Here in the Spokane, WA area, where I live, we have been in the process of building what we call the “North-South Freeway” which will be a 4-Lane highway that will go a long way in reducing the congestion we have of trucks on surface streets going to and from major Canadian markets such as Calgary and Edmonton. The concept for this project started in 1946 but did not start construction until 2001. And yes, 22 years later it’s still under construction, but is scheduled to be completed by 2028.

However, our idiot Governor, Jay Inslee (yes, I said that), has proposed “pausing” funding for 4 years in order to fund other projects that probably benefit his cronies more than finishing a 2/3rds completed freeway that will have massive economic benefits to a region that doesn’t generally vote for him. 

What Governor Inslee misses is the concept of “Momentum.” Every year that something is paused, it becomes less and less likely that it will ever get completed. After the 4 years are over, it will be less and less likely that new funding will be approved and eventually we’ll have a partially built freeway that never gets finished.

So, let’s look at your business. In his book “Good to Great” by Jim Collins, Jim outlines one of the things that takes a business from good to great is the “Flywheel” concept. A flywheel takes a lot of energy for a person who has to crank the flywheel to get it going. However, after a while the flywheel has so much momentum that it can run virtually by itself with occasional taps on the flywheel handle to keep it going. 

Your job as a business owner is to find a way to drive positive momentum in your business and then sustain that over time until the business can grow organically, and even then, keep pushing things forward so you never lose the momentum.

I coach a chiropractic business who have mastered the concept of momentum. When I started working with them in 2018, it was just the husband-and-wife chiropractors, and two team members. However, they wanted to push the envelope and they began to aggressively grow the business to the point where in 2023 they have 5 chiropractors and 4 team members and have tripled the size and quadrupled the profitability of the business.  They could go on cruise control now, but they continue to explore new growth opportunities because they know if they want to live their dreams, they need to keep pushing and make momentum their friend.

So, what do you need to do to make momentum your friend? New programs and products? More and better employees? Aggressive marketing campaigns? And if you have momentum, what do you need to do to protect it? A bigger vision perhaps? 

Always remember to keep out of the inertia trap and never allow yourself to stand still. You still have your dreams to live, so make it happen today.

Kevin Weir - 1/20/2022