In partnership with
Sales Owns Retention, Not Just Closed Deals
Pebl’s Chief Business Officer, Dutta Satadip, joins The GTM Garage to show how Pebl merged Operations and GTM under one leader, and how it aligned goals and incentives across the customer lifecycle.
You’ll also see how Pebl uses AI across that lifecycle and the stack behind prospecting, pipeline, and handoff to onboarding.
15 min conversation. 15 min open Q&A. For Seed to Series A teams.
Hey,
it's Marc.
Have you ever noticed something strange?
Sometimes,
the anticipation of something
feels almost better
than the thing itself.
Think about it.
You're planning a vacation.
Looking at pictures.
Imagining the beach.
Counting down the days.
And somehow,
just thinking about it
already feels exciting.
Or maybe you've experienced
something similar
when ordering something online.
You spend hours
researching the product.
Comparing options.
Watching reviews.
Waiting for the delivery.
Then the package arrives.
You open it.
And a few days later...
the excitement is gone.
Why does that happen?
Well,
there's a fascinating
neuroscientific explanation.
And it involves
one of the most misunderstood
chemicals in your brain.
Dopamine.
Most people think
dopamine is simply
the pleasure chemical.
But that's not
the whole story.
Dopamine plays
an important role
in motivation,
learning
and reward-seeking behavior.
And here's
where things get interesting.
Your brain doesn't only
respond to rewards.
It also learns
to respond to signals
that predict rewards.
In classic experiments,
researchers observed
that dopamine neurons
initially responded
when an unexpected reward appeared.
But after learning,
their activity shifted
toward the cue
that predicted the reward.
In other words,
your brain can start responding before the reward even arrives.
And that's incredibly important.
Because motivation
isn't just about
enjoying the outcome.
It's also about
anticipating what might happen.
Think about
how this shows up
in everyday life.
You see a notification.
Maybe it's an interesting message.
You open Instagram.
Maybe there's something new.
You check your email.
Maybe an exciting opportunity
is waiting.
The possibility
of a reward
can motivate you
to take action.
Even when
the reward itself
is uncertain.
But here's the interesting question.
Can we use this mechanism to build better habits?
I think we can.
Not by trying
to artificially maximize dopamine.
But by making
the process of progress
more rewarding.
What helped me
Instead of focusing
only on the final result,
I started paying
more attention
to small milestones.
For example,
when working
on a big project,
I don't just think about
finishing the entire thing.
I break it down
into smaller steps.
Write the outline.
Finish the introduction.
Complete the first draft.
Publish.
Each step gives me
something concrete
to work toward.
And when I finish one,
I take a moment
to acknowledge the progress.
Not because
every completed task
creates some magical
dopamine explosion.
But because
clear goals
and meaningful feedback
can help reinforce motivation.
The same principle
can apply to exercise.
Learning a language.
Building a business.
Or developing
almost any new skill.
The lesson
Your brain
doesn't only care
about reaching the destination.
It also learns
from the signals
that tell you
you're getting closer.
And sometimes,
that's exactly
what we forget.
We become so focused
on the big achievement
that we stop noticing
the progress
happening along the way.
So here's my question
for you today.
Are you only allowing yourself to feel successful when you reach the final goal?
Or are you giving yourself
a reason to appreciate
the small steps
that get you there?
Because motivation
isn't always something
you need to find
before taking action.
Sometimes,
it grows
as you begin
making progress.
Stay sharp
Your Marc from Neurotweak
