Not pitch perfect – July '23

Dear FJ,

I like to think I"m pretty good at business pitches. Knowledgable, sharp, creative, problem solving, engaging, reponsive, adaptive, committed and entertaining. ( I could go on!) But at this pitch I was, well, a wall-flower. Not quite on my game. In fact, I thought the people that were paying me to pitch were wasting their money by having me there.

Fortunately, we still won the pitch because my co-pitcher really knew what they were talking about and won the client over in seconds, with their calm self-assurance and extensive experience.

So, is it a fail or isn't it a fail? The pitch clearly wasn't a fail. Was having me there a fail? I felt like a bit of a failure, which I know is against the golden rule: When we fail – that is a behaviour, something we did not who we are.  Don't label yourself or other people as a failure.

That being said – what could I have done differently? I could have prepared more and been more familiar with, knowledgable  about and engrossed in the topic. Or I could have spoken up beforehand that maybe I wasn't needed at this pitch as there was plenty of expertise already in the room :)