Listen, I don’t care who you are, where you live, or what you do—no one likes to hear the word “no.”
“No” is a boundary. Sometimes it’s necessary, grounding us in reality. Other times, it’s a roadblock that shuts things down too quickly.
After 10 years in the fast-paced agency world, working with hundreds of clients across countless industries, I’ve learned this: “no” on its own rarely helps anyone.
That’s why I almost never say “no” to clients—at least, not without a qualifier. Because when you’re in the thick of a campaign strategy, a rebrand, a site build, a video production or an explainer animation, “no” is bound to come up. And that’s okay. The four sides of the creative box—brand, timeline, capabilities, and budget—are real-world limits that keep both client and agency grounded.
But here’s the key: “no” shouldn’t be the default. In fact, it should sit at the bottom of your toolkit, unless paired with something powerful: “no, but…”
That small phrase makes all the difference. “No, but” sets a boundary while keeping momentum alive. It acknowledges reality (“no”) and immediately pivots to possibility (“but”).
In practice, this is where trust is built. Clients don’t want dead ends—they want paths forward. And when creatives respond with “no, but,” they’re not just pushing back; they’re offering options, adapting, and problem-solving in real time.
Because whether you’re a client or a creative, we all want the same thing: progress. A “no” without a “but” stalls the work. A “no, but” keeps the work moving, and often leads to a smarter, more creative solution than the one you started with.
So next time you feel the urge to shut something down, pause. Don’t stop at “no.” Try “no, but.” You’ll protect what matters while still leaving the door open to possibility. And that’s where the real trust, and the real work, gets built.