Instead of making something up or freezing up, they guide you to pause and clarify before you dive in. They also introduce the BAMFAM concept and discuss the pros/cons of competitor bashing. Hint: blind overconfidence can bite you in the you-know-what. 

Key takeaways:

1. Push for the question behind the question. When a prospect asks a tough question, the reflex to respond fast is a trap. Asking a follow-up question to understand why they're asking gives you more information and buys you time to deliver an answer that actually lands.
2. Build your cheat sheet before the call. The top five question categories come up in almost every deal: product, security, legal, competitive, and implementation. Mapping out probable questions and rough answers in advance keeps you from ever having to wing it live.
3. Book a meeting from a meeting. If you leave a call without a next step on the calendar, the deal starts to cool the moment you hang up. Get the meeting booked before you end the call, then follow up fast with the answer you owe them.

Jump to the conversation:

(00:00) When prospects ask a question you don’t know the answer to

(00:28) Why this question stumps even experienced reps

(01:53) The right first move when you don't have the answer

(02:38) Why reps don't need to be the product expert

(03:18) How to get comfortable asking the second-layer question

(04:44) What happens when "let me get back to you" becomes a habit

(05:31) Owning it without losing the deal

(06:45) Building a pre-call cheat sheet that actually helps

(09:15) Using call recordings to load your answer bank

(11:00) BAMFAM and why booking the next meeting is non-negotiable

(13:17) What happens to a deal when follow-up is slow

(16:56) Blown call story: the meeting that started wrong before it even began

(21:17) The technical call that went sideways

(24:30) How to handle the prospect who opens with "what do you guys do?"

(26:34) Close Stall Kill: three ways to respond when you're stuck

(30:25) Flag on the Play: Why talking down your competitor always backfires

(33:26) The quick replay and key takeaways

Josh Rasmussen and Eric Salvo break down one of the most common cold call mistakes reps make in 2026, sounding like they're reading from a teleprompter. They dig into when a script actually helps, how to move off of it before it starts working against you, and why your opener sets the entire tone for the conversation that follows.

They walk through what permission-based openers get right, what kills calls before they start, and how to keep your energy dialed in when you're 47 dials deep. They also run three real openers through their close, stall, kill format and pick apart a live talk track a sales coach posted as a winner.

Key takeaways:

1. Multi-persona calling builds range. If every call targets the same title, you only know how to handle one kind of rejection. Calling across a full org, VP of Sales, RevOps, enablement, product marketing, forces you to think about multiple pain points and sharpens how you read different people in real time.
2. Set a finish line before you dial. Sitting down to make calls without a specific goal leads to burnout somewhere in the middle. Decide whether you are stopping at 50 dials or two booked meetings before you ever pick up the phone. The target changes how long you stay in the game.
3. Getting a laugh in the opener buys you a minute. It almost never hurts and usually helps. If a prospect chuckles in the first few seconds, the conversation shifts from a pitch to an exchange. Humor is not a trick, it's a signal that you are approaching them like a person.

Jump to the conversation:

(00:00) Introduction

(00:52) Scripts or no scripts: when to lean on one and when to let go

(04:40) Why treating cold calling like a game makes you better at it

(05:00) How calling multiple personas builds real range and adaptability

(06:27) Learning from top performers and the case for dialing with your team

(09:32) Why energy is the first thing a prospect responds to

(11:30) Should you lead with excitement or match the prospect's tone?

(13:21) Josh's permission-based opener and why it holds up after 6 years

(17:49) Same opener, two completely different outcomes five minutes apart

(22:41) How to set goals and stay focused across a long dial block

(25:24) Why standing up when you dial makes a measurable difference

(25:52) How to stay in a positive frame of mind after five straight rejections

(29:20) Close, Stall, Kill: rating three openers every rep has used

(32:20) Flag on the play: reviewing a real cold call talk track

Josh Rasmussen and Eric Salvo have been there, and they're breaking down everything nobody tells you before day one. From building confidence on cold calls to why you don't need to know your product to book meetings, this episode is your cheat code for hitting the ground running. Plus, they roast a real cold email that never should have been sent.

New BDR or not, this one's worth your 30 minutes.

Key takeaways:

1. Delusional confidence is key. You won't feel ready in your first week. Nobody does. The most successful  reps  pick up the phone before they feel confident enough to, smile through the uncertainty, and show up consistently every single day.
2. Talk to high-performing peers. Playbooks and managers will give you the framework, but the real edge comes from actively shadowing top performers and asking them the raw, unfiltered questions. That's where you learn what actually works.
3. Time to first fail matters more than time to first meeting. The sooner you get on the phones, make mistakes, and actively seek feedback, the faster you grow. Hiding in the background and waiting until you feel ready is the slowest path forward.

Jump to the conversation:

(00:00) The mindset that separates good BDRs from great ones 

(02:55) Why coming from an athletic background gives you an edge 

(04:22) The playbook won't save you, here's what will 

(06:00) The single most important thing a new BDR can do

(07:04) The three things new BDRs need to nail before anything else 

(07:52) Why AI role play is changing how reps build confidence 

(09:32) Why traditional role plays feel forced and what works better

(10:15) Cold call fear is real, even when reps say it isn't 

(11:02) Delusional confidence: what it is and why it works 

(12:05) Josh has spent 8 years managing BDR teams, here's his honest take 

(13:14) You're not selling a product, you're selling an idea for a better future 

(14:21) Why new BDRs don't need to know the product inside and out 

(16:04) What to say when a prospect asks something you can't answer 

(18:25) Froze in front of the CEO 20 seconds into his elevator pitch 

(20:13) Eric's first week: shaking on the phone, bombing every call

(21:09) The moment Eric realized cold email wasn't going to cut it

(22:45) Stop tracking time to first meeting, track time to first fail 

(23:15) Why Eric didn't ask for feedback early enough and what it cost him 

(23:52) Close, Stall, Kill: rating first-week BDR advice 

(28:00) Flag on the Play: reviewing a real cold email from the wild 

(30:36) What a good cold email actually looks like 

That changes now.

Josh Rasmussen and Eric Salvo are two former athletes turned sales reps who learned the hard way so you don't have to. Every week on Game Shape, they break down the real plays, the embarrassing losses, and everything the sales world forgot to teach you before day one.

No suits, just straight to what it actually takes to compete in sales right now.

It's time to get game day ready. You in?