---
title: Get Comfortable Being Uncomfortable, Pouyan Salehi
description: Sell your solution before you buy it to minimize your risk and find what the market wants and needs says Pouyan Salehi on The Sales Podcast.
image: https://thesaleswhisperer.com/hubfs/_Podcast_Images/pouyan_salehi-_sales_podcast_521.png
---

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[Get The Daily](https://thesaleswhisperer.com/daily)

 Aug 10, 2021

# Get Comfortable Being Uncomfortable, Pouyan Salehi

![Picture of Wes Schaeffer](https://thesaleswhisperer.com/hs-fs/hubfs/Wes%20Schaeffer%2c%20The%20Sales%20Whisperer%20black%20white.png?width=50&name=Wes%20Schaeffer%2c%20The%20Sales%20Whisperer%20black%20white.png) [Wes Schaeffer](https://thesaleswhisperer.com/blog/author/wes-schaeffer)

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## Launch, Grow, and Scale Your Business

***[\[ LISTEN NOW ON APPLE PODCASTS \]](https://itunes.apple.com/us/podcast/the-sales-whisperer-wes-schaeffer-hosts-the-sales-podcast/id655310847?mt=2)***

<iframe class="hs-responsive-embed-iframe" style="position: absolute; top: 0; left: 0; width: 100%; height: 100%; border: none;" title="Pouyan Salehi on The Sales Podcast" src="https://player.vimeo.com/video/574566887?badge=0&amp;autopause=0&amp;player_id=0&amp;app_id=58479" width="560" height="315" frameborder="0" allow="autoplay; fullscreen; picture-in-picture" allowfullscreen></iframe>

 

## [Sales Tips](https://thesaleswhisperer.com/)you'll learn today on **[The Sales Podcast](https://www.thesaleswhisperer.com/podcast)**...

- Lots of ups and downs, with more downs than ups
- Apple was filled with driven people
- They worked hard
- Lots of trips to supply chain
- Jeff Williams was a great leader who [asked great questions](https://thesaleswhisperer.com/blog/professional-selling-skills-17) to make you think
- You can fill up the space with key questions, not just flapping your gums
- Attention to detail is key

[![Score My Pipeline](https://no-cache.hubspot.com/cta/default/443614/interactive-178194433547.png)](https://thesaleswhisperer.com/hs/cta/wi/redirect?encryptedPayload=AVxigLK3x9ynRPKw78dWzk98TP2byumcE1Ks4YfR2QGxPf1uEp7l35tNGV97sGjDVBcV%2FTP949tBfYDXrcsf7k4D16QAcaCmmj%2BcGvSYQIUmmMGYe5kLhMEZKGICFKcAkwPp4ez6JsQ0BOTshxj37xIDdQBHF88noxdJcj133nZVv8pRkj9vo4B6FYoyD%2Ft0NDsmWfkEi34YafGy&webInteractiveContentId=178194433547&portalId=443614)

> If I'm comfortable, I'm uncomfortable."

- He left Apple and hit a brick wall but he wanted to do his own thing
- He wanted to make a bigger impact by doing his own business
- Joined a team as an advisor
- It wasn't the "right time."
- There is always a reason not to launch
- He had business school debt
- His wife was one year into law school
- Left Apple on a Friday, was starting on Monday, and on Sunday he [learned his wife was pregnant with their first child while they had a reduction in income and no benefits](https://thesaleswhisperer.com/blog/i-have-7-kids-by-choice/)
- It was not easy

[![Twelve weeks. Live deals. We start in 48 hours. Book The Fit Call](https://no-cache.hubspot.com/cta/default/443614/interactive-184500196010.png)](https://thesaleswhisperer.com/hs/cta/wi/redirect?encryptedPayload=AVxigLL4ahN%2BxqvAYCVf8q2IejQap4RldRSrTT4TW6DlOgDIupf%2BUy6DceHWlZWCa0tPpq3AAJ7unLWSpM7osbhw66X3agESkBdFRkhp3wih5WPJPyP2vsKpGg7Nwq5ygqmTkExk3uyTStOXd3cagSyQkF1BSRUK9JAY0%2Fp7glbBZX3CrLq%2Bb%2FeDysvY4CTjtiIXZPZlvkvKzpJ0OYzgc9XFPuwM&webInteractiveContentId=184500196010&portalId=443614)

 

- [Finding a team](https://thesaleswhisperer.com/blog/john-pyke-personality-test-sales-recruiting) that works well together is hard to do
- Most companies die from the inside
- How do you know what [problem is worth solving](https://thesaleswhisperer.com/blog/vince-beese)?
- Look for the signal
- Work backward
- Get some signal in the market first
- Try to sell your solution before you build it, which is easier to do in the SaaS space
- Can you articulate your problem and solution ahead of time?
- It was a tedious process launching Scratchpad
- CRMs like [Salesforce](https://thesaleswhisperer.com/blog/hubspot-vs-salesforce-crm) are tools for management
- Sales reps create their own workspaces
- It was an exercise in [storytelling](https://thesaleswhisperer.com/blog/if-you-wanna-sell-stories-you-must-tell-how-to-tell-a-story/)
- That informed what part of the product to build and it let us know the talent and skillset we needed to build it
- He's a fan of direct [outbound](https://thesaleswhisperer.com/blog/ankesh-kumar)
- Have a thesis of who has this problem and reach out to them
- Experiment on your messaging
- You don't go for the close on a [cold call](https://thesaleswhisperer.com/blog/how-to-master-cold-calling)
- It's baby steps
- [Don't jump to conclusions](https://thesaleswhisperer.com/joy-stress-assumption-malfunction)
- Don't make assumptions (Follow the [New ABCs of Selling](https://thesaleswhisperer.com/blog/abc-selling))
- Speed to market and profitability comes from [simplicity](https://thesaleswhisperer.com/blog/how-to-grow-35-percent-this-month-aka-grow-a-lot-by-growing-a-little/)
- Product design is key

## [Sales Growth Tools](https://thesaleswhisperer.com/inner-circle) Mentioned In The Sales Podcast

- [ScratchPad is hiring](https://scratchpad.com/jobs)

[The Sales Podcast](https://thesaleswhisperer.com/blog/topic/the-sales-podcast)

## Related posts

[![Prospecting Tips: How To Sell To Big Companies, Jill Konrath — AI-powered sales insights from Wes Schaeffer, The Sales Whispe](https://thesaleswhisperer.com/hs-fs/hubfs/_Podcast_Images/jill-konrath-16.png?height=200&name=jill-konrath-16.png)](https://thesaleswhisperer.com/blog/jill-konrath-professional-sales-training-prospecting)

[Salesforce.com](https://thesaleswhisperer.com/blog/topic/salesforce-com), [The Sales Podcast](https://thesaleswhisperer.com/blog/topic/the-sales-podcast), [Entrepreneur](https://thesaleswhisperer.com/blog/topic/entrepreneur)

## [Prospecting Tips: How To Sell To Big Companies, Jill Konrath](https://thesaleswhisperer.com/blog/jill-konrath-professional-sales-training-prospecting)

![Picture of Wes Schaeffer](https://thesaleswhisperer.com/hs-fs/hubfs/Wes%20Schaeffer%2c%20The%20Sales%20Whisperer%20black%20white.png?width=50&name=Wes%20Schaeffer%2c%20The%20Sales%20Whisperer%20black%20white.png) [Wes Schaeffer](https://thesaleswhisperer.com/blog/author/wes-schaeffer) 

 Jun 13, 2025

Sales Training Expert Jill Konrath

[Read more](https://thesaleswhisperer.com/blog/jill-konrath-professional-sales-training-prospecting)

[The Sales Podcast](https://thesaleswhisperer.com/blog/topic/the-sales-podcast)

## [Assemble Your Best Sales Team With Founder Matt Green](https://thesaleswhisperer.com/blog/matt-green)

![Picture of Wes Schaeffer](https://thesaleswhisperer.com/hs-fs/hubfs/Wes%20Schaeffer%2c%20The%20Sales%20Whisperer%20black%20white.png?width=50&name=Wes%20Schaeffer%2c%20The%20Sales%20Whisperer%20black%20white.png) [Wes Schaeffer](https://thesaleswhisperer.com/blog/author/wes-schaeffer) 

 May 23, 2023

Move beyond sales methodologies to become effective at sales \[ LISTEN NOW ON APPLE PODCASTS \]

[Read more](https://thesaleswhisperer.com/blog/matt-green)

[![Jonny Hates Marketing So You Should Listen To Him — AI-powered sales insights from Wes Schaeffer, The Sales Whisperer](https://thesaleswhisperer.com/hs-fs/hubfs/Blog_Featured_Images/pexels-4443209.jpg?height=200&name=pexels-4443209.jpg)](https://thesaleswhisperer.com/blog/jonny-cooper)

[The Sales Podcast](https://thesaleswhisperer.com/blog/topic/the-sales-podcast)

## [Jonny Hates Marketing So You Should Listen To Him](https://thesaleswhisperer.com/blog/jonny-cooper)

![Picture of Wes Schaeffer](https://thesaleswhisperer.com/hs-fs/hubfs/Wes%20Schaeffer%2c%20The%20Sales%20Whisperer%20black%20white.png?width=50&name=Wes%20Schaeffer%2c%20The%20Sales%20Whisperer%20black%20white.png) [Wes Schaeffer](https://thesaleswhisperer.com/blog/author/wes-schaeffer) 

 Feb 08, 2020

Show You're Alive By Going Live .

[Read more](https://thesaleswhisperer.com/blog/jonny-cooper)

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