Something that’s been in the works for quite some time now - we launched a podcast, called (drumroll, ~super creative~) - The VibeScaling Podcast.

We plan to ship weekly, and you can expect the smartest GTM minds from the hottest companies to talk all things sales, GTM, AI, and startups.

Think of it as a baby born from two of my favorite podcasts - the content of 20VC (specifically their 20Sales series) meets the casual vibe of My First Million.

If you enjoy it, please give us a rating, review, or follow on Spotify/YouTube/Apple Podcasts - it really helps us grow this.

Some of our guests for season one:

• Tomer Chernia, VP of GTM @ Cursor

• Liam Mulcahy, GTM Partner @ Kleiner Perkins

• Sam Warburg, Head of Sales @ Baseten

• Eleanor Dorfman, Head of Sales @ Anthropic

• Kyle Parrish, Ex-Dropbox & Former Head of Sales @ Figma

• Raphael Parker, former founding GTM hire & Head of Sales @ Segment

And many more in the pipeline - if you know any good leaders who fit this, shoot me a DM on LI or reply to this email. We’ll keep openings rolling and be super open to suggestions of similar guests.

We film in-person in SF & NYC at top-notch podcast studios and have hired a post-production agency, so the quality will be high.

VibeScaling Episode 1: Todd Busler

Todd’s background

I have personally admired and respected Todd’s career since I learned about him a few years ago.

Former founding GTM hire, did the VC thing for a little, then started his own company. And also just an overall good dude - when I was thinking of initial guests to have, he was at the top of my list.

Todd Busler⁠ is currently the CEO of ⁠Champify⁠, a sales intelligence platform helping teams build pipeline through champion and user tracking.

Before Champify, Todd was a founding AE at ⁠Heap⁠, scaling the company from $300K to $40M in ARR over six years. He started his career as one of the first 10 sellers at Square after working as a sales engineer at SAP, and spent time in venture capital at ⁠Unusual Ventures⁠ , leading go-to-market operations.

He joined us to talk all things 0 to 1 sales, how to choose your next GTM opp, the pros/cons of VC vs. operator, and plenty of other topics that touch on the intersection of GTM + AI + startups.

Discussed in this episode

• Stand out at hot startups. How to stand out when applying to hot startups

• Sales engineers over BDRs. Why sales engineers might be the better starting point than BDR roles in the AI era

• Two criteria for picking companies. The two criteria Todd used to pick every company

• Learn from mentors remotely. Learning from mentors without working for them

• Operator to VC transitions. The real reasons to transition from operator to VC (and why Todd went back to operating)

• Templated SDR cadences are dead. Why templated SDR cadences are dead and how email is becoming "low-cost advertising"

• Modern sales is splitting. The split in modern sales: nerdy clay users running scaled campaigns vs. reps doing highly personalized creative work

• Curiosity in sales interviews. What curiosity actually means in sales interviews

• Two flavors of curiosity. The two flavors of curiosity that predict sales success: understanding the competitive landscape + learning business economics

• Content consumption habits. What books/podcasts Chris & Todd are reading/listening to

• Playing the right career game. How to be intentional about "what game you want to play" in your career

Episode timestamps

00:00 Standing Out: How to Get Hired at Hot Startups

9:00 Navigating Career Decisions with Intention

18:09 The Transition to Venture Capital at Unusual

26:47 The Future of Sales: AI, Personalization, and Dead Tactics

29:54 Exploring the Path from VC Back to Operating

32:32 The Challenges of 0-1 Sales and Building Pipeline

34:56 Building Champify: Product Insights and GTM Strategy

39:28 Effective Strategies for Booking Meetings in 2025

42:17 Leveraging AI in Modern Sales Organizations

53:58 Personal Growth, Community, and Tribe Mentality in Business

Interesting takeaways

Show curiosity through questions, not answers. The best interview signal isn't what you know - it's asking about the competitive landscape, the right to win, and a deep understanding of business economics.

Go above and beyond to stand out. When interviewing at hot companies, Todd sat with a Square merchant for 4 hours on a Saturday to deeply understand the product—that level of preparation got him the role.

Deal size determines your earning potential. Todd realized early at Square that SMB deals had a ceiling - seeking roles with larger deal sizes was his primary criterion for choosing his next opportunity.

If you don't want your boss's job, it's time to move on. When you look at your manager's role and can't see yourself wanting it, that's a clear signal to find a new path.

Founding AE is a calculated bet. It's only worth the risk if you can go a level deeper- get real intel from word-of-mouth sources about the company's trajectory, not just public signals.

College athletes make better sellers - but not for the obvious reasons. The discipline from consistently pushing through hard things matters more than competitiveness; musicians and others who've done hard things long-term show the same traits.

The feedback play actually works. Reaching out to prospects saying "we'd like to float an idea by you" creates engagement - people want to make an impact, and this taps into that desire.

You don't get points for Clay tables; you get points for meetings. In the early days, reps need to focus on what actually moves the needle - templated outreach is dead, highly personalized creative work that gets meetings is what matters.

Autonomous AI in sales has underwhelmed; augmentation has delivered. Fully automated SDR workflows haven't replaced humans yet, but AI as a tool to augment sales work is proving effective today.

Big company training programs are undervalued. Todd's SAP cohort went on to run major teams and start companies - structured programs with smart peers create lasting career advantages.

Thanks for reading!

If you enjoy it, please give us a rating, review, or follow on Spotify/YouTube/Apple Podcasts - it really helps us grow this.

For those who are new, my name is Chris Balestras, partner @ VibeScaling - a GTM advisory, recruiting, media, and investing firm.

Where to find VibeScaling:

• ⁠Website⁠

• ⁠LinkedIn Company Page⁠

• ⁠YouTube⁠

• ⁠Newsletter - GTMBA

• Spotify

• Apple Podcasts

We work with most of the hottest AI-natives in different capacities, and for those who are interested, shoot me an email at [email protected] or a DM on LI.

🫡 cheers,

Chris