B2B founders, what did your first few closed deals have in common? (I will not promote)

I'm an early-stage founder selling software to manufacturing companies in India, and I'm handling sales myself. One thing I'm finding frustrating is the chain of approvals at some companies. Getting someone interested is one thing. Figuring out who can actually approve the purchase, and how to get there, is another. For founders who've been through this, looking back at the deals you closed: What did those buyers have in common that the ones who kept delaying didn't? How early did you figure out who controlled the budget and who else needed to approve? What actually moved things forward when a deal got stuck internally? I'm also curious where you draw the line between being patient with a company's process and spending too much time on something that isn't going anywhere. Would love to hear about a specific deal: what you were selling, how long it took, and what finally got it signed.