Baseball and Sales
-
Top 20 Reasons Salespeople Miss Quota and How to Fix it
- June 12, 2026
- Posted by: Dave Kurlan
- Categories: Analogies, Baseball and Sales, Best Top 10 Lists, Sales Process, Understanding the Sales Force
People have been babying me since my bypass — and sales leaders are babying their teams the same way by lowering quotas. Here are the Top 20 Reasons Salespeople Miss Quota and exactly how to fix it instead of making excuses. No more false wins. Time to run the bases the right way.
-
How Sales Management Mirrors Little League Baseball
- May 29, 2026
- Posted by: Dave Kurlan
- Categories: Baseball and Sales, Understanding the Sales Force
Most sales organizations operate just like Little League Baseball — cheap, convenient, and great for the top performers while everyone else stays stuck. Here’s why promoting your best salesperson to manager is usually a costly mistake.
-
How to Use Baseball’s xBA Metric to Measure Your Sales Pipeline and Improve Your Sales Forecasts
- May 4, 2026
- Posted by: Dave Kurlan
- Categories: Baseball and Sales, Sales Pipeline and Forecast, Understanding the Sales Force
Two Hollies songs playing simultaneously on SiriusXM? A rare lucky break. The same thing happens in sales every day. See how baseball’s xBA metric helps you separate skill from luck in your pipeline and dramatically improve forecasting accuracy.
-
Worst to First: How Sales Teams and Salespeople Can Turn It Around
- April 23, 2026
- Posted by: Dave Kurlan
- Categories: Baseball and Sales, Understanding the Sales Force
Discover how sales teams go from middle-of-the-pack to first place. Learn why leadership changes and culture shifts are the real keys to turning around veteran performance and hitting record revenue.
-
Why Your Sales Team Needs Veteran Story Hour: Lessons from the Red Sox
- April 4, 2026
- Posted by: Dave Kurlan
- Categories: Baseball and Sales, Understanding the Sales Force
At a recent event, my wife and I heard hilarious and meaningful stories from three members of the 1986 Boston Red Sox — pitchers Bob Stanley and Bruce Hurst, and shortstop Spike Owen. It was nostalgic, fun, and powerful.
Why don’t more sales organizations do the same? Why not ask their best, most successful, veteran, and retired salespeople to spend an hour sharing meaningful, memorable, and even hilarious stories with the current team? It costs nothing, it’s not difficult or scary, and it delivers real results. -
The Baseball Dad Lesson That Made Me a Better Sales Coach
- April 1, 2026
- Posted by: Dave Kurlan
- Categories: Baseball and Sales, Understanding the Sales Force
How my son’s intense baseball training taught me the real secret to becoming an elite real-time sales coach. From hardcore introvert to mastering live role plays and in-the-moment coaching — with practical first steps for sales leaders.
-
The Fatal Flaw that Causes Strong Salespeople to Strike Out
- February 16, 2026
- Posted by: Dave Kurlan
- Categories: Baseball and Sales, Best Top 10 Lists, Sales Data and Science, Understanding the Sales Force
Discover the hidden fatal flaw that turns strong, high-performing salespeople into strikeout artists. Even top hitters like Babe Ruth racked up Ks—same goes for sales pros who score too high on “Doesn’t Need Approval” without relationship-building skills. Don’t hire the danger zone combo.
-
How the MLB Playoffs Can Help You Rethink Your Sales Team
- September 29, 2025
- Posted by: Dave Kurlan
- Categories: Baseball and Sales, Understanding the Sales Force
What if your sales team was built like an MLB playoff roster? In this post, we explore how the high-stakes, cutthroat nature of the 2025 MLB playoffs can inspire you to rethink your sales team, keeping only the top performers who drive revenue growth and letting go of the rest.
-
Top 5 Ways to Stop Striking Out on Your Sales Forecasts
- September 21, 2025
- Posted by: Dave Kurlan
- Categories: Baseball and Sales, Best Top 10 Lists, Sales Pipeline and Forecast, Understanding the Sales Force
The Boston Red Sox are whiffing 62% of their bases-loaded, no-outs chances—way worse than the MLB’s 15% fail rate. Sound like your sales pipeline? Discover why high-probability deals fizzle out and how to fix it with five key strategies, from robust qualifying to predictive scorecards.
-
Revolutionizing Sales Forecasting with a Baseball Twist
- September 12, 2025
- Posted by: Dave Kurlan
- Categories: Baseball and Sales, Sales Pipeline and Forecast, Understanding the Sales Force
Discover the “Power Alley,” a revolutionary sales forecasting strategy inspired by baseball. Learn how this KPI aligns pipeline, forecast, and revenue to boost accountability and solve CEOs’ biggest frustration.
