The Incredible Power of Momentum and How to Create It in Your Life
Right now, I’m on fire. But this is not the Tim Show and you don’t care so at least we can both agree on that.
What has hit me recently is the full effect of having a giant amount of momentum working in my favor. With momentum, you can literally do anything. Momentum is the energy that takes a few small steps and turns the results into something you could never see coming.
From having one of my biggest idols in life be in regular contact with me, to being contacted by major publications and having book publishers reach out, to having authors who I admire offer help with no strings attached — these extraordinary results have all come from momentum.
Momentum is not just useful but will be a game-changer in your life. It’s my goal to help more people realize the benefits of momentum and how to create more of it in our lives.
Motivation is easy with momentum
When you have momentum in your life, motivation is the easiest thing in the world. Right now, I wake up every day and the process of getting started comes with little to no thought.
All you do with momentum is keep doing what you were already doing without having to overthink too much.
Momentum takes over the need for motivation and that is a huge benefit. The resistance that is felt, especially in creative endeavors, is removed and replaced with momentum which says, “You got this, get to work.”
The strategy is validated
Once you have momentum, there is very little need to strategize. At the point of momentum is validation that what you’re doing is already working.
Momentum is a confirmation from whatever god you worship that you’re on your way and you just have to stick with it. Imagine having that sort of certainty in your life and work. That’s yet another benefit of momentum.
All that is left
Once you have momentum, all that is left is to find the focus and do the work. It makes the whole process of reaching your goals and doing those things that bring you joy much simpler.
And the beauty is that once you have momentum, if you continue finding the focus and doing the work, you get even more momentum and the cycle becomes self-fulfilling.
Now I know what you’re thinking: “That all sounds fine and dandy sir but how the heck do I build momentum and get these benefits for myself?”
Just like a scientist, I have dissected my exact process for building incredible amounts of momentum that has helped me achieve everything you’ve read so far. It’s the process that a pale, skinny dude with ears like Dumbo used and it works if you follow it.
How to create momentum
1. Practice one thing every day
The first step in creating momentum in your life is to choose one activity or habit and practice it daily. Note that I didn’t say ten things or five things — just one thing. Any more than one item on your list and you’re already screwed before you’re started.
Why one thing? One thing that you practice daily allows your mind to focus. For every item on your list, a piece of your focus is taken away and that means the incredible power of momentum escapes you.
One Thing = Focus
Sustained Focus= Momentum
2. Set a 3% challenge
This step involves making a game of it and creating momentum through being 3% better (3% is not an exact number and is another way of saying small increases in results).
Once you have the daily practice, challenging yourself to be better at that daily practice in small increments is an entirely achievable goal that anyone can achieve.
If you wrote 500 words, write 600 words.
If you produced one video today, produce one and a half videos tomorrow.
If you made $100 this month from your website, make $120 next month.
Each time you challenge yourself and achieve small wins, you work your way towards the tipping point that momentum is. Momentum creeps up on you though and often once its effects are realized, you’ll have a delayed reaction to what is going on.
3. Commit to the long-term
The misconception about momentum is that it happens quickly. This step involves making one simple decision:
Will you focus on the short-term or the long-term?
By saying yes to the long-term, you head down the path of momentum. Focusing on the short-term will only make you obsessed with results that you haven’t yet earned and then giving up when you don’t see them.
As an example, I tell writers all the time: “Forget about making any money in the first year. If you’re dead serious, forget about making money from writing for five years.”
The shift to the long-term kills all the noise in your head that is desperately chasing instant gratification that comes from quick results.
4. Refine your process
The final step in creating momentum is to refine your process
Let me give you another practical example. As a writer, I have refined my process by cutting out a whole bunch of steps. I’ve cut out using editors, using too many photos in my articles, meeting minimum word counts, judging my work and minimizing my time on social media that doesn’t add to the quality of the writing.
Locking in the daily habit creates your process and once you’ve repeated that process enough times, you’ll realize that there is a huge amount of wastage. Refining your process allows you to create momentum.
Summary
These are the four steps that anyone can use to create momentum. They are not hard to follow and can be applied to whatever your goal, dream or hobby is in life.
Once you see the incredible power that momentum creates in your life, you’ll feel like I feel right now writing these words. You’ll feel on fire!
Momentum crushes any creative resistance you have, eliminates the need to be motivated and helps you in invisible ways you can’t even see.
Choose one thing and practice it daily, set small challenges, commit to the long-term, and refine your process. I cannot wait to see you reach a level of potential that you previously hadn’t realized because the incredible power of momentum was lacking.
Use momentum to live a life you didn’t think was possible.