Momentum is your most important asset any time you are starting your own project, and it is important for 2 reasons. The first reason is that everyone likes a winner; if you have good momentum, you will find that people will jump on your bandwagon, whether it’s buying your product or seeing your movie. It’s simply human nature. The second reason is that momentum provides the boost you need to keep chugging along. Remember your physics? ‘An object at rest tends to stay at rest; an object in motion tends to stay in motion.’ Newton’s Laws of Motion apply to our lives just like they do to physical objects. Without momentum, everything feels ten times harder to accomplish. Here are some of the things that help me build momentum and keep it going.

Jump starters

• Heroes – You admire these people because they overcome difficult hurdles to accomplish something great. Use this inspiration to start the ball rolling on one of your goals.
• Chip on your shoulder – Remember all the haters and doubters who always said you couldn’t do this or that? There are many ways you could react. You could become depressed, indifferent, or angry. Depression is self-destructive, and indifference doesn’t do anything for you. Most people will tell you that anger is bad, but this is not entirely true. If you let it manifest as violence, then yeah, it’s bad. Anger is raw energy; if you can channel it into your pursuits, it gives you an incredible boost. Instead of thinking about beating the person up physically or verbally, think about beating him in life. They have no idea what you are capable of when you put your mind to it.

Stagnation busters – You WILL fall into ruts from time to time. That’s a fact of life. The key to success isn’t trying to avoid them; it’s getting out of them as quickly as possible. Here are some techniques that might help you.

• Other activities – Do something else that you enjoy and/or excel at. Life is one interconnected system; momentum in one area can transfer to other areas of your life. So if things seem temporarily stalled in your career, put your energy into your hobbies or side businesses. Once the blockage is removed, you’ll be refreshed and ready to go. Or maybe you’ll find that you are so good at your side pursuit that you can make it your job. If you keep beating your head against the wall, by the time opportunity knocks at your door, you’ll be too tired to capitalize on it.
• Good support network – Supportive family, friends, and heroes/mentors, get you through rough patches and can keep you in the game long enough for a chance at success.
• Exercise – People will tell you that fitness gives them tremendous self-confidence, but you don’t have to be a fitness junkie in order to get the benefits of exercise. Mind, body, and spirit are all related. If you let your body deteriorate, it will eventually affect the other parts. If you feel stuck, go out for a jog, walk, or workout. Even walking your dog for 10 minutes helps. It gets the blood flowing to your brain and can give you a boost.
• Music – More than anything else, music moves people. If you’re feeling stuck, just pop in your favorite music. Maybe you’ll find that things aren’t so bad after all.
• Take a nap – Sleep has really been vilified in our super-caffeinated society. Americans seem to think, ‘Sleep is for the weak,’ and pride themselves on how many hours they can stay awake. But your body keeps score, and it will all catch up to you eventually. The human brain is a powerful instrument, but it wasn’t designed to focus continuously for 8+ hours/day. You don’t have to be a neurosurgeon to realize that your brain goes through lulls during the day, ie. food coma. And when your brain is overloaded with information, your accuracy and efficiency go down the tubes, and your outlook on life will deteriorate as well. If you feel any of these symptoms, simply putting your head down for as little as 10 minutes can help revitalize you.