Blog #758: When Nobody Says Yes
As of August 19…
92 cities have already said “Yes!”
That’s the fastest Extra Mile Day
has ever reached this number of cities.
______
I’ve been thinking.
What’s the secret to continuing to believe in an idea when you’re exhausted from carrying it?
And then…
Not only having it eventually reach the goal YOU first saw…but go beyond it?
I’ve learned for ME…
My ideas don’t grow because I want them.
They grow because I stick to them.
Heart.
Sweat.
Frustration.
Emotional blood.
Extra Mile Day didn’t grow because I wanted it to.
It grew because I wouldn’t let go of it.
______
In the early years…
I wondered if I was the only one who believed in Extra Mile Day.
Cities were slowww to commit.
My frustration became crazy.
Doubt started swallowing me.
My emotional energy started drowning.
We’d make the ask.
We’d toss the opportunity out to hundreds of communities.
Then we’d wait.
And contact them again.
And wait.
Wondering why nobody was loving the idea.
And often…
After a week of dedicated work, only one or two cities would say “Yes.”
It sucked.
______
Silence and rejection have a way of slowly eating you.
But when the vision won’t leave you alone…
You keep going.
Extra Mile Day started as a far-out idea in my head.
In 2009, 23 cities said “Yes!”
In 2025, 510 cities across all 50 states recognized it.
And now, on August 19, 2026…
92 cities have already said “Yes!” to November 1.
______
I share those numbers with both pride and humility.
Because somewhere along the way…
Extra Mile Day became bigger than the idea I had envisioned.
It has recognized thousands of volunteers.
It has given thousands of people a moment to be seen.
It has clapped for people who deserve to be clapped for.
It has put the “Go the extra mile!” idea in front of mayors across the U.S.
And I love all of that to my core.
______
Creating Extra Mile Day once seemed like “watering a star.”
Impossible.
But it became possible because I never gave up holding the water can.
If you’re willing to give your heart…
Your sweat…
Your emotional blood…
Star watering is possible.
Whatever you’re going for…
Don’t put your water can down.
Keep watering your star.
S.
PS: Extra Mile Day recognizes the difference-making people and organizations who “go the extra mile” in volunteerism and service in their communities.
EXTRA Thoughts…
Do I want THIS?
Do I want THAT?
Sometimes it’s one or the other.
I choose.
Then…
I give that choice my head, my heart, my sweat…
and whatever else it takes.
That’s the juice that keeps my “TIRED” going.
✨
Last week…
A reader asked:
“What goals does a guy like you have?”
My answer pointed down at my “muddy sneakers.”
Curious?
Here’s the link to the blog:
✨
This week…
Water your impossible.
Because maybe, just maybe…
It isn’t impossible.
Create a healthy week.
Gratitude…
Share with friends, co-workers and everybody else in the world:
