Today I asked one of our ProCoach members how things were going in his business. Recalling that over a year ago he had been earning about $1000 a month in his part-time network marketing business, I asked if he had achieved the $2000 level yet. "I passed that ages ago," he said. "I've reached a steady $4500 per month now." Without thinking I responded, "And the next $4500 per month will come a lot faster than the first!"

Why could I say that with so much confidence?

The answer is that my client has "momentum," defined in the dictionary as "a force that keeps growing." When you have momentum, things build on each other and your acceleration increases exponentially. It is as if you are being carried along by a wave. And in those times you lack momentum, nothing seems to happen no matter how hard you work.

When you have momentum, people and opportunities are attracted to you. Look at the way things are going for Donald Trump these days. Everything he touches seems to turn to gold. You can be sure that people call him up every day and ask him to get involved in multi-million dollar deals. Instead of having to seek out opportunities, he gets to pick and choose.

I can't promise you momentum like The Donald has, but if you want to increase your momentum here are some ways you can do it.

The first step in accelerating your momentum is to invest some energy. Imagine a supertanker starting out from a dead stop. At first the engines strain to the limit and the ship barely moves. After a while, however, the captain can back off on the throttle and the ship continues to forge ahead. Like the ship's captain, you must be prepared to expend energy even when you do not see the results immediately. Get into action. Don't worry too much about whether what you are doing is the perfect thing. Just do something! My theory is "after you take the next step, things will look different than they do now."

Your action steps do not have to be huge. I know that many success gurus preach the importance of taking "massive action." After coaching thousands of clients, I have found this approach usually does more harm than good. If you attempt a step bigger than you are ready to handle, you will experience failure. And failure kills your momentum faster than anything. So take steps that are a bit of a stretch, but make sure you have a success rate of at least 80%. Each time you succeed, you build your confidence and increase your momentum.

Whenever I watch improv comedy I always admire the momentum the comedians are able to create in their skits. How do they do it? One of the fundamental rules of improv is "no blocking." In other words, if you partner says, "we're going fishing," you don't say, "I hate fishing." Momentum is created because everyone says "yes" to whatever comes up and builds on what they are offered. The same is true in life. If you default to "no" when opportunities come your way, soon they will stop coming. One of the keys to creating momentum is to develop the habit of saying "yes."

Another way to add to your momentum is to be decisive. As the saying goes, "It is better to make the wrong decision than to make no decision at all." Make prompt, clear decisions and act on them. You will be amazed at what a difference this makes. You can practice being decisive with small decisions. For example, when I was working to increase my decisiveness I would go to a restaurant and give myself just fifteen seconds to decide what to order.

Returning to the supertanker analogy, notice that the propellers on the ship are aligned so that all of the available energy drives the ship forward in the same direction. One guaranteed way to kill your momentum is to constantly change directions. Each time you head off in a new direction, you have to invest significant energy to get things moving again. I have worked with clients who keep changing their mind about what they want to do. This does not make them bad, but it means they never reap the rewards of momentum. The longer you stay focused on a particular direction, the more momentum you will create.

Completing what you start also makes a huge difference. Every time you complete something, no matter how small, it adds to your energy. If you make a habit of following projects and tasks through to completion, your momentum will increase considerably. Unfortunately, the opposite is also true. Every project and task you leave unfinished sucks your energy and slows your momentum. Bad idea!

If you are serious about increasing your momentum, try this exercise. Write down the names of three people you know who have tremendous momentum. For each, make a list of the reasons why you think they have it. What is it about them and the way they go about life that has created this momentum? And what do these three people have in common?

Apply the insights you get from this exercise together with the tips in this newsletter and before you know it you will be cruising!

Sincerely,

Andrew Barber-Starkey
Master Certified Coach.

Schedule of Events

ProCoach Success Essentials Seminars

The first step in becoming a member of ProCoach is to attend our Success Essentials Seminar. During this powerful one-day workshop you will receive all the components of the ProCoach Success System and learn how you can use them to double your income and double your time off in the next 3 years.

We are currently offering new members a Quick Start Package. It includes tuition to the Success Essentials Seminar, full ProCoach membership for the month of April, and two private coaching sessions. This package has a total value of $494 and is currently being offered for $197!

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