The Mechanics of Momentum
How to get big mo-mo on your side
I remember my first Monday in NYC like it was yesterday.
The thrill of moving to the city over the weekend had subsided and I was sitting in my 600 sqft apartment all alone.
Sipping a cup of coffee, I pulled up my calendar to see what my week had in store for me.
This is what stared back at me:
An ocean of white space.
“Holy shit” I thought to myself “what have I done.”
A blank page.
But instead of it being a blog post that needed writing, it was a life that needed living.
Momentum
There are a lot of powerful forces in the world.
Gravity
The tides of the ocean
The urge to pull out your credit card when you see that “Make Video Horizontal Again” Hats are on sale.
Powerful stuff.
But perhaps the most powerful force of all is momentum.
You know what it feels like.
When everything is working in your favor.
It feels like the universe has your back.
Each day seems to bring more and more opportunity.
You are a freight train heading for the top.
It’s an incredible feeling.
But it works both ways.
Momentum in the opposite direction is equally as powerful.
When you’ve got nothing going for you.
It feels impossible to get anything started.
Every action feels like wasted effort.
Nothing will ever move the needle.
That’s what I felt that first Monday morning when I was staring at that blank calendar.
But what even is momentum?
Momentum can be defined a bunch of different ways, but here’s how I like to think about it:
Momentum is how easy (or hard) it is for you to move towards your goals.
When you’ve got momentum, it feels effortless to keep moving towards your goals. In fact, it feels like the world is actually pushing you towards them.
When you don’t have momentum, it feels like you’d need to move mountains to make get any closer to your goals.
Why is momentum important?
Momentum is the tailwind (or headwind) of your life.
When the momentum breeze is blowing, things happen quickly and opportunities seem to be everywhere.
Momentum has two really powerful effects:
1) The amount of wins coming in the door increases your quality of life
2) Because of all the winning you are doing your confidence skyrockets. You now approach the world differently. The world responds and behaves differently to this new, more confident version of yourself, which in turn leads to more opportunities and more wins.
Example of momentum: You make 2 big sales at work and get 2 big commission checks. You now have a little bit of a cushion financially. Because of this you aren’t as desperate for every deal to close and so you approach your sales calls with a more laid back and confident approach. This approach is actually more effective than your manic, desperate, high-pressure sales tactics and so you go on to close even MORE deals with your new demeanor. All of a sudden you’ve got even more of a financial cushion and can continue to operate in this new manner.
What should you do when you don’t have momentum?
Lack of momentum (or negative momentum) can be an overwhelming feeling.
It can feel like you are stuck in quicksand in the middle of a desert.
No people around. No opportunities. Nothing pushing you forward.
The most important thing to do if you don’t have any momentum, is to get some.
Sounds simple, I know.
But before you start trying to create momentum, realize that this moment where you have nothing going for you can also be an opportunity in itself.
An opportunity to look around and take stock of your life.
To see where you are at and where you want to go.
Use this slow time to reflect, but don’t let this reflection period last too long.
You won’t reflect your way out of this mess.
Now that you’ve reflected, it’s time to get moving.
Focus your attention on daily activity, not on results.
Results will be a lagging indicator of the activity you are putting in.
The worst thing you can do in this situation is nothing. Don’t do nothing!
Nothing will keep you right where you are at.
Here are 5 ways to quickly get some momentum going:
Set yourself the smallest goal you can think of and then go knock it out. Could literally be to do a single push-up. Write that on your list, do it, then cross it out. You are know on a winning streak.
Solve a problem for somebody else. Take the focus off yourself for a little bit and focus on making something happen for somebody else. You’d be shocked by the amount of momentum you can create for yourself by helping others.
Eliminate consumption. Cut out all social media, newsletters, news, TV, etc. This will force you to spend time taking action.
Focus on what you can do today. Don’t think about anything else. Actually, forbid yourself from thinking about anything else except for today’s activities.
Carry the risk. If you are trying to get off the ground and work for other people, don’t make them carry the risk of the arrangement not going well. Do stuff for free, money-back guarantee your work, do what you have to do to make it a risk-free engagement for them and then work your ass off to make sure you follow through.
How do you keep the momentum?
Keeping the momentum can be tough.
Often times when you get momentum, you stop doing the activities that helped you get it in the first place.
You take your foot off the gas.
This is where it takes a lot of discipline to keep the momentum train rolling.
Continue to do the things that helped you get momentum even if it feels like you don’t need to be doing them anymore.
Tbh, I suck at this!
Historically, whenever I find some momentum, I tend to dial back the activities that helped me get it. I’m working on getting better at this.
Wrap Up
Long time, no blog.
I know, I’ve been busy trying to get some momentum.
But now I need to build some momentum with writing lol.
Let me know if you’ve got any thoughts on momentum, how you find it, how you keep it, or anything like that!
Until next time,
Flickman
P.S. If you or anyone you know runs a company that needs help with video content, hit us up over at Flickman Media