The Real Momentum Equation: Why Hard Work Isn’t Enough in Your Cash PT Practice

Physical therapists pride themselves on connection. Rapport. Trust. Being fully present with the patient sitting in front of them.
But nothing kills that connection faster than staring at a computer instead of the person in pain.

That’s why Danny opens with Claire, the AI scribe built specifically for PTs. If you can give patients your full attention without drowning in documentation later, outcomes get better, retention gets better, and your whole business tightens up. It’s an easy win.

But the heart of this episode isn’t note-taking—it’s why some people get results fast and others grind away for years without moving forward.

Danny breaks it down using physics.

Why Momentum Matters More Than Motivation

When most people think about success—business, fitness, relationships—they think motivation. They think discipline. They think grinding.

But the real driver is momentum.

Momentum is that stretch where:

• Patients are flowing in

• Your schedule stays full

• Continuity rises

• Revenue climbs

• Your team is dialed in

• You feel the business pushing forward instead of dragging you behind it

Momentum feels smooth. It feels obvious. It feels earned.
It’s the opposite of spinning your wheels.

The Physics Tie-In: Momentum = Mass × Velocity

In physics, momentum is a simple equation:

Momentum = mass × velocity

Danny uses football to make it real. He wasn’t the biggest guy on the field, so if he wanted to hit hard, he had to run faster. His brother had the opposite build—huge mass, slower speed—but still generated big momentum.

So what’s the equation for business?

It’s not mass × velocity.
It’s effort × accuracy.

And this is where most new entrepreneurs get stuck.

Why Hard Work Isn’t the Problem

Most PT entrepreneurs are not lazy.

They’re working:

• 70+ hours a week

• Nights and weekends

• Early mornings

• Late nights doing admin

Effort is rarely the issue.

Accuracy is.

If your effort is multiplied by poor accuracy—working on the wrong things, in the wrong order—you end up rowing a boat with one oar. You’re moving like hell, but in a circle.

Accuracy: The Missing Skill No One Teaches PTs

PTs are trained to follow the right sequence:

• Build range before loading

• Build isometrics before plyos

• Build stability before speed

Business works the same way.

But clinicians jump ahead constantly:

• Trying paid ads before learning to convert

• Building a website before defining their offer

• Hiring before creating predictable demand

• Renting space before establishing cash flow

These aren’t bad intentions—they’re inaccurate actions.
And inaccurate effort produces zero momentum.

When Effort Is the Problem

Sometimes someone really is underworking.
If that’s the case, it’s the simplest fix in the world: work harder.

But in almost every case Danny sees, the issue isn’t effort—it’s clarity.

When You Don’t Know What to Do Next

The fastest way to stall your business is not knowing the next step.
You feel busy, overwhelmed, exhausted—but you’re not making progress.

That’s why clarity is such a game-changer.
Once you know what to do, and why, and in what order, the business becomes simpler and progress becomes predictable.

This is why PT Biz exists—to help clinicians:

• Identify the right next step

• Build skills in the correct order

• Avoid wasting months or years guessing

• Create the accuracy that multiplies effort

Once accuracy is aligned with effort, momentum shows up fast.

The Real Equation for Business Momentum

Momentum = effort × accuracy

Which means:

• High effort × low accuracy = frustration

• Low effort × high accuracy = slow progress

• High effort × high accuracy = massive momentum

Your goal isn’t to work harder—it’s to work accurately and hard.

What to Do If You’re Stuck Right Now

If your business feels stalled, ask yourself:

• Am I truly putting in the effort?

• Or am I unclear on what to do next?

If you know what to do but aren’t doing it → increase effort.
If you don’t know what to do → increase accuracy by getting guidance.

There’s no shame in not knowing.
The real pain comes from rowing in circles for years.

Want Someone to Look at Your Business and Show You the Next Step?

If your momentum is stalled and you want clarity on the right next move for your business, you can book a time to talk with a PT Biz advisor here:

https://vip.physicaltherapybiz.com/discovery-call 

They’ll walk through your goals, your numbers, what you’re doing now, and help you pinpoint exactly where your accuracy is breaking down—and what to do about it.

Do you enjoy the podcast?  If so, leave us a 5-star review on iTunes and tell a friend to do the same!

Ready to elevate your practice? Book a call at the link below with one of our expert consultants today and start your journey to delivering unparalleled physical therapy.

Podcast Transcript

Danny: 

[00:00:00] Hey, what's going on? Dr. Danny here with the PT Entrepreneur Podcast and today we're talking [00:00:05] about physics. Now, hang on. Don't, [00:00:10] don't turn it off. Don't skip to the next one. Don't, uh, don't, you know, [00:00:15] go to another podcast. 'cause I said physics. I know. I had to do it as a prerequisite just like you did. It was a hard [00:00:20] class.

It almost made me rethink whether I wanted to be a physical therapist or not, but. [00:00:25] When I was taking physics, I always thought to myself, what the hell does this have to [00:00:30] do with physical therapy? I felt like it had more to do with somebody who's gonna be an [00:00:35] engineer. Um, you know, and then I got into school and I realized, oh, biomechanics is [00:00:40] physics of the body.

Okay, this makes sense and, you know, you can apply it in so many [00:00:45] ways. It's just so many principles that can be applied. But [00:00:50] recently I have been thinking through. [00:00:55] Why is it that people get really fast outcomes and other people do not? [00:01:00] And there's variables that, like a physics equation that I [00:01:05] think really make the difference.

So lemme share this with you. Mm-hmm. Because [00:01:10] when I think of one word that describes, [00:01:15] uh, business success, I would use the word momentum. [00:01:20] So to me, momentum and, and if you're in business, you [00:01:25] probably know this feeling. Things are clicking, you're seeing progress. [00:01:30] Your clinic is growing, you're getting more visits, more people are sticking around for [00:01:35] continuity.

Your revenue is going up, your team culture is improving. Everybody's following all the procedures, [00:01:40] and your systems are tight. You know, you're moving into bigger spaces. You're, you're seeing [00:01:45] this, this momentum, this forward. Push for [00:01:50] whatever you're trying to do. And it's not just in business, by the way.

This could be in your personal life, this could be in [00:01:55] your health, right? You're starting to train and change how you're eating and sleeping more, and all of a [00:02:00] sudden you wake up and things don't hurt as much and you have more energy and you're less [00:02:05] irritable. And this is momentum in a different way. And this [00:02:10] equation for momentum is momentum equals [00:02:15] mass times velocity.

Okay? This is the equation. [00:02:20] Momentum equals mass times velocity. I, I think of this as, as, um, [00:02:25] in terms of like football, right? So when I played football, [00:02:30] I wasn't a big person. You know, my mass was relatively small. [00:02:35] So if I wanted to hit somebody hard, I had to increase the velocity. That means I [00:02:40] had to run faster.

In order to make up the difference if somebody was bigger. Like I [00:02:45] have an older brother who's built very different than I am. He's very thick human being, you know, [00:02:50] big bone structure, very, very strong. Not as fast, but a lot [00:02:55] more mass. So if he hits you going slower, he, he hits you pretty [00:03:00] hard. He had a lot of momentum.

Right. Now, where does it apply to [00:03:05] business? 'cause it's a business podcast, right? It's tied. Tied together. Danny, don't lose me. [00:03:10] Alright, here's the thing. Momentum in business is not your mass times, your velocity. [00:03:15] Momentum in business is your effort [00:03:20] times your accuracy. So what do I mean by that? [00:03:25] Most entrepreneurs work really hard.[00:03:30]

There's very few lazy entrepreneurs because they don't last very long. [00:03:35] Okay? Like most entrepreneurs work hard. [00:03:40] Especially in startup stages when it's just a massive amount of work that needs to be done, [00:03:45] but the accuracy of what you work on, [00:03:50] the specifics of, of the work that you're [00:03:55] doing at the, at the right time, that then build towards the, the next [00:04:00] things is the accuracy of the work that you're doing.

So. Yeah, [00:04:05] we can have somebody that is putting in a massive amount of effort [00:04:10] that's working 70, 80 hours a week, sometimes just [00:04:15] crushing themself, but they're working on the wrong things [00:04:20] or they're doing it, they're working on things in an improper order. [00:04:25] It's no different than when we do rehab with people.[00:04:30]

If I have somebody that I'm taking through. A [00:04:35] ACL rehab, I am not going to have them do [00:04:40] apply a metrics until they can do isometrics. You know, [00:04:45] like I'm not gonna have them load the joint through range until they have regained [00:04:50] range. Like these are just sequential. To get the outcome that we want. [00:04:55] But in business, we see people jump and do the wrong thing before they have [00:05:00] developed a foundational understanding of the skillset they need to then make that next thing actually [00:05:05] work.

This happens all the time, and it's so difficult because it's a very [00:05:10] abstract thing. It's a very abstract thing for a physical therapist who [00:05:15] has no business education, no formal business education whatsoever to [00:05:20] understand. The, the complexity of business [00:05:25] and how sales, marketing, finance, leadership, [00:05:30] uh, just like system development, operational capacity, [00:05:35] tech integrations, how do all these things intertwine [00:05:40] along with real estate, understanding, real estate, understanding debt, financing [00:05:45] and leverage through people as well as through.

Through debt, like all these things [00:05:50] intertwine. And on top of that, you have to be a good physical therapist. You have to be a good clinician. [00:05:55] So what happens is we have people that are putting in massive amounts of effort, [00:06:00] multiplied by the wrong accuracy, the wrong tasks, [00:06:05] they're inaccurate with their effort, and they wonder why they spin their wheels.[00:06:10]

They feel like they're going nowhere. And they're just, they're, [00:06:15] they're working really hard. It's like you, if you got in in a boat and you just had [00:06:20] one ore and you just rode as hard as you possibly could and you just went in circles, this is what's [00:06:25] happening with a lot of people versus when you get both of them and you start pulling really hard, you go in a [00:06:30] direction.

This is momentum. This is an equation that you should [00:06:35] understand, and when you feel like you are working hard. [00:06:40] And you're not seeing the outcome that you want. [00:06:45] Don't look at the effort, look at the accuracy. Look at [00:06:50] are you doing the right things? Are you working on the right tasks, or do you not know what to [00:06:55] do?

Do you not have the right skillset to know what to do? It's just important to [00:07:00] know that the self-awareness of knowing what you don't know is one of the most important skills that you can [00:07:05] develop because you can keep rowing in your [00:07:10] boat. In a circle, putting out massive amounts of effort, probably feeling [00:07:15] like you're doing a lot of work, but at the end of the day, are you going where you're trying to go?[00:07:20]

Are you gaining the traction that you know you want but you're not seeing in your [00:07:25] business? Do you have momentum? And if you don't, it's probably not effort. [00:07:30] And if it is effort, stop being lazy. Put more work in. [00:07:35] You know, if you're, if you're putting less work in on the right things and you're not getting momentum, that's the easiest fix of [00:07:40] all.

Just work harder, just try harder. That usually though, is not the case, [00:07:45] and if you don't know what to do, that's when you need to get some help. That's why we have a [00:07:50] entire company that does this because we see clinical entrepreneurs all the [00:07:55] time that are busting their ass on the wrong things or they're, they're working on [00:08:00] something that.

Is found, they haven't built the foundational skill to [00:08:05] then work on the next skill. And they're working on a skill that's too far down the line and it's not working because they [00:08:10] haven't actually built the infrastructure through other things first. And knowing what you need to work [00:08:15] on is, it's so relieving.

Once you finally have clarity where it's like, okay, here's what we need to do next. [00:08:20] Here's the next step. Let's do this. Let's, let's set this goal. Let's, let's plan this out. Let's get clear on what the goals are, [00:08:25] what the, what the tasks are, you know, and then let's get to work. And then let's [00:08:30] reassess and re, you know, rebuild our, our plan.

We're gonna rechart our course [00:08:35] and we're gonna go from there. And we're gonna maintain momentum as best as we possibly can so that we take [00:08:40] that massive amount of effort that you're putting in, and we multiply it by the best accuracy possible and your business gets momentum. [00:08:45] And if you feel like you're struggling with gaining momentum right now, or we should have a [00:08:50] conversation, head of physical therapy biz.com.

Take a look at what we got going on. You can learn more about us [00:08:55] and our coaches and if you want, pick a time to have a conversation with one of our advisors. They can look at your [00:09:00] business, you know, sit down with you for an hour, get a better idea of what's going on in your business, what you're working on, [00:09:05] and where you're probably dropping the ball on accuracy and help you really come up with a plan for what you [00:09:10] should do next.

So hope this helps, and if you are like most people out, there's putting a [00:09:15] massive amount of effort. Make sure you got the right accuracy as [00:09:20] well.