Pitching: Where cricket rules don't apply.

I recently chatted with a creative agency leader who was lamenting a lost pitch to a rule-bending competitor. This "cheating" agency had secured an extra in-person meeting, breaking the established pitching protocol. The aggrieved leader felt like they were playing by the rules while the other agency was playing dirty, the winner wasn’t ‘playing cricket’.

But here's the thing: pitching isn't cricket. It's not about adhering to some outdated "spirit of the game" that rarely exists even in cricket itself.

In the pitching arena, your job is to disrupt the status quo and win over the client by any means necessary. Forget the made-up rules and go above and beyond to secure the deal.

Call the client when they say you can't. Request more time beyond the deadline. Demand a meeting with those elusive key stakeholders.

If you decide to pitch (a whole other discussion), understand that the playing field is far from level. Your chances of winning aren't a nice round 33% when there are three competitors.

Someone always has an edge and you want that to be your business.

So, go out there, fight tooth and nail for concessions, and remember as my wise daughter once said, "rules are for fools."