How Do You Build Momentum in Your Business and Life?

A few weeks ago at a "Leadership from the Ground Up" conference, Donald Trump spoke about the ingredients for success. I found his topic on momentum very intriguing. My thoughts have been returning to his presentation in my mind ever since.

Mr. Trump shared a story about his friend who lost momentum, and the devastating impacts this friend experienced as a result. He also said that momentum is something you have to work hard to maintain. His words got me thinking - I've never really focused on maintaining momentum or building it. I haven't really thought about it at all; I just know when I have momentum and when I don't.

I looked the word "momentum" up in the dictionary - the tendency of an object to continue movement in a single direction. To me, the speed of the movement indicates the degree of momentum. If it is very slow, there isn't much momentum, period.

I recognized a lack of momentum in an area of my business. As a result, I've started looking at this situation and trying to increase momentum. As well, I now notice the degree of momentum others around me have and the degree of results they are achieving.

Most of us realize that when we take on too many projects at once, we will find it difficult to get even one project completed. I now understand more fully that this contributes significantly to the degree of momentum we will have. I also recognize that when we don't have a lot of momentum, we will probably become overwhelmed and discouraged, and won't achieve our desired results. So - how can you build momentum and as a result avoid overwhelm?

Eight Ways How You Can Build Momentum

1. Act NOW

Pick one thing that will contribute to one of your goals. Take immediate action and get moving. This means no postponing, no delaying, and no procrastinating.

2. Stay Focused

Remind yourself of your goals every day and stay focused on them. When you find yourself distracted by something that is not directly in line with your goals, ask yourself, "Why?" Identify how you will manage future distractions and look for ways to eliminate them.

3. Keep Active

Do something every day that will bring you closer to your goals. It doesn't have to be big - but if you have too many days between actions, your momentum will dwindle and eventually die.

4. Be Decisive

Nothing slows momentum more than indecision. Decide as quickly as possible and then take some immediate action to support the decision - no matter how trivial it seems.

5. Be Optimistic

Change can truly happen in the moment. If you are frustrated or discouraged, it will certainly be tough to build momentum. But if you are optimistic, things will happen more freely and your momentum will build.

6. Create Flow

If you are resisting anything, you will definitely block momentum. Look proactively for resistances and take the necessary steps to eliminate them.

7. Develop an Action Plan

This plan doesn't have to be complicated. Just list one to three actions you will take during the day (or the week) that will help you succeed.

8. Get Assistance

Many successful businesspeople including Donald Trump, Michael Gerber and Chris Barrow, my business coach, say in their own way that you have to have great assistants. Build a strong team of supporters to help you take care of things and to help you get things done more quickly and efficiently.

Copyright 2004 Donna P. Lendzyk

Donna P. Lendzyk is a professional coach and creator of the Overcome Overwhelm System. She coaches businesswomen to "Overcome Overwhelm and Achieve Their Desired Results." She is the author of the multi-media "Overcome Overwhelm eProgram." To learn more about her eProgram and sign up for more FREE tips like these, visit her website at http://www.overcomeoverwhelm.com

More Resources

Unable to open RSS Feed $XMLfilename with error HTTP ERROR: 404, exiting

More Coaching Information:

Related Articles

Top Ways to Maximize Your Talents at Work
Are you maximizing your strengths and promoting your talents at work? If you have sharp analytical skills, have you sought to apply those skills to your current job? I know it sounds crazy to ask for more work when you are already overloaded, but any assistance that you can provide now will ultimately help you advance in your present position or in a future one.You have gifts and talents to offer the world.
Q-Tip It!
Back in the 1920's when Polish-American entrepreneur Leo Gerstenzang invented cotton swabs as a safer way to clean his baby's ears, he called his product "Q-Tip." Actually, his first name-choice was "Baby Gay" - but that didn't sell, so the by-now familiar name emerged.
Coaching Skills for Peers: Extending Influence
Many people think of coaching solely as a management technique. Although coaching skills provide managers with the means to get business results while creating solid relationships, the value of coaching in other arenas is often overlooked.
If I Only Had a Heart
I know you probably have heard of the movie, "The Wizard of Oz" right? Well, for those of you, who have somehow managed to miss this movie, let me give you a brief description of it.A young lady named Dorothy is upset with her home life and decides to run away.
Discover The Coach Within You
One of the three basic roles of leadership is the coach or mentor. The best boss is often the best coach.
Successful Implementation of Company Wide Coaching Programmes
Ten years ago I was fortunate enough to be heavily involved in the implementation of a company wide coaching programme, both as an employee who was to receive coaching but also as a manager and coach who was expected to regular coach my reports and my peers to enable them to achieve their objectives. I say, fortunate enough, because I found that when I was coached effectively I became really motivated and focused, and when I finally became a proficient coach, I again found it motivational in that I was able to support and enable my direct reports to achieve more.
Business Career, Executive, Life Coaching Article Mechanisms of the Mind (Achieving Success)
Suppose that the human mind is nothing more than a bio-computer and that the function of this computer is to get its owner exactly what he says he wants..
Self-contentment Leads to Confidence
Being self-content means accepting and acknowledging who you are at your core and becoming satisfied -- maybe not perfect, but satisfied -- in all areas of your life. When you learn to better understand, better appreciate and eventually love yourself, you exude a quiet confidence that will open doors to what you want in life.
The Benefits of Coaching
When I was first introduced to the profession of personal coaching, my first initial thought was that it sounded exactly like something I would love to pursue. I did further investigation into the profession and before I knew it I was happily enrolled in the Coach Training Program offered through Coach U University in Colorado, USA.
A Perrverse Confidante
Direct Answers - Column for the week of July 15, 2002Dad passed away years ago and Mom lives alone. She is still young and healthy, yet she always plays the victim.
How Does Sports Coaching Differ from Corporate Coaching?
Athletes Versus EmployeesMost athletes are young, open to improvement, eager to learn and anxious to receive what a coach can provide. For the athlete, there is a defined season and something tangible to compete for.
So Why Are They Really Here?
It does make you wonder sometimes, doesn't it? You know the folks I'm talking about. The ones who seem to be wandering around in the middle of a fog bank.
Bringing Forgiveness Down To Earth
What does it mean to forgive?One of the first things we typically think when we hear the word "forgive" is that it is a spiritual concept that is mostly out of reach for us mortal human beings. The bible talks about it, pastors implore us to forgive, we might believe that it is something that we "should" do but for the most part, most of us find it very difficult, if not impossible, to accomplish.
Are You At The Point Of No Return?
There is a point at which everything becomes simple and there is no longer any question of choice, because all you have staked will be lost if you look back. Life's point of no return.
Moment of Magic
Laughter may or may not be a shock, relieved, but its' therapeutic effects are recognised in most cultures. It allows a positive distractive moment or moments.
Anger: To Control or To Learn
Many of us will do anything to avoid another's anger, yet may be quick to anger ourselves. Many of us dread another's anger yet continue to use our own anger as a way to control others.
Unhook From The Perpetual Progress Grid
I have been a member of a group called the Women in BusinessConnection (WIBC for short) in Cambridge, MA for about fouryears. We get together for lunch meetings once a month.
We Are Exactly Where We Choose to Be
The idea for this month's newsletter came from an unlikely encounter: I recently had lunch with a new friend named Rick Rockwell. You may remember him as the bachelor from the first-ever reality TV show, "Who Wants to Marry a Multimillionaire?"During our meeting, Rick described some of the knowledge he gained from doing the show, along with a few of past his experiences in business, ethics, and of course, primetime romance.
Greasing the Path to Success: Finding the Confidence to Step Up to Key Moments
Whether it's making a prospecting call to a promising business contact, giving an informal "elevator speech" to a networking group, or attempting to close a transaction, there are certain key moments when putting your best-dressed foot forward really matters. Some of life's fortunate people seem to be naturally at their best finding confidence under pressure.
Coaching vs. Directing - How Does Improv Theater Suggest You Should Lead Your Team
An age old battle in improv that I believe resonates well with challenges we experience in the business world is the question of whether a team should have a coach or a director (in which case it should be called an ensemble). In addition there's the third option of the self coached team, which I will call committee from here on forward.