All Or Nothing Why Anything Worth Doing Is Worth Doing Right

When did you last go all in on a project or goal? If it has been a while, there’s a great opportunity coming up. July 26 is All or Nothing Day — or, as I like to call it: the one day of the year I don’t slack off.

I’m kidding! I aim to put my heart and soul into everything I do, whether it’s my work, hobbies, or health. It has always served me well.

One of my first experiences going all in was as a young teen who needed to make some money. My family had six kids, and we didn’t get an allowance. I made business cards advertising my services as a handyman and passed them around to the  neighbors. One woman asked me if I could put a new roof on her garage. I said, “Sure.”

As a 13-year-old, I had no idea what I was doing. But in the pre-internet days, I went down to the library and read a magazine article about how to install a shingled roof. It didn’t seem that hard, and I completed the job. “Wow,” my customer enthused when I finished. “You must have been doing this for a while!”

My first real job was working at the department of public works. After a few years, I thought I deserved a raise and asked for one. My boss told me the head town administrator was the only person who could grant that request. I’d never met him before, but I scheduled an appointment.

He made me wait for a while, then asked me to justify why I deserved 50 cents more per hour. I was prepared, and I laid out my reasons. I also explained that it would only cost the town $40 over a two-week pay period, and it was a reasonable request. The administrator peppered me with all sorts of questions. “Why do you deserve a raise? Doesn’t everyone else deserve one, too?” he asked. I stuck to my guns and argued my case.

But while he was putting on a tough guy act, I could see him holding back a smile. He eventually “caved” and told me he could stretch the budget enough to accommodate my request. The decision to go for it paid off.

I’ve had slip-ups like anyone else though. Interestingly enough, my biggest failure to commit was at the start of my college education. That changed after a humorous but fateful encounter at a fraternity party.

I still remember my shoes sticking to the basement floor from layers of spilled beer as I crossed the room to reach a bar stool. The guy sitting next to me was drunk out of his mind, but he struck up a conversation. He asked me about my major, and I told him I was an engineering student. “Have you always wanted to be an engineer?” he asked. “Not really,” I responded, “I originally wanted to go to medical school.”

“You should!” he insisted. But I explained I wasn’t cut out for it; I’d gotten a B in my high school biology class. This wasted stranger turned to me and said, “You’re an idiot. They don’t care about your high school grades.” Then he became annoyed and slurred, “You don’t deserve to go to medical school!”

He was right; I was being an idiot. And I didn’t deserve to live out my dreams if I was going to give them up so easily. But this guy changed my thinking and made me realize I’d only get what I wanted if I went for it. I frequently think it would be great to track down that drunk fraternity brother to thank him.

Following this crazy encounter, I switched directions and committed myself to getting into medical school. During medical school, it required some doing to try to get into a great ophthalmology residency — I studied for hours to impress an ophthalmology professor at my medical school. He really appreciated my drive and eventually wrote a critically important letter of recommendation that helped me to get in to my residency program in New York City.

Let All or Nothing Day be a wake-up call. Now is the time to try that new hobby you’ve been thinking about or commit to improving your health. Don’t put your toe in the water with one painting class or one healthy meal — go after it with all your heart. When you’re willing to commit, incredible things can happen.

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