An English premier league analogy – forgive me – Manchester United are struggling this season. The new coach didn’t help. The retirement of a legend didn’t either. But, you know what it is they have truly lost? Momentum. After winning the league a month before the league even finished last season, United slacked off. And, unlike with Sir Alex Ferguson, they have been unable to get that momentum back in the new season. Winning is a habit and only happens when you have momentum on your side. (Arsenal offer a contrast and show the power of momentum. Neither side has changed all that much but the momentum makes the difference).
Many of my posts this year have dealt with my attempts to make exercise an automatic habit in my life. I’ve not done too bad. I had a particularly good run between August-mid November. I was hitting my exercise target every week and was on a roll. Then, I lost momentum for valid reasons. In the week following the miss, I missed again thanks to somewhat valid reasons. I was determined to get “back” this week.
Just as I was deciding to head out for exercise last evening, I remember the resistance saying – “You know, you’ve already missed 2 weeks. How does it matter if you miss another? You’ve got valid reasons…”
I went for my work-out immediately. The resistance gains in strength as you fail towards your own goals.
The great thing about momentum is that it works both ways. While inertia creates a negative momentum, you can use positive momentum to your advantage too. If you have just lost momentum on a project, begin to take small steps towards it every day/as often as possible.
Respect momentum, appreciate it’s effects, and use it to make progress. It’s among the best things you’ll do.
A Learning a Day 