
- Referrals increased. Great work generates great word-of-mouth. Mediocre work generates nothing.
- Revenue grew. Counterintuitively, doing fewer projects at higher quality led to higher revenue. Premium clients seek premium partners.
How to Start Saying No
If you're currently saying yes to everything, start small. Turn down one project this month that doesn't pass all three filters. Notice how it feels. Notice what opens up in its place.
The space created by saying no is where your best work lives.