More than a decade ago, when I was applying to graduate school, I went through a period of deep uncertainty. I had tried the previous year and hadn’t gotten in anywhere. I wanted to try again, but I had a lot going against me.

I’d spent most of my undergrad building a student job-portal startup and hadn’t balanced it well with academics. My GPA needed explaining. My GMAT score was just okay. I didn’t come from a big-brand employer. And there was no shortage of people with similar or stronger profiles applying to the same schools.

Even though I had learned a few things from the first round, the second attempt was still difficult. There were multiple points after I submitted applications where I lost hope.

But during that stretch, a friend and colleague kept repeating one line to me:

“All it takes is for one to work out.”

He’d say it every time I spiraled. And as much as it made me smile, a big part of me didn’t fully believe it. Still, it became a little maxim between us. And eventually, he was right – that one did work out. And it changed my life.

I’ve thought about that framing so many times since then.

It’s unbelievably powerful in any high-stakes search:

You don’t need every job to choose you. You just need the one that’s the right fit.

You don’t need every house to accept your offer. You just need the one that feels like home.

You don’t need every person to want to build a life with you. You just need the one.

You don’t need ten universities to say yes. You just need the one that opens the right door.

These processes – college admissions, job searches, home buying, finding a partner – can be emotionally brutal. They can get you down in ways that feel personal. But in those moments, that truth can be grounding.

All it takes is for one to work out.

And that one is all you need.