When Someone Offers You A Seat On A Rocket

If you're offered a seat on a rocket, you don't ask which seat.

You just get on.

It sounds obvious. It's anything but.

Because in the moment, the rocket rarely looks like a rocket. It just looks like an opportunity with a lot of unknowns and a seat that isn't quite the one you wanted.

And that's where people get it wrong.

I've been on both sides of this.

Throughout my career, there were people building genuinely incredible things who offered me a seat. And I got caught up in the details.

What exactly was the role?
What was the title?
What was the compensation?

I can think of two occasions in the supplement space where I was offered exactly that kind of seat. On both of those occasions they went on to build billion-dollar brands in less than 10 years. I missed out. Not because the opportunity wasn't there. Because I was too busy evaluating the seat to recognise the rocket.

I've also been on the other side.

I've built things worth getting involved in early, and offered seats to other people. And I've watched them do exactly what I once did.

Hesitate.
Question the seat.
Miss the rocket entirely.

I'm in the middle of building something like that again right now. And it still amazes me to watch people get caught up over the seat instead of simply climbing aboard.

Here's what I've learned from both sides.

The seat almost never matters.
The rocket is everything.

A great seat on a vehicle going nowhere is worth nothing.
A mediocre seat on a rocket going to the moon will change your entire life.

So here's what I want you to take from this.

There will be moments in your career, whether you own a business or you're building your path inside someone else's, where a rocket appears and you're offered a seat.

You need to develop the eyes to recognise it.

To spot the difference between an ordinary opportunity and a genuine rocket.
To notice when the person in front of you is building something rare.
And when you do, to stop negotiating the seat.

Because these opportunities don't come often.

And when one does, the worst possible outcome is missing it over a detail that won't matter in five years.

If you're offered a seat on a rocket, don't argue about which seat.

Get on the damn rocket.

It can change the trajectory of your entire life.

If you know someone who would benefit from reading this, please forward it to them. It may change the trajectory of their life for the better, and the catalyst could be you.