In this 5‑minute motivational video, host Evan Carmichael urges entrepreneurs to stop fearing the word “no.” He frames rejection as a catalyst for growth, arguing that early‑stage failures and criticism are inevitable because creators haven’t yet delivered enough value. Drawing on short clips from Ryan Seacrest, Sylvester Stallone, and Pierre Omidyar, he highlights focus, determination, and an anti‑establishment mindset as essential traits. Carmichael repeats the mantra that “nos” can be turned into “yeses” if used as forward‑momentum rather than self‑sabotage. He challenges viewers to share their most painful “no” in the comments, offers a shout‑out to a fan who bought his book, and ends with a promise to return with another “shot of Nespresso” the next morning.
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Good morning, Believe Nation! My name is Evan Carmichael. My one word is believe, and I believe that entrepreneurs are going to solve all of the world's major problems. So today we're going to learn how to not take no for an answer. Over to you, Ryan Seacrest.
I wake up every morning, espresso keep me going.
I wake up every morning What do you think the secret to your success has been?
I think for me—
Like if they were gonna ask you, Ryan, what could I do? What would you tell them?
It is absolute focus and determination and a love for what you're pursuing. And I think they, as I did, will be told no a lot. And that no is something you can't always listen to. Like sometimes that will— that no can become a yes. But I think you've gotta find out something you love and pursue it with a lot of focus.
Along your path to success, you're gonna get a lot of nos. You're gonna get a lot of people saying no, no, no, no, no, no, no. You can expect it. And you know what? A lot of those nos are justified because when you are first starting something, you're gonna suck. Your quality, your output is going to suck. It's not gonna be very good because you don't have the talent, you don't have the skills, you haven't put in the effort yet. And so you can expect people to say no, and it's not a malicious no, it's not I want you to fail no. You just aren't providing them with enough value yet, and that's okay. But if you have the passion for what you want to do, this is a big dream, this is a big goal of yours, then you have to push through. There's this great clip of Sylvester Stallone where he says, "I love getting nos because a no just means a yes." He sees it as a challenge. So the fact that he got a no is a challenge for him to want to go and push harder and go faster and do more and prove prove to them, but prove to himself that he's good enough, that he can do it. And so I think it's really important that you use negativity, you use nos, you use criticism as a kick not down, but forward. Use a no as motivation to want to go out and do better and eventually get the yes, as opposed to, "I suck, I'm never going to get this, this is never going to work out." And I think it's really important to be hard on yourself, but most people kick themselves down instead of kicking themselves forward. So if you can learn to use your nos as motivation to do better, then you're on the fast path to success. So the question of the day today is, I'm curious, what was the most painful no that you've gotten in your life? I wanna know what it is. We're going deep today. Leave it down in the comments below, and I want you to, as you write it out, Release it so it doesn't hold you back anymore. I'm curious, put it down in the comments. I also want to give a quick shout out to Ed Reyes from Creative New Media Inc. Ed, thank you so much for picking up a copy of my book, Your One Word. It really, really, really means a lot to me, and I hope you're enjoying the read. So thank you guys again for watching. I believe in you. I hope you continue to believe in yourself and whatever your one word is. Much love, and I'll see you again tomorrow morning for another shot of Nespresso.
Don't take no for an answer. If it's not working well that night, it's not you, it's the audience. Blame it on the audience. Because if it worked on Friday night, it ought to work on Saturday, and if it doesn't, it's their fault. It's oversimple, but you know what? It works as a formula. Just go on and do the Sunday night show and forget Saturday night. Keep kicking them in the nuts.
There's something about an entrepreneur that is somewhat sort of anti-establishment, somewhat disrespectful of the previous generation, and although that can grate people the wrong way a little bit, that's a really important element actually. You need to be passionate about what you want to work on and don't take no for an answer when people out there are giving you advice and saying, "No, this will never work." I mean, you look at eBay. The idea that in 1995 that you could create something over the internet, which is this brand new thing that nobody was really using at the time except for scientists and academics, and it would be a place where strangers could actually do business with one another, could actually exchange merchandise for money without ever meeting, you know, and the notion that people can actually buy and sell cars over the internet. I mean, that's crazy, right? It's totally crazy. So in fact, lots and lots of people told me that was crazy, and I didn't, you know, I have to say I didn't have this vision, oh, it's going to take over the world, it's going to be this fantastic thing overnight. I didn't have that kind of delusion either, but I did say, you know what, there's something worth trying here. It's not crazy.
