You Don't Ask, You Don't Get

Last week, I sent an email to a high-profile thought-leader asking if I could interview her for my new book. It was a reach -- she’s a bestselling author, hosts one of the most popular podcasts in the pod-o-sphere and is clearly a very, very busy person. I almost didn’t bother sending the email.

But then I remembered a lesson that we have tried to teach our kids: you don’t ask, you don’t get. And it got me thinking about how often we talk ourselves out of asking for something we want.

Why? Maybe we don’t want to look silly. Perhaps we think it is such a “long shot” that we don’t want to bother trying. Probably, we don’t want to be rejected.

But here’s the thing: you don’t ask, you don’t get.

And oh, the end of the story? Well, I sent the email and immediately received an auto-reply explaining that she receives hundreds of emails each day and is unable to get back to everyone … basically, in the nicest possible way, an auto-replay that said don’t expect to hear from me. But moments later, she emailed me directly and said “your project sounds interesting and I’d be happy to help.” And she did. 

The moral of the story? You don’t ask, you don’t get.