The Law of The Big Mo (16)

Momentum Is A Leader's Best Friend

Many times, momentum is the only thing that makes the difference between losing and winning.  When you have no momentum, even the simplest tasks seem impossible.  Small problems look like insurmountable obstacles.  Morale becomes low.  The future appears dark.  An organization with no momentum is like a train at a dead stop.  It's hard to get going, and even small wooden blocks on the track can keep it from going anywhere.

Momentum is like a magnifying glass; it makes things look bigger than they really are.  

Momentum is the Great Exaggerator
Success is exaggerated by momentum.  When you have momentum, you don't worry about small problems, and many larger ones seem to work themselves out.  

Momentum Makes Leaders Look Better Than They Are
Momentum makes everyone's perspective of leaders.  Young leaders often get less credit that they deserve.  I often encourage young leaders just not to lose heart - they just haven't gained any momentum.  Once a leader creates some success and develops momentum, people begin to give him more credit than he deserves.  When you get momentum, the value you add seems to compound in a positive way.

Often I say that when I started my career, I wasn't as bad as people thought.  Today, I'm not as good as people give me credit for.

John Maxwell

Momentum Helps Followers Perform Better Than They Are
When leadership is strong and there is momentum in an organization, people are motivated and inspired to perform at higher levels.  They become effective beyond their hopes and expectations.

Momentum Is Easier To Steer Than To Start
Getting started is a struggle, but once you're moving forward, you can really start to do some amazing things.

Momentum Is A Powerful Change Agent
Given enough momentum, nearly any kind of change is possible in an organization.  People like to get on a winning bandwagon.  

Momentum Is The Leader's Responsibility
Creating momentum requires someone who has a vision, can assemble a good team, then the organization is in trouble.  If the leader is waiting for the organization to develop momentum on its own, then the organization is in trouble.  

Momentum Begins Inside The Leader
It starts with a vision, passion, and enthusiasm.  It starts with vision, passion, and enthusiasm.  It starts with energy.  Inspirational writer Eleanor Doan observed, "You cannot kindle a fire in any other heart until it is burning within your own."  If you don't believe in the vision and enthusiastically pursue it, doing all that you can bring it to fruition.  If you model enthusiasm to your people day in and day out, you attract like-minded people to your team, department, organization and motivate them to achieve.  

Applying The Law Of The Big Mo
1 - Momentum begins inside the leader and spread from there.  You must model the attitude and work ethic that you would like to see in others.

2 - Motivation is important in creating momentum.  The first step toward building momentum is removing demotivating elements within the organization.  Figure out what might be causing people to lose their passion and enthusiasm and how to remove those minimizing factors.  

3 - Help your people celebrate their accomplishments and don't be afraid to find a correlation between their success and the role you played in facilitating that success.