Shotgun Pitch Practice
Earn readiness through broad outreach and repeated rejection
- Difficulty
- Moderate
- Time to result
- ~weeks to results
- Steps
- 5
- Confidence
- 96%
When starting out, pitch anyone who will listen rather than waiting for the perfect decision-maker. Treat every conversation as both a possible connection path and a practice session. Deliver the real pitch, notice objections and confusion, revise, and repeat until rejection no longer destabilises the presentation. Ask listeners for introductions because job title and apparent influence do not reveal who they know or whose judgement they shape. Kawasaki recommends accepting the inefficiency: 20 summer-intern meetings or 25 rejections may be the preparation required before a partner appears. The mechanism expands luck while building skill. Broad outreach increases the number of unexpected routes to opportunity, and repeated low-stakes performance creates the clarity and resilience needed when a high-stakes audience finally listens.
Origin
Kawasaki defended indiscriminate pitching with the story of a 14-year-old podcaster whose introduction secured Angela Duckworth for his show.
Core principles
- 01Early pitches are practice as well as opportunity
- 02A non-decision-maker can still create access
- 03Status-based selectivity reduces luck and learning
- 04Rejection is the price of readiness
- 05When starting, too much pitching is safer than too little
How to run it
- 1
Lower the status filter
Accept relevant opportunities to pitch even when the listener cannot obviously make the final decision.
Pro tip Optimise first for repetitions and connection paths, not prestige.
Watch out Broad does not mean deceptive, spammy, or irrelevant.
- 2
Run the real pitch
Use each meeting as a complete rehearsal rather than giving low-status listeners a careless version.
Watch out The listener may influence someone you cannot see.
- 3
Harvest feedback
Capture questions, objections, and moments where the listener cannot explain the offering back to you.
Pro tip Revise one clear weakness before the next meeting.
- 4
Ask for paths
Request an introduction to anyone for whom the offering or conversation would be useful.
Pro tip Make the introduction easy with a short forwardable description.
Watch out Do not reduce the listener to their contacts.
- 5
Pay the rejection price
Continue until repeated rejection has improved the pitch and reduced the emotional cost of delivering it.
Pro tip Track repetitions and lessons, not only closed outcomes.
Watch out Repeating the same failed pitch without revision is not practice.
In the wild
Kawasaki accepted an interview with a 14-year-old podcaster he assumed had almost no audience. She asked excellent questions and revealed that Angela Duckworth had appeared on her show. Kawasaki asked for an introduction, and that unexpected path secured Duckworth for his own podcast.
→ A seemingly low-value appearance produced access that direct outreach had failed to create.
Common mistakes
Waiting for the perfect room
The first high-stakes audience arrives too late to serve as the first serious rehearsal.
Judging people by titles
An intern or small creator may influence a decision-maker or create an unexpected introduction.
Is it for you?
Best for
It is best for founders and evangelists who are early, unknown, and still developing their pitch.
Not ideal for
It is not ideal once indiscriminate outreach creates material compliance, brand, or capacity costs.
From the transcript
“when you're starting out, you should pitch to anybody who listen.”
“You need to have had 25 rejections and 25 practice sessions to be ready for this great meeting.”
“use a shotgun.”
From the episode
Guy Kawasaki: Win Every Pitch Using These Timeless Sales Principles
Guy Kawasaki