Every genuinely successful person is driven by a passion or enthusiasm that makes them function like they were literally on steroids. Motivation may generate momentum but without momentum, motivation cannot be sustained. Before it is qualified in speed, momentum is generated in attitude. You cannot deliver the goods if your heart is heavier than the load. There is a relationship between moment and momentum. Momentum is the wing that you give the meaningful moments (especially of inspired ideas) of your life.
Momentum is the impetus gained by a moving object. It is the quantity of motion of a moving body, measured as a product of its mass and velocity. The underlying word is motion. What that simply means is that a static object cannot generate momentum. It should be noted however that momentum is not just about the quantum of motion but the quality of it as well. Generating speed and momentum in motion without a given direction is nothing but an exercise in futility.
Momentum is very essential for successful living. This is because motion naturally activates opposition and pressure. Whenever you decide to stand for something, expect that something will stand against you. It’s a given. We learn from one of Isaac Newton’s three Laws of Motion that any object in motion will encounter resistance equal to its velocity. Action and reaction are equal and opposite. Every assignment reveals an adversary. Nobody lives a life of purpose and on purpose without attracting attention for the right and wrong reasons. An excellent life will attract many admirers and many haters at the same time. Sometimes, the opposition will be stiff and fierce.
In Proverbs 20:26, the first part of it states that where there is no wood, the fire goes out. In other words, where the fuel of a fire is removed, its combustion capacity is decimated. What is the “firewood” that fires momentum? It is THRUST. Where thrust is diminished in capacity, momentum is also impaired.
Have you ever had the problem of bad spark plugs in your car that makes it difficult for the engine to crank or fire properly? Or a partially blocked fuel line caused either by a faulty fuel filter or pump? When any of these happens, the movement of the car is sluggish because it can no longer generate the required thrust to power the engine and move the car at the required speed. So the car begins to drag.
Pilots hate head winds. A head wind is the wind that blows against the movement of the aircraft in the skies. When an aircraft experiences head winds, it burns more fuel because it has to rev up its engine combustion rate. Not only that, but its speed is also reduced and it takes longer to arrive at its destination. If the head wind is too strong for the capacity (thrust) of the aircraft, it could lead to a deadly crash. In many cases, some flights have had to make emergency landing at the nearest airport because of the severity of adverse winds. A flight of three hours in one direction may take four hours on the return flight for the same destination or vice versa, depending on whether there is head or tail wind. Tail wind is the wind that blows in the direction that the aircraft is headed. When it is present, the speed is faster and less energy is expended. There is also less turbulence during the flight. With tail wind, the pilot can deploy the auto-pilot for the most part of the journey. However, a pilot could get so carried away by tail-wind advantage that he becomes careless in his job. If that happens, pilot error can also see the plane going down!
In life, the same principle applies. When the wind of adversity blows against us, we find ourselves unable to sustain motivation and speed. In many cases, people become so overwhelmed that they end up in depression and some eventually go ahead to commit suicide because they can no longer generate the required thrust to keep going. Conversely, many get the tail wind of success and become complacent and unable to continue in the momentum that earned them their success. The day you stop doing what the world rewarded you for is the day you lose your significance. There is no good reason and time to drop the ball! Whether it is adversity or success, don’t allow any to stop you!
There are two other key factors that directly affect the quality and quantity of momentum in a given direction. These are the weight of the object in motion and the speed at which it is moving.
When weight increases, you must increase thrust capacity to sustain or increase speed and consequently, momentum. Imagine trying to drive a trailer with an engine designed for an SUV! Even if you don’t load the trailer with anything, the weight of the trailer will kill that engine in no time even if it moves at all. Conversely, if you put a Mercedes 500 engine inside a VW Golf and you drive at full throttle on the highway, you may literally fly off the road because the size and mass of the car is way below the speed and weight of the engine. The key word here is balance. If you increase weight without increasing capacity, you are headed for trouble.
Every man of destiny must travel light! Rid yourself of the various weights of emotional troubles, social distractions, family or peer pressure, financial pressure and other excess baggage that have the tendency to slow you down. Doing this requires diligence which I define as the consistent, insistent and persistent application of effort.
Momentum is generated and sustained by ENTHUSIASM. The word originates from the Latin “en theos” which means, “in God or of divine essence and or origin”! Your encouragement through adversity must be the source of your original “motive” which we treated earlier in this series. If your vision is inspired by God, you must find your way to Him in a crisis. Consult Him before you consult men. If men fuel your momentum, they can also quench your fire when they turn against you! The reason why there has been an upward surge in clinical depression cases and suicide rates in recent times is because the God-factor is being stifled out of contemporary conversations, such that what should have been the source of inspiration and encouragement is fast becoming a subject of disdain! In today’s world, ungodliness is the new “woke”!
Keep your focus on the destination and be ready to rev up the engine of work in an atmosphere of hope for a greater future. Be inspired by a vision that is greater than you and the outcome of which will give you rest and joy as well as inspire hope while empowering those around you. Simply put, be fired by your desired outcome, not your current setbacks. Be like David in the Bible. Even when there is no one to do so, encourage yourself. You are your number one cheerleader!
When purpose meets passion, the outcome of that marriage is POWER!
Remember, the sky is not your limit, God is!