LESSON 2 OF 5
Find the work — and disqualify fast
BY THE END OF THIS LESSON
Spend your time on leads that can actually close.
Bad leads cost more than no leads
A prospect who cannot afford you, cannot decide, or does not have the problem you solve will still take three calls and a proposal. That is a week you did not spend on someone who could have bought.
Getting good at saying no early is worth more than getting better at pitching.
Three qualifying questions
Do they have the specific problem you named in your offer? Not a related one. The one.
Can they decide? If they have to "run it past" someone unnamed, you are talking to a researcher, not a buyer.
Is there a reason to act now? A launch, a departure, a deadline. Without one, "we love it, let's revisit next quarter" is the most likely outcome.
Two out of three is worth pursuing. One is a polite no.
Where the work is
In rough order of return: people who already know you, people who have publicly stated the problem, referrals from past clients, and communities where your buyer talks about their work.
Cold outreach works, but it works far better when you can point at something specific they said or published — which is exactly the kind of research worth handing to AI.
WORKED EXAMPLE
UNQUALIFIED
"They said they are interested in improving their content. I'll send a proposal."
QUALIFIED
"They said their one marketer left six weeks ago and the blog has not been updated since. The founder is the decision maker and is on the call. They have a funding announcement in March they want covered. That is all three — send the proposal."
The first has none of the three. The second has a named problem, a decision maker in the room, and a dated reason to act — which is why it will close and the first will not.
YOUR TURN
Score your current pipeline honestly.
RUN THIS
Here is my offer: [paste it]. Here are the leads I am currently working: [list them with a line each]. Score each on: do they have the exact problem my offer names, can the person I am talking to decide, and is there a dated reason to act now. Be harsh. Tell me which ones I should stop spending time on, and for the ones worth keeping, the single question I should ask next to move them.
What a good result looks like
Expect to lose some leads from the list. The time that frees is the point.
KNOWLEDGE CHECK
Answer all 3 correctly to complete this lesson.
1. Why is an unqualified lead worse than no lead?
2. Your contact must "run it past" someone they will not name. What does that indicate?
3. What makes cold outreach work substantially better?
REMEMBER THIS
Problem, decision maker, reason to act now — two of three, or walk away.