Start, Stop, Continue: Your No-Nonsense Sales Debrief
Quarterly reviews can get messy fast. Between performance metrics, pipeline drama, shifting priorities, and trying to align on next quarter’s goals, it’s easy to get lost in the weeds or spin your wheels in meetings that go nowhere.
That’s why I keep coming back to the Start, Stop, Continue framework. It’s simple, direct, and, most importantly, it sparks the clarity that drives action.
Why sales teams should use this framework
Sales is a fast-paced environment, one where you’re only as good as your last success. You don’t always need a formal post-mortem deck or a 12-tab spreadsheet to know if something’s off. What you need is space to reflect with focus.
Start, Stop, Continue gives just enough structure to have meaningful conversations without getting bogged down. It surfaces what matters: what to try, what to ditch, and what to double down on.
When used intentionally, it helps sales teams spot issues, celebrate what’s working, and prioritize what will drive success.
How I use it to review quarterly sales performance
At the end of each quarter, I take 30 minutes to sit down with this framework and run through it solo before doing it with clients or teams.
I keep it focused on three buckets:
Start: What new habits, tactics, or tools are worth testing?
Stop: What’s slowing us down, creating confusion, or not working anymore?
Continue: What’s delivering results and should stay in rotation?
You don’t need long paragraphs. Bullet points work. Real talk is what matters.
Example for a sales team post-mortem
Start: Intentionally using warm intros. We’re sitting on a goldmine of connections and referrals but are not building that into our outreach.
Stop: Chasing every inbound lead like it’s qualified. Let’s get tighter on ICP and lead scoring so we’re not wasting cycles.
Continue: Weekly pipeline reviews that actually happen. Short, focused, and effective at catching issues early.
You can also adapt the lens depending on the focus: individual rep performance, team alignment, sales process, tech stack, you name it.
Make it a habit
This idea is a habit worth building into your sales culture. Whether you use it quarterly, monthly, or after major campaigns, it encourages transparency and continuous improvement without the performance theater.
It also gives reps a simple framework for self-reflection. You’d be surprised what comes up when people feel comfortable sharing wins and struggles without judgment.
Quick tips to make it stick:
Set the tone: If you’re leading the session, go first and be real.
Keep it short: 30–45 minutes max for a team session.
Make it visible: Document the takeaways and revisit them next quarter.
Tie it to action: Don’t just reflect; assign ownership and follow through.
TL;DR
Start, Stop, Continue is the post-mortem tool that actually works for sales. It helps teams get clear, cut the fluff, and refocus on what drives results. It’s lightweight, flexible, and, most importantly, helps you and your team improve every quarter.
Here’s a quick template you can use:
START:
[Something new to test or implement]
STOP:
[Something that’s no longer adding value]
CONTINUE:
[Something that’s working well and should keep going]
Try it after your next quarter wraps up. You might be surprised what surfaces when you keep it this simple.