How Sales Reps Can Overcome the Sunk Cost Fallacy

Episode notes

In Episode 67 of Sales Leadership with Fexingo, Lucas and Luna dive into one of the most insidious psychological traps in sales: the sunk cost fallacy. Lucas explains how reps who have invested months in a deal often let past effort cloud their judgment, pouring more resources into a lost cause instead of walking away. He cites a study by the Journal of Marketing showing that salespeople who explicitly tracked sunk costs were 32 percent less likely to allocate time to new high-potential leads. Luna shares a real example from a SaaS company where a rep racked up 80 hours on a prospect that never signed—and why that time could have closed two smaller deals. The hosts map out a concrete framework: set a time budget per deal stage, run a 'fresh eyes' audit, and use a decision journal to catch emotional attachment. They also discuss how sales leaders can structure compensation to reward ruthless prioritization. The episode closes with Lucas reflecting on the paradox of experience: the longer you've been in sales, the harder it can be to let go.