The Power of Momentum in Business: Just roll with it

Momentum is the invisible force that propels you towards success, and like a snowball gathering mass and speed rolling down a hill, it’s difficult to get it going, but hugely powerful once it’s started.

I know how much effort it takes to get momentum, so once it’s there I take full advantage of it, get into a rhythm, and focus on keeping it going as long as possible. Too many people take their foot off the gas when they start to see things moving for them, only to slow back down to a halt. I believe in putting the foot down and making as much progress as possible whilst you’re in the zone.

Success isn’t permanent, and progress isn’t guaranteed. When I first started out running my own businesses I was chasing ‘financial freedom’, where I, like many others, were building passive income to replace our earned income, covering our expenses. At the time, either out of naivety or stupidity, I just assumed once this status was attained, I’d be set for life…but I was wrong. Expenses grow or passive income diminishes, effort is required to maintain ‘financial freedom’ or you’ll slip back into the ‘rat race’ you fought so hard to escape.

Just because it’s passive, doesn’t mean it’s permanent. I reached the goal of financial freedom relatively quickly, but the ‘dream’ that’s often sold with financial freedom, of sitting by the pool with your laptop, simply doesn’t work out long-term, and isn’t the lifestyle I want. Passive income requires management, momentum requires effort. Like the snowball rolling down the hill, every now-and-then it’ll hit an object that slows it down, or stops it completely, and you need to find a way around them.

I also believe that if you don’t keep track of the momentum, keeping your eye on the prize, failure will creep up on you. Business doesn’t stand still, the world moves faster than it ever has, whole industries are disrupted or are wiped out altogether, and it can happen before you even realise if you’re not paying attention. One of my early ventures was providing a home delivery solution to the big supermarkets for their online grocery shopping, and over night my business failed when the supermarkets moved all of their online order fulfilment in-house. The rules of the game can change, so that tactics that led to a win before, no longer cut it.

Keep playing to win. For many people, achieving a bit of success is terrifying, because now they’ve got something to lose. I’ve seen the most motivated leaders turn from a lion to a pussycat to protect what they’ve achieved. People who no longer play to win, but merely play not to lose, and it kills momentum, they stagnate and begin to tread water just to stay afloat. Whilst people will comment that continuing to push for success is born out of greed, it’s not, I just know that even those treading water get tired and eventually drown, so I’d rather keep swimming.

There’s a fine line from the penthouse to the shithouse. I’ve experienced plenty of failures over the years, it’s all part of business, and life in general. It can happen quickly, and I’ve learned success needs active management and whilst I’ve got the momentum, I’ll use it to my full advantage, I’ll ride the wave and make as much progress as possible whilst times are good. Challenges are always coming, problems are always just around the corner, so whilst things are moving, I believe in letting the brakes off and really making big steps forward.