Your Q4 Pipeline Is Lying to You (And What It Actually Means for Next Year)

Most SaaS founders treat their pipeline like a crystal ball, staring at Q4 numbers and making predictions about next year based on hope rather than evidence. But your current deals contain more intelligence about 2026 than any planning exercise you'll do. The key is learning how to read the real signals hiding in your pipeline—from stuck deals that reveal process problems to loss patterns that predict market challenges. Here's how to conduct an honest pipeline audit that tells you what to expect next year, not what you want to hear.