The Truth About Outbound Work: It's Not Laziness, It's Ambiguity

"Reps are lazy if they don't want to do outbound."

A phrase often carelessly thrown around, usually with little to back it up other than some oversimplified reasoning and generalizations that don't hold any water.

The issue here isn’t about laziness. It’s ambiguous expectations.

The Setup: Reasonable on the Surface

Closers are typically hired to spend the majority of their time on pre-booked calls and, in many cases, asked to do outbound when there’s blank space on their calendar or a prospect no-shows.

At face value, I don't know too many closers who are totally against this type of agreement—it's pretty reasonable.

Where It Goes Wrong: UNCLEAR Terms and Scope of Work

Most closer agreements around outbound work are completely vague. They’ll say things like “some outbound” or “OB as needed” without any clearly defined metrics or numbers.

It might even have a percentage split, like 70/30 inbound to outbound, which sounds fine on paper.

But here’s the catch: That percentage is almost always based on the current snapshot of lead flow, not the reality of what happens when things inevitably change or crap out.

The issues arise because there aren't any OBJECTIVE definitions around these terms.

• What exactly does “outbound as needed” mean?
• How much is “some”?
• Who decides?

If you think a vague phrase like that serves anyone, let me save you the suspense—it doesn’t.

It’s not laziness on the rep's part. It's lazy on the part of whoever wrote the agreement (probably an online copy/paste contract template) and a recipe for disaster [and churn] for both parties.

The Reality of Vague Agreements

When the agreement is left open-ended, you end up with two wildly different interpretations:

The Closer’s Assumption: Outbound is minimal—just enough to fill a few gaps. The Business Owner’s Assumption: If leads dry up, the rep will magically turn into a full-time cold-caller and save the day.

Spoiler alert: Neither side is TECHNICALLY wrong; but that's exactly why this situation sucks.

A Real-World Example

It’s all fine and dandy when the rep has 5-6 booked calls a day with maybe one or two open slots to fill.

But what happens when it flips? Now it’s 1-2 calls a day, and suddenly, they’re expected to fill 5-6 empty slots with outbound.

And here’s where the wildly unfair label of “lazy” falls flat.

It’s not lazy to refuse to do unpaid work—especially when it’s work they didn’t explicitly agree to, weren’t told might be required, or weren’t prepared for because no contingency plan was ever discussed.

No objective metric was placed on what ratio of inbound/outbound is required other than what’s happening at the moment—which is what everyone is agreeing to in their heads because it’s certainly not on paper.

The Fancy Term for This: Psychological Contract Breach

So fancy, I know.

It’s basically what happens when someone feels like their unspoken expectations (based on what they were promised) aren’t being met.

We all know marketing isn’t perfect 24/7, 365. Lead flow dries up. Campaigns flop. Stuff happens.

That’s not the rep’s fault. And yet, when they push back on suddenly doing more outbound than they “signed up for,” they’re labeled “lazy.”

You Know What Actually Is Lazy?

Not accounting for volatility in your agreements.

If you’re hiring closers, then write agreements that reflect reality—not just the ideal snapshot of where your business is right now.

Stuff changes, especially around here in startup land, and especially when your entire lead flow depends on social media—which isn’t entirely in your control (if at all).

What Needs to Change

1. Clearly outline EXACTLY how much outbound is expected if lead flow drops.
2. Pay more for more work. Reps should earn more for outbound work than they do for inbound.
3. Add MEASURABLE terms. Instead of “some outbound,” try: “Up to X hours per week or X number of outreach attempts per day.”

Why Closers Are Hired to Close

Let’s be real: Closers are hired to close.

Why?

Because that’s where they make the most per-hour dollar, and that’s where the company makes the most money, too.

If/when outbound is needed, it should come with fair compensation—not as a way to make up for a company’s inability to deliver.

Good reps will do the work if the pay makes sense. They’ll grind, they’ll hustle—but only if they feel respected and compensated for the effort.

Closers aren’t lazy for refusing to do work they never explicitly agreed to do.

The Bottom Line

Call a rep lazy when they’re unwilling to follow through on the actual terms of their agreement—not on some imaginary handshake deal you thought you had in your head.

Clarity isn’t optional. It’s the bare minimum. It’s what keeps everyone accountable.