The Physics of Startups
The Physics of Startups helps startups achieve hypergrowth. Host Rob Snyder, a serial entrepreneur who has guided over 50 startups from $0 to $1M ARR, shares lessons from his experience. He is the creator of the PULL framework and author of "The Power of PULL". The podcast provides startup education that should have been invented decades ago.
Episodes
Cold Outbound (from Rob's a16z talk)
Everyone's favorite topic - outbound! Think about your LInkedIn or email inbox - what makes most cold outbound so bad? Rob breaks down what actually causes someone to take a meeting from a cold message, and what you are probably doing that's shooting yourself in the foot. Rob introduces the "hierarchy of interestingness," a way to rank what's actually interesting to your r
Why your product makes it hard to see demand ("The Demand Lens")
Why is it so hard for founders to see real demand, even when it's all around?Rob breaks down "the demand lens," the practice of removing your product from the picture entirely so you can see where people are actually stuck, versus the "supply lens" most founders default to without realizing it. That difference is what decides whether you're solving a real problem or j
The 'No-Speculation' Rule (for the overthinking founder)
Why do founders waste so much energy thinking about things they can't actually know?Rob breaks down his "no speculation rule," the topics he treats as off limits because they waste time without ever being answerable. The three traps: guessing the future, assuming what customers mean, and building abstractions like personas.Get in touchThinking about onboarding team members to PULL o
The Physics of Enterprise Sales
Does selling to a Fortune 100 company need a different playbook than selling to a small business? Rob's take: enterprise sales runs on the same physics as other deals - you're still looking for one person with PULL. We discuss why procurement isn't actually your buyer, how to spot the person inside a big org who can buy, and why the "project plan to purchase" is where deal
The $1M ARR founder calendar
What should a founder's calendar actually look like? (and if someone looked at your calendar, would they believe finding product market fit or growing your business is your #1 priority?) Rob introduces the Calendar Standard: a simple framework for how founders should spend their time if they're serious about reaching product-market fit and scaling from $0 to $1 million ARR. Includes a p
Debunking Startup mythology: "Pain Points" (and why they're worthless)
Why do some people with obvious pain points never buy? Rob explains why founders are often taught to look for the wrong thing. Pain points may create interest, but they don't create purchases. Instead, he introduces the concept of PULL points, the conditions that make a customer unable to delay a project and unable to solve it with their existing options. Use these to stop mistaking enthusias
What "Good" actually looks like for startups
How do you know if your startup is actually on track?A founder recently asked Rob a simple question: What does good actually look like? Rob realized that most founders don't have clear standards for evaluating whether their startup is making progress or quietly stalling. In this episode, Rob introduces a practical framework for assessing startup health across the entire customer factory - fro
Five Lessons from 50 Startups That Reached $1M ARR
What do startups that reach $1 million ARR have in common?Rob has helped more than 50 startups grow from $0 to $1 million ARR. In this episode, he reflects on the patterns that show up across startups and industries, including five lessons from those journeys.Covered in this episode:Why PULL is the underlying cause of startup growthWhy nearly every successful startup "unfolds"Why the pro
Are they pulling? (aka: avoiding "seems-like-pull-but-isn't")
People with PULL try to buy. People without PULL often sound interested, ask questions, and give positive feedback - but don't initiate purchase-shaped actions. Rob explores one of the most costly mistakes founders make: confusing enthusiasm with PULL. We explore why things customers say like "This would solve our biggest pain point" or "This would save us millions" often
If your product hasn't taken off (radical simplification)
Your startup has customers. Revenue is growing. So why does growth still feel harder than it should? Rob tackles one of the most frustrating challenges founders face: knowing your product works, but not knowing why growth isn't accelerating. Rob explains why the issue is almost always traced back to just two causes: 1. You haven't identified who truly has PULL for your product, or 2. You
Learn from 2 *real* founder sales calls (Rob teardowns)
Sales teardown #1: https://youtu.be/3TsrrMSXIfg Sales teardown #2: https://youtu.be/9a78RWkaALM LinksGTM Accelerator: https://robsnyder.org/gtm-acceleratorAI Rob waitlist: https://robsnyder.org/ai-robWork with Rob 1:1: https://www.robsnyder.org Get The Power of PULL: Amazon (https://amzn.to/48KC1yv), Barnes & Noble: (https://bit.ly/4dyMTSv)Connect with Rob on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com
What founders get wrong about pilots / POCs / trials
Your pilots are going well. Users are getting value. Usage is increasing. So why aren't customers buying? Or buying still is painful?Rob unpacks a common startup assumption: if a pilot succeeds, the customer will buy. He explains why pilots, demos, procurement reviews, and other parts of the sales process never cause a purchase. Instead, they can only prevent one. Understanding that distincti
The first two things that matter in a startup ("Aero mode")
When founder is getting started, they might be juggling multiple different ICPs and value props. Rob in this episode discusses why the goal is to eliminate all the "might work" and get to "weird if it didn't work" --> then translate that into a "weird not to meet" when a customer is in that situation. LinksGTM Accelerator: https://robsnyder.org/gtm-accelerator
What happens after PMF?
Rob's buddy found PMF a few months ago and went from ~bankrupt to more than $1M ARR in less than three months. What happens in that case?Rob and RC discuss what changed to find PMF, and what the experience is post-PMF. Also, what do you do as a founder - where do you focus? And how does your approach pre-PMF affect your post-PMF life? (tl;dr: a lot)Preorder Rob's book - "The Power o
The PULL Quickstart Guide (a PMF hierarchy)
Rob has distilled PULL into its most important elements - arranged in hierarchical order so that a founder knows where to focus first. This conversation includes the common error of getting the order wrong, Rob's commentary on the three most important parts of PULL, and examples of how these show up with founders.Highly recommend reading the full substack post, "The PULL Quickstart Guide
Investor PULL (what VCs actually want)
This is about VCs but also isn't about VCs. PULL can be found all over a startup - obviously with customers, but also, investors have PULL and they're trying to accomplish something specific. Rob works with founders to shape pitch decks and has fundraised - there's a hard-won lesson about what VCs are trying to accomplish, and the HUGE trap that smart, thoughtful founders building s
Buying is weird and rare (a reality check)
Founders are inherent optimists - that's why (despite all the warnings of battle-scared entrepreneurs) we continue to start businesses. It is the cheerful burden we carry as we march into the abyss. But GIVEN THAT'S THE CASE - how can we avoid that optimism crippling our chances at finding product-market fit? In this convo, Rob discusses the cold, harsh reality of launching a startup, th
How Rocksalt.ai went from Push to Pull
The Lightspeed-funded startup Rocksalt had some traction, but it wasn't clear they had really found Pull. They had sales, but there was friction in the sales calls. They were trying to decide between three different ICPs. And retention and consistent use wasn't as consistent as they wanted.In this conversation, cofounders Arjun Moorthy and Anita Moorthy join Rob to discuss how they used
DECK DROP - Rob's latest
Whatever you're doing, make time to read through Rob's latest deck: "Notes on the Physics of Startups"Access here (free): LINKWork with Rob: robsnyder.org
LinksGTM Accelerator: https://robsnyder.org/gtm-acceleratorAI Rob waitlist: https://robsnyder.org/ai-robWork with Rob 1:1: https://www.robsnyder.org Get The Power of PULL: Amazon (https://amzn.to/48KC1yv), Barnes & Noble:
Cause vs. Benefit | The Quickbooks lesson
When someone buys something, they get a bunch of benefits and they may use a variety of different features, all of which provide an array of different benefits. After they buy, they explain what they like about our product based on these post-hoc benefits they received after they purchased it.But the benefits do not *predict* why someone buys. In this conversation Rob gets into the difference betw
The fusion engine for progress (PULL applied to capitalism)
Rob is zooming out this week to look at what PULL means in the context of capitalism, and in particular, why it is the only system that can possibly serve people. It's taking a micro-understanding of how demand and PULL work, and thinking about its broader implications - and what this means for social entrepreneurship and alternative economic organizations.Rob's Substack post here: LINK
Translating customer language 101
One of the most challenging things about identifying PULL in customers is understanding what they are telling you. In this conversation, Rob discusses the “hairball” that customers often spit out - a mix of demand, supply, history, random red herrings - and how to translate that into Demand. Rob's Substack post here: LINKPMF Camp / Work with Rob: LINKPre-order Rob's book ("The P
Rob's B2B Sales Call Script (finally)
Rob's B2B Sales Call Script: LINKYou asked, Rob answered. Rob is open-sourcing his sales call script that he uses with founders and heads of sales to identify PULL and pitch supply in a way that customer's want (and actually understand and buy).In this conversation, Rob discusses common failure modes in sales calls that he sees and walks through key elements of the sales call script - fr
Behind a $300M exit: Interview w/ Palash Soni from Goldcast
Palash Soni founded Goldcast, a video-first B2B event marketing platform which was acquired by CVent in December 2025 reportedly for $300M. Palash and Rob have known each other for several years, and in this conversation they discuss the evolution of Goldcast, why Goldcast survived when better funded competitors didn't, the acquisition process, choosing the right market, the experience of bei
The "PULL Theory" of business
A startup is not many things - it's "one thing" - and it obeys laws of evolution. The best way to understand how the evolution works is through the PULL framework, and Rob sheds light on the continuum - from outreach and discovery to demo and onboarding / delivery. Reserve your spot in the next cohort of "The Physics of Sales." Spots are limited! https://bit.ly/4aQcuWa or
Exponential PULL (aka: stop slogging it out)
Why do some startups take off ($25M ARR within 2 years) while others - with equally talented founder teams, with equally unique tech, with equally attractive markets, … - struggle to reach $500k, $1M or just feel like they’re pushing instead of customers pulling?Rob jumps into that question in this week’s Substack and this podcast. The answer is that PULL is not linear - it’s logarithmic - and tha
Learning from Infomercials: How to describe your product
Today we’re learning from true masters of their craft - the heroes behind infomercials and “As seen on TV” product - who understand PULL more intuitively than the best marketers.Rob breaks down the “TurboPump” infomercial, which communicates just about everything a customer needs to know within 16 seconds. Lessons include:Sequencing a sales callHow to describe how your product worksHow to improve
Is your customer BLOCKED or COPING?
There are two types of PULL out there. If a customer has either of them - and if your Supply fits - they will rip a product out of your hands. Here is how Rob defines them:COPING PULL: A buyer who is prioritizing a project right now, but their current approach is sufficiently bad that they are COPING - struggling against their current approach.BLOCKED PULL: A buyer who would prioritize a project r
Cyberstarts: Inverting the idea stage
Cyberstarts (VC focused on cybersecurity) has an insane hit rate - its first fun turned $50M into $2B within 3 years investing in 9 founders. Founded by Gili Raanan, their approach (which they call "Sunrise") inverts the pre-idea / pre-product stage. Instead of choosing a market / technology to bet on, they invest in founder teams pre-product, use a network of CSIOs to identify demand, v
How companies become generational
A frequent critique Rob hears of "Sell then build" is that it's fine for a 'lifestyle business' but can't possibly result in a unicorn or generational company. ...Right? So Rob dug into the histories of some of the leading tech (Microsoft, Oracle, Hubspot), Deep-tech (NVIDIA) and consumer (Nike, Starbucks) companies. ... turns out, they follow similar themes:Figure ou
The aerodynamics of sales
Rob discusses the evolution of sales calls from the first version (often awkward, typically clunky and uncomfortable for the prospect, and not effective) to the various iterations he sees with each step improving incrementally. The discovery sharpens, then the customer targeting, then the pitch, the demo, the sequencing of calls, and the offer / conversion.This is a very practical episode and Subs
How to understand customers
A lot of the advice around "understanding / empathizing with customers" or "being customer centric" advises interviews or maybe even visiting customers. But it doesn't go far enough. Rob discusses why "forward deploying" is critical - and not just visiting customers, but what to actually do when you're there. Rob discusses what to look for, and how the "
Do I have a "PMF problem" or "Sales Execution problem"?
Among the hardest parts of early sales calls is figuring out what isn't working - "Do I have PMF but I'm screwing up the sale, or do I just not have PMF yet?" Rob breaks down how he diagnoses what is going on in a sales call, and how founders can apply as they are improving their sales calls and navigating early sales. Rob's substack: LINKInfo about PMF Camp: LINKPipeline
How to start a sales call ("Discovery" that doesn't suck)
Discovery is very important - but it's poorly understood what exactly you should be looking for in the first moments of a sales call and founders almost always screw it up. This leads to a confused customer being grilled with random questions and the founder struggling to connect with the customer and generate interest in their product (the wrong way to think about it). In this episode, Rob d
Nobody "wants" AI (and other lessons from Henry Ford)
Highly recommend reading this week's Substacak as the language around supply and demand is precise: LINKRob Snyder dives into how to think about Demand as it relates to AI - using both historical (Ford) and contemporary (Jump, Loveable, AI SDRs) examples. This convo should be helpful for entrepreneurs, investors and marketers thinking about AI, product positioning, categories, identifying AI-
PULL is everywhere (AKA: Your business is not the exception)
If you wonder if "PULL" is relevant for your business ("But I sell into enterprise!" "I'm in B2C!" "I sell hardware!" ... " so PULL doesn't apply"), this week's conversation is meant for you. Rob and RC discuss some common examples of selling into large businesses / deep tech / hardware / B2C from a "PULL" perspective. Leav
The PULL framework (finding PMF)
PULL (Project-Unavoidable-Looking for options-encountering Limitation) is the key concept that founders need to understand to sell and find PMF. Rob has refreshed his definitions and this conversation dives into topics like:Defining PULL (when customers "rip a product out of your hands")How to use PULL in sales callsSUPER common misconceptions about customer demand (e.g., desire for a pr
The 3 sales pathologies (Helpful, Noble, Smart)
Rob and RC dive into three common (and self destructive) sales pathologies that Rob sees in founders: The "Helpful" founder who thinks s/he can sell by showing how helpful they are to customersThe "Smart" founder, who thinks that by impressing customers with deep knowledge (or avoiding embarassing oneself), customers will buyAnd the "Noble" founder, who is deeply focu
Strict Productivity (aka: Understanding superhuman founders)
Blog post: "Strict Productivity" on https://howtogrow.substack.com/Work with Rob: www.robsnyder.orgRob and RC discuss productivity based on a foundational understanding of *what is a startup* which is the necessary foundation for doing productive things. Conversation addresses the constraint-theory approach to understanding your startup, identifying bottlenecks, and practical ways Rob se
Customer Success (the "bullet train to retention")
Full Substack post "Customer Success": https://howtogrow.substack.com/Work with Rob: InfoRob's Miro: https://bit.ly/4q9JiP3Rob and RC focus on the "post-sell" part of PMF in this convo - customer success and retention. They discuss Rob's thinking on how to define success, what to focus on, and why so many founders are focused on the wrong metrics or doing customer suc
The Divine Lever (What pulls you? A new concept)
Read "The Divine Lever" in Rob's newsletter: https://howtogrow.substack.comNovember Bootcamp info: LINKRob and RC explore one of Rob's newest ideas - "The Divine Lever" - with its dual elements of "a causal lever" and "divine / objectively good." They discuss how these elements interact, why they interact in a way that creates valuable businesses,
The Demand Audit
Rob and RC dig into what you should do when you have lukewarm demand or something isn't working quite like it should and you aren't sure why. Includes pragmatic discussion of how to do a Demand Audit, and the difference between several "Demand problems" and "Execution problems" (the tl;dr - your problem might not be that you don't have Demand). LinksFull post in
Demand: Force against the status quo
Full post on Rob's Substack: LINK (Post: "Force against the status quo")Info on working with Rob: LINKRob has sharpened his theory on what exactly is demand for startups. Rob and RC dive into this, exploring how Demand behaves like a "Force against the status quo" - which has both magnitude (how much the customer wants change) and direction (what shape they want). This the
Bend the world to fit demand
*Kind of hilarious retraction*: Rob's wife let him know they use Huggies, not Pampers. Substack post: Bend the world to fit demandMore about Rob's November bootcamp: GOOGLE DOCRob and RC dive into the concept of Supply today (mostly "product" focused), specifically taking the approach of where does supply originate? The conversation goes into how supply should take shape, how t
What's your founder operating philosophy?
This week's newsletter: "What is your operating philosophy?" Rob's Substack: https://howtogrow.substack.com/ Rob's "Unifying Theory of Startups" Miro board: LINK Rob and RC jump into the concept of the "Founder Operating Philosophy" - discussing different types of operating philosophies, what different operating philosophies lead to, and ways to diagnos
Pipeline: Getting to 5-10 calls / week
Link to Rob's newsletter: https://howtogrow.substack.comThis week's newsletter: "Pipeline mega-post"Rob and RC dive into one of Rob's least favorite, but most in-demand topics: pipeline. Conversation covers how to get to 5-10 calls per week even before you have a product, how to craft outbound that people don't hate, and when to convert to a 'toll-booth' app
Startups that Find Demand vs. 'Conjure' Demand
Blog post on Rob's Substack: https://howtogrow.substack.com/ In this episode, Rob digs into the difference between Conjuring Demand (where a founder has an idea of how the world should work) vs. Finding Demand (where buyers are trying to accomplish something and pull products that help them solve that). He touches his perspective on startups like Clay and Drift, and how he takes a "Deman
How to build the 'right' product
Basecamp video (highly recommend) - LINKThis newsletter, "How to build the 'right' product": https://howtogrow.substack.com/ Rob and RC dig into feature requests to better understand the distinction between Supply and Demand, including how supply masquerades as demand in customer feature requests, using a fantastic video from Basecamp leaders Ryan and Chris. This discussion cov
The step-by-step sales process for founders
This week's newsletter "The Physics of Sales pt 2": LINKPrevious newsletter: "The Physics of Sales": LINK This week, RC and Rob continue last week's conversation about sales and the difference between a BUYER-PULL and SELLER-PUSH approach, including breaking down each step of the sales process and what the ideal "Buyer-Pull" approach looks like at: Pipeline
The physics of startup sales
Newsletter post: The Physics of SalesRob and RC explore the fundamental differences between the "seller-push" approach to sales and the "buyer-pull" approach. They discuss the common misconceptions surrounding sales strategies, and debunk the nonsense that exists out there with sales hacks and approaches that pretend to be able to "create" demand where there is none.
'Weird if it didn't work'
Link to blog post "Could work vs. Weird if it didn't work": LINKRob and RC dive into the difference between a 'could work' mindset and a 'would be weird if it didn't work' approach. We touch practical applications of this concept in new product development, approach to sales, approach to outbound, hiring and communicating with investors. 00:00 Introduction 0
How to figure out 0-1 sales
Link to blog post: https://bit.ly/3Hn3rPZ Rob Snyder discusses the 4 parts to a "Sales Sprint", including how to execute each element (PULL hypothesis, schedule 5 sales calls, execute 5 sales calls, and analyze and refine hypothesis). Convo includes examples of how this works "in real life" and what the goals of each step are and tactics you can apply.If you'd like to do a
The art of finding startup ideas that work
Link to blog postSummary: Rob Snyder delves into the complexities of startup fundamentals, exploring how founders can effectively identify demand, navigate the startup landscape, and utilize frameworks like the pull framework to ensure their products meet real customer needs. They discuss the importance of understanding where ideas come from, the role of design partners, and practical steps for fo
The Hard Thing about Simple Things
Getting to PMF is hard, but it doesn't have to be complex. Rob and RC discuss the 3 simple steps that founders should be taking to find PMF, and why most founders go to extraordinary lengths to avoid doing these things and, as a result, waste valuable time and resources.Blog post: https://bit.ly/46rYNuf Starting Strength weightlifting clilp: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aI6qDCYvleM ----Con
Fix your GTM with Toll Booths (and Samurai Swords)
Blog post - "The toll booth" - https://bit.ly/44xHBCn In this conversation, Rob Snyder and RC delve into the concept of 'toll booths' in the context of go-to-market strategies for startups. They discuss how to effectively generate demand and engage potential customers by understanding their needs and timing. The discussion includes practical examples, such as the samurai sword
The path to PMF demystified (finally)
Rob's SubstackRob Snyder discusses how startups find product-market fit (PMF) , including the *case study* and the *factory*, which are essential for identifying customer demand and navigating the sales and delivery process. The discussion covers the complexities of the startup journey, the significance of demand, and the need for founders to focus on solving bottlenecks in their sales and de
The Startup Landscape: Waves, Dams, and Rivers
Full blog post: https://howtogrow.substack.com/ In this conversation, Rob Snyder and RC explore how individual demand scales into market momentum ("demand aggregation"), and introduce a startup market framework: waves, rivers, and dams.- Waves reflect emerging, shared priorities—projects suddenly on everyone’s to-do list.- Dams represent pent-up demand blocked by bad solutions—until th
Recommended
Veritas Vox - The Voice of Classical Christian Education
Enjoy Teaching Again | Elementary, Teacher Burnout, Student Behavior, SEL, Classroom Management
Entrepreneur Kids Legacy Show - Family Motivation, Business Boss Babies, Inspirational Speakers and Healthy fun food
McKinsey on Consumer and Retail
megahired.com
Telli Talks with Telli Swift
Harmonize Your Life: Conversation on Self-Care for Women of Color
Lighting the Legal Career Path
High Performance Mindset | Learn from World-Class Leaders, Consultants, Athletes & Coaches about Mindset
Pintastic® Pinterest Podcast
Learn 50 English Phrases While You Sleep | Everyday English Phrases & Vocabulary
The Daily
