It’s much easier to keep a boulder rolling once you push it. But it’s very difficult to push the boulder and get it going. Often it’s painful. When you start, the difficulty can be so painful that it seems fruitless to even start.
For the last few days (as I’m ramping up my desires for 2012), I’ve been experimenting with writing a blog draft every night, regardless of how late it is, or how little I want to do it. Especially not important is whether or not I have an idea.
Momentum will eventually happen to you, whether you like it or not. The question is, once it happens, are you going to keep it going, or let it waver to perhaps never pick it up again?
For example, in the last year or so a series of events has forced Heidi and I into a pattern of momentum. This was Unwanted Momentum. At first. But once I had it I knew that if I didn’t keep it up, I would lose it again. So I bridged that negative momentum into positive outlets. Like writing these blog drafts. Like cleaning up the space around me. Like preparing for another round of music writing, etc.
Bridging Negative Momentum
You can either be pro-active and start your own momentum (even if it’s painful at first) or you can wait and let life throw some shit your way first. I prefer the former, but sometimes get dealt the latter.
The trick that most people don’t understand is that once you are pushed into momentum by a negative event, you need to take that momentum and bridge it into something positive before the boulder bulldozes you into a collapsed and exhaustive stupor of inaction.
The act of bridging is taking that energy and rolling into something positive by your own volition. Don’t let the world steamroll you into momentum from only negative events, because it will if you don’t take the boulder and run first.
Take the opportunity right now to get back on top of your life.
Once you do, don’t break the chain. If you do, it’s so much easier to justify stopping the next day.
So whether there is some crazy stuff happening in your life right now or everything is calm and boring, you have the opportunity to create and cultivate momentum right now.
Learn to live your life with momentum as a constant companion and see what happens.
As Og Mandino, author of The Greatest Salesman in the World said: “Do it now.”
“Never again clutter your days or nights with so many menial and unimportant things that you have no time to accept a real challenge when it comes along. This applies to play as well as work. A day merely survived is no cause for celebration. You are not here to fritter away your precious hours when you have the ability to accomplish so much by making a slight change in your routine. No more busy work. No more hiding from success. Leave time, leave space, to grow. Now. Now! Not tomorrow!”
~Og Mandino