10,000 NOs

You may know him from Pitch Perfect, the Barbershop movies, The Mindy Project or Showtime's White Famous. Utkarsh Ambudkar is a cat. He's hip, he's cool and, according to him, most roles for young Indian males in Hollywood are NOT written as the hip, cool guy. While I knew, prior to our interview, that he used to do underground rap battles like Eminem in 8 Mile, I didn't realize th...

Despite my hesitation, former guest, Adventure Photographer Roger Fishman (Ep 18) persisted in getting me to sit down to answer some of his questions about my life journey. Reluctant as I was, he convinced me that my listeners might want to hear it, and once we got going I fired away. Luckily for me, Roger took all my statements and transformed them into something that may actually motivate or ins...

To most other Actors, Eric Christian Olsen's career is enviable. And he lives with extreme gratitude for the opportunities he's been given. But he also has a sense of humor about himself so when I asked him for some "No"s in his life, prior to our interview, he said, "Bro, just check my IMDb page. 95% of those jobs have been failures!" His adoption of Winston Churchill'...

In this very brief episode I want to acknowledge all of the support and feedback that you've given 10,000 "No"s and give you a little story from my past and a lesson I learned from launching this podcast that can influence your 2018 plans. ## If you like what you hear, please Subscribe, leave an iTunes review and spread the word. You can also listen to all episodes at www.10000nos.com...

Colin Macintosh is no stranger to failure. When he invested his own money, and that of his friends and family, in the Buffalo Wing business in New York City, he lost his shirt. And suffered from meningitis. But this former All-State Tennis player turned his luck around and made his money back the old fashion way, he earned it. A true grinder, Colin worked his way up in the Convertible Bond world,...

Kevin Daniels is a big man who grew up in Texas where HS Football is HUGE. But he decided after one season as a youngster that the stage and screen is where he wanted to be. He found success early with a paying gig in Dallas as a teenager. And got into the incredibly prestigious Julliard School in NYC because he was "too ignorant to realize he should be nervous" for the audition. His first...

Despite his self-deprecation about the title, @obd1212golf was, in fact, the Gatorade Player of the Year in Washington DC as a baseball player in High School. He followed that with a 4-year career at Northwestern University and then took his athletic prowess to the links. Scraping by while attempting to join the PGA tour, Ollie made the tour in Canada and had many successes despite missing his ult...

When he was 7 years old, he took his first CPR class. By his teens, he was working as a first responder and teaching CPR. When his father died prematurely, his goal of being an MD shifted to being another kind of doctor, DC, Chiropractor and Massage Therapist. He is THE go-to guy for celebrities in Hollywood when it comes to breeched babies. But possibly most interesting is that didn't tell me...

In his youth in Slovenia, Luka Hocevar was a self-admitted criminal. Basketball saved him. And the training he did to prepare for Pro Basketball in Europe turned into his life's passion. But he doesn't view coaching as something limited to the gym. His groundbreaking Fitness Center, Vigor Ground Fitness, in Seattle, Washington is just the first step toward building a community and environm...

Roger Fishman hangs out of helicopters when he's not at home being a doting husband and devoted Dad.  He flies around the world shooting extreme environments from 2,000 ft. above ground. Or he goes face to face with a pack of grizzlies in a running river if he's not standing in the path of a herd of elephants. But his life wasn't always so enviable. Our conversation includes... ## How...

After 15 interviews with uber-successful and articulate guests, I riff solo on what I've learned, what listeners are responding to, and where I plan to take 10,000 "No"s in the future. My conversation (with myself) includes... ## How my guests' courage to be vulnerable has helped many listeners with their own struggles. ## Learning how to let go of control and delegate more. ## Exc...

When Lili Pettit left the fashion industry in 2011 to start her own company, @clutterhealing, it wasn't part of some master-plan she'd cooked up as a child. It was the result of a gift she'd begun developing to cope with instability and tension as a young girl being called upon. Once news of her gift was out, her business began booming and her willingness to explore led to a dual caree...

We've been hearing about sexual abuse in the news a lot these days, but to hear it from a survivor who has turned it into her cause is inspiring and gives us faith in humanity. Having grown up in poverty and suffering sexual abuse at the hands of a family member, Dr. Hernandez is on a mission to stop it from happening to her kids and yours. Our conversation includes... ## Empowering your child...

Today, Brian Garrett is revered as the Managing Director and Co-Founder of Los Angeles’ most mature and successful Technology-based Seed-Fund, Crosscut Ventures, which mentors and partners with Entrepreneurs from small businesses and helps them grow to be giants.  But life wasn’t always so easy.  Witnessing his father’s fatal heart attack, at the impressionable age of 13, Brian was faced with a ch...

Few stories fit “The American Dream” plot like that of Bedros Keuilian:  After his father snuck his family out of Soviet-occupied Armenia, he and his brother would help their Dad scrounge for food by ‘dumpster diving’ for groceries behind Supermarkets.  A self-proclaimed “HoneyBadger” who is not afraid to out hustle his competition, Bedros’ work ethic is still overshadowed by his warmth and desire...

A quiet soul with a big heart, Drago Sumonja is getting a second round of acknowledgement for his new film starring the late Harry Dean Stanton after toiling a way for a LONG time.  Our conversation includes: ## One night your film is the toast of the festival in Locarno, Italy.  The next night you’re standing behind three feet of mahogany, pouring drinks. How do you deal? ## Why Drago’s 2009 docu...

Despite finding EXTREME success in the Fitness world, Craig Ballantyne found himself paralyzed by massive panic attacks while at the height of his earnings.  After suffering through immense fear and near-collapse, he decided to lean into the fear and came out on the other side with his life’s work dedicated to helping others find the RIGHT path for THEM, so that they wouldn’t suffer the way he did...

Rory Cordial, one of the most soft-spoken yet articulate gentleman I know, personally cares for some of the Biggest Stars of Today, in both Entertainment & Pro Sports... but he's too classy to Name-Drop in public. ## The NUMBER ONE aspect of healing?  "Being present" ## What can Actors learn from Physical Therapists?  And how does the Body react to and relate to emotional trauma?  ...

Do you want to know what it takes to LITERALLY climb any mountain? ## Have you ever “failed” so epically that you were the butt of Jay Leno’s opening monologue? ## If you were born with a heart defect, would you choose to climb the highest peak on every continent and ski both poles? ## No pressure, but New York Times Best Selling Author (“On the Edge - The Art of High Impact Leadership")/Capta...

Ever wonder who was told he was going to be the lead of A Time To Kill before he found out they were "giving it to a kid named McConaughey"? ## Ever wonder if Actors meet their spouses, and Breaking Bad's Walter White, on the sets of Soap Operas? ## Ever wonder if an Actor can say, "That's it. I'm out. I'm moving the family to Atlanta" only to be rediscovered there...

Amy Budden's booming resilience training business, Connect The Mind, came directly from sickness, stress and loss. It was through protecting her daughter from the harsh reactions to heavy doses of meds that Amy discovered the power of Meditation and eventually, with the aid of a decade of study, Hypnotherapy. Having stepped away from her post as one of Adam Sandler's go-to film editors to...

HBO, Adam McKay and Will Ferrell, Oscar Nominated Director Whit Stillman, Cannes Directorial Winner Matt Ross, The Duplass Brothers, Chris Messina... these are just a few of Doug's esteemed collaborators. To most Cinematographers over the age of 40 being honest about their feelings, 33 year old Doug Emmett's prolific career would be the source of much envy and jealousy. But to sit down wit...

At the age of 42, Rob Whitaker was diagnosed with Stage IV Colon Cancer. Not one to accept this news passively, Rob chose to wage his own war, with biting humor and a unique perspective on how to manage pain and setbacks. Rob's life with his wife and kids is enviable to most because he has chosen to live it to the fullest. Honest, tough and funny, Rob gets down to the brass tacks and talks abo...

Meet Toni Torres. If you don't know her now, you'll see her alongside me throughout Season 2 of the Amazon Original Series, Goliath. Her story of resilience starts in the ghettos of Cleveland. In the clutches of poverty, Toni, raised by two agoraphobic parents addicted to drugs, clung to her grandmother's unconditional love as her only lifeline. Seeing the Air Force as her only way out...

World Champion triathlete and one of the sport's most accomplished coaches, Siri graced 10,000 "No" s with her pearls of wisdom about the mindset and gratitude that propelled her to the top of her sport. Siri was the No 1 ranked triathlete in the ITU World Cup Series in 2001 & 2002 and won the 2001 World Championship. (now just... I'm spittin' these things out like they&#39...