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The Big Gun of Sales: How a 6’8″ “Benchwarmer” Became a Corporate Legend
What do you get when you combine a D1 college basketball player, 26 years at a multibillion-dollar biopharmaceutical giant, and a work ethic rooted in “chopping wood and carrying water”? You get Lance Milford, the latest guest on the Big Guns Podcast.
Host Chris Crane sits down with the man he calls “the best salesman ever of all time” to discuss how the intensity of the basketball court translates to the top 1% of the corporate sales world. If you want to know the “secret sauce” to long-term professional excellence, you need to watch this episode.
Here are the highlights you won’t want to miss:
Practicing with NBA Royalty
Before he was a sales icon, Lance was a 6’8″ powerhouse for the University of New Mexico Lobos. He shares what it was like to go toe-to-toe every day in practice with Luke Longley, the 7’2″ center who went on to win three NBA championships with Michael Jordan and the Chicago Bulls. Lance reveals how his role as a “benchwarmer” was actually a masterclass in leadership and pushing others to excellence.
The Power of “Darkness” Training
Chris Crane shares a perspective Lance is too humble to admit: while Lance was “pissing off” the starters by outworking them in the “darkness” of closed practices, the fans saw the results in the light. Chris recounts how the UNM crowd would go wild whenever Lance checked into a game because they knew his presence meant zero downturn in intensity—a mentality Lance later carried into his 25-year sales career.
From NBA Dreams to a “Little Warehouse Ministry”
In a deeply personal segment, Lance discusses the 1992 tragedy that took the lives of his sister and nieces, and how the crushing of his NBA dreams led him to a seven-year stint at a small nonprofit ministry. It was here, working in a “little warehouse” on Aztec Road, that Lance proved his diligence was not about the size of the company, but the size of his commitment.
The “ABL” Rule: Always Be Learning
Forget the old sales cliché “Always Be Closing.” Lance and Chris introduce a new standard: ABL (Always Be Learning). Lance breaks down his technical definition of diligence—a “learnable skill” that combines creative persistence with a smart working effort. He explains why you can’t learn these principles in your “mom’s basement playing video games” and why real-world “messy work” is the only path to true productivity.
Working “As Unto the Lord”
Perhaps the most powerful takeaway is Lance’s advice for those who have lost their “hunger” or are just going through the motions. He shares how shifting your focus from working for a “police chief” or a “corporate boss” to working “as unto the Lord” removes boredom, apathy, and resentment from any job—whether you’re a janitor or a top-tier executive.
Ready to level up your career and your mindset? Lance Milford doesn’t just talk about sales; he talks about the anatomy of a successful life.
Watch the full interview on YouTube here!