Stay ConnectedMeet Gabe Lullo.
Gabe Lullo is the CEO of Alleyoop, a sales development agency working with industry giants such as ZoomInfo, Salesloft, and Adobe.
He has trained over 8,000 salespeople across diverse businesses and, during his tenure in Alleyoop, he has personally hired and managed more than 1,500 SDRs.
With over two decades of experience in sales, marketing, and executive recruitment, his strategies have significantly driven Alleyoop’s growth.
People are learning to use chat boxes more than ever.
They’re asking themselves:
What problems can I have a machine solve?
A lot of businesses are taking on AI agents.
There’s this fear that AI can come in and take our jobs.
But it’s becoming very clear these machines can’t replace humans.
“There is a different type of thinking, creativity, innovation, critical thinking, that machines don’t have.” – Lori Kirkland
If machines can handle transactional work, then what can I do for my customers?
Fear is real.
And when you understand the technology, you see that addressing fear is part of the process.
Your job isn’t going to be replaced by AI.
It will be replaced by someone who is AI-augmented.
Your biggest advantage is adaptability.
Make sure you use it.
Most companies think the hard part is building a great product.
They listen to customers, they build something people love…
and then they toss it to Sales and Marketing and say, “Go.”
That’s where things fall apart.
Because if the people telling the story don’t understand the mission behind the product, the story can’t land.
What problem does it solve?
Why does it matter?
Does everyone actually know how to unpack the mission?
Clarity is everything.
As Kelly Breslin Wright told me:
“Many companies underestimate how important sales enablement, sales readiness, training, and cultivating that learning is.”
When your team gets the why, the how becomes natural.
When you hire for values, not just resumes, alignment happens early.
And in a world where AI is boosting productivity for everyone, trust, emotional intelligence, and a growth mindset are becoming the real differentiators.
You can’t automate belief.
You can’t fake alignment.
Teams win when they’re united by a mission they truly understand.
“I loved people, and I wanted to be great.” - Chris Bussing
Sales was the path that made sense for that.
But his first big moment?
It didn’t feel great at all.
His manager looked at him and asked:
“How does it feel to be last?”
That was the line that flipped the switch.
From that moment on, he made a decision:
He was going to do everything he could to be the best.
So he leaned in.
He worked when no one was watching.
He learned when others were relaxing.
He grinded outside the 9–5 so he’d be ready the second a prospect picked up.
And that’s what built the foundation for where he is today.
Because when you lean in, really lean in, your future becomes unpredictable in the best possible way.
When you lean in, you win.
And winning is fun.
But here’s the part most people forget:
Good things take time.
Great things take intention.
Chris is proof of what happens when you choose both.
This episode is about growth, grit, and the power of deciding you won’t be last ever again.
“We can never predict where we are going. The greatest thing we can do is leave open the possibility of what comes next.” – Jason Feifer
One of the biggest mistakes we make, professionally and personally, is thinking we already know what our path should look like.
When our definition of “what we do” is too narrow, we end up saying no to opportunities that could change our entire trajectory.
Because in every season of life, there are two sets of opportunities in front of us:
Opportunity Set A.
Everything that’s asked of you.
The tasks, the deadlines, the responsibilities.
The things that keep the engine running.
Opportunity Set B.
Everything available to you that no one is asking you to do.
The initiatives you take on your own.
The skills you build quietly.
The reps you put in when nobody is watching.
And here’s the truth:
Opportunity Set B is almost always more important.
This is where expansion happens.
This is where identity changes.
This is where the next chapter begins.
So ask yourself:
What can I do right now that nobody is asking me to do, but will bring me closer to where I want to go?
Because time isn’t just something we spend.
Time is an investment strategy.
And the highest returns come from the hours we put into the things that stretch us.
“When I found my confidence, started believing in myself, believing in that growth mindset, it changed my life.” – Tom Alaimo
I never knew sales was a real career path until the moment everything clicked.
Tom Alaimo gets it.
Because he lived it.
He’s shared his journey for years: the wins, the losses, and the belief that kept him going.
Now he runs his own business, built on the same principles that shaped his career.
His message is simple:
It’s not always about the outcome.
It’s about showing up.
Good day or bad day, Tom made the calls.
He trusted the inputs that would eventually create the outputs.
That competitiveness, that consistency, is what changed everything.
Confidence isn’t an accident.
It’s built through the reps.
If you’re in a season of doubt, this episode is your reminder to keep going, bet on yourself, and trust the process.
Unlike any podcast episode we’ve done before, Marc Tyler Nobleman brings a new story to the table.
“The dream of a writer is to find an untold story with a high-profile hook, especially one that aligns with your interests.” - Marc Tyler Nobleman
He found it.
Batman.
One of the most iconic characters ever created.
But the man who actually helped create him?
Erased from history for 76 years.
Bill Finger co-created Batman, but nobody knew his name.
Marc decided that had to change.
Experts told him it was impossible.
He didn’t care.
Nine years.
Against all odds.
Tracking down family members, piecing together evidence, refusing to quit.
And he did it.
Bill Finger’s name is now on the official Batman credit line.
All because one person believed that even the most daunting changes can start with just one person.
You don’t need permission to fight for what’s right.
You just need to start.
“Never give up. It’s only a failure if you quit.” - Seth Greene
Bet on yourself.
Always.
If the people around you aren’t pushing you to grow, it’s time to
find those who will.
Surround yourself with believers, people who challenge you, support you, and expect more from you because they see more in you.
Every month, he’s leveling up in business, in relationships, and in the results he delivers for his clients.
Because growth doesn’t happen by accident.
It happens by intention.
The goal?
Build stronger connections.
Deliver better results.
Create experiences so valuable and unexpected that people can’t help but refer others to you.
Tune in to the latest episode, it’s all about betting on yourself and never giving up on your vision.
John Kennelly didn’t plan on a career in sales.
It was a means to an end.
Everyone around him was working at startups, and he just wanted to get his foot in the door.
His first role was a BDR making cold calls.
It was really hard work and quite daunting for him.
But he hated his other jobs more, and something started to click.
Watching teammates get hyped after closing a deal brought him back to his days in sports.
The competition.
The energy.
The scoreboard.
That’s when it clicked.
“When I made the connection between sports and sales, it made me like it that much more.” - John Kennelly
Many former athletes find their way into sales for this reason, the parallels are real.
But here’s the thing:
You don’t have to love sales to get good at it.
Talking to customers, getting ghosted, hearing “no,” it’s how you build something people actually want.
People overcomplicate sales.
If you can have a conversation, you can sell.
Most people fear being ignored.
But if you’ve been in the game long enough, you know, getting ghosted means you’re playing.
Sales is a numbers game.
It’s about showing up, staying in motion, and learning directly from your customers.
Tilly Freear helps founders find their voice on LinkedIn and she’s phenomenal at it.
The struggle she sees most:
"Everyone has a story, everyone has a unique perspective, they just don't know how to put it into words."
That's the gap.
People want to relate to people, not polished corporate speak.
Real-life experiences? Those are what actually perform.
Want to build a presence that actually converts?
Show up consistently.
The more you post and add value, the more you see ROI.
Start small before you scale.
Spread yourself too thin and nothing performs well.
Carve out dedicated time.
It becomes routine.
You'll actually enjoy it.
Your community holds you accountable.
You can't tell others to show up if you don't.
Commit to the process.
Even when it's exhausting.
Jordan Pedron was on track for a PhD in economics.
He ended up on Wall Street and realized fast:
“Everything is sales. You don’t close, you don’t survive.”
That mindset stuck.
And when startups started calling, he saw the gap.
Founders were building great products, but couldn’t sell them without blowing budgets on full-time hires.
So Jordan built a fractional growth team that helps early-stage startups scale sales without hiring a VP too early.
Here’s what he’s learned:
Founders are the best first salespeople.
Confidence ≠ cockiness, believe in what you built.
Scrappy still needs structure.
High-pressure selling is dead. Value wins.
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