The Power of Momentum

Get moving, and keep moving

Ever heard the expression: ‘Keep it up’? It’s a more valuable epithet than most of us seem to realize.

I was in a cycling race over the weekend, and fell out of the leading group – in part because I have been sick and lost fitness, and in part because I had to wait for and help a teammate. I realized when I struggled with her against the wind over the remaining 50km, how much momentum we had lost by falling out of the group. I also realized again, how much harder one works when one works alone.

When you’re surrounded by the momentum of others the cushioning they provide against the wind (life’s hard knocks) can’t be overemphasized. The lesson is: make sure you are strong enough to maintain your momentum, and once you’ve built up momentum, find a group so you can maintain it together.

The headmaster of the school where I teach recently made a speech at assembly. He is more than 55 years old, and he told his students, “You know, I didn’t always look like this. I was running marathons in my twenties, but then I got a job and wasn’t able to train as much. I’ve had to have hip replacement surgery. Now I wish I had carried on training. I go cycling every morning, but no matter what I do, I can’t seem to change this body.” What happened? He lost momentum and now finds it impossible to regain it.

What is momentum? It’s impetus, drive, thrust, something Newton would call the force that keeps something moving in the direction it is moving.
If you want to save petrol, rely on the momentum of your vehicle. When approaching a traffic light (if it’s red) slow down as little as you can get away with, so that when it goes green you don’t need to build up momentum all over again. Use downward momentum to cruise over gentle rises in the road. Use what you have.

The same psychology is applicable in cycling. There are plenty of hills, and you can turn them into easy work if you use your downhill effectively. Momentum generated on a downhill can sometimes get you as much as halfway or more up an uphill without it even feeling like an uphill. That said, it’s important to work hard on the downhill and on the uphill. You can rest and enjoy it just after you’ve summitted, that’s just before you need to start building your momentum again.

It’s especially in fitness that we realize how important momentum is. Momentum is generated by force of habit in our lives. It can take up to 6 months to get into shape for an Ironman. All that fitness in the bank, and I mean all, can be gone in 6 weeks if you get sick or go on holiday and interrupt those habits. In ordinary fitness momentum means exercising a few minutes every day, and sticking to that routine. Same time, same place, same pace. It is more difficult to move an object (think plane, train and ship) that is not moving, than one that already has momentum. The same is true of human beings.

In terms of work, momentum is very useful. If you’re marking tests or exam papers (repetitive work, like filling in reports or filing) you can arrange a scenario so that you can build up momentum. Create an environment that is free of debris and clutter. I found I was marking 1 exam paper in 5-10 minutes. I was doing it while lying on a bed watching TV. After a few days of this (getting nowhere) I decided to get serious. I put more than 40 papers around my apartment – on the floor, on the bed, on desks and chairs. Then I got the memo and went through all of them, 5 questions at a time. It worked. Within an hour I was marking about 20 times as many papers. And the more I marked, the more I marked. That’s momentum.

Relationships also have momentum. They lose momentum the more you spend time apart, and the less you communicate. Relationships require love and energy and dedication to keep moving. They also need positive energy, because if the net energy isn’t positive they’re going to start moving in the opposite direction.

Nowhere is momentum more powerful than in family or team situations. This could be expanded to congregations, crowds, or even entire populations. Imagine the momentum if we could get this country moving actively and passionately against crime. Imagine the momentum if we could pass legislation that allows us to pay teachers overtime to coach soccer at schools (starting 4 years before the soccer world cup).

I interviewed Ryk Neethling’s sister Jean Marie a few weeks ago. She is already training 6 hours a day (in the holidays especially). She is just 16, but she is building up the necessary momentum to be a world champion. Ryk trained for years and years for the mile event (1.5km, or 30 lengths of a 50m pool). As it turned out, he was a better swimmer over shorter distances. But the momentum and endurance he’d gained learning to swim that far and hard stood him in good stead for other more manageable distances.

In teamwork scenarios (such as in Merchant Banks, Advertising Agencies, Film Units and even classrooms) the momentum generated by people who pool their resources co-operatively, towards mutually understood and believed in goals, can create a powerful synergistic framework for energy in motion. My working with my teammate in the cycle race (mentioned above) helped her to win first prize of R450. She took me to a movie as a gesture of appreciation. Mutual momentum and teamwork (MMT) is always win-win.

The race is long, so it’s important to know how to pace yourself. That means not going out too fast (causing burnout or breakdown), and also knowing what is too slow and why (suggested by symptoms like depression, fear and laziness). Find your own pace, find someone to pace off or to pace with, and find a pace that will get you over the mountains without causing you too much pain. That way, you’ll see several magnificent summits in your lifetime.

People with momentum get to see more sights, and go further than those without. Remember, the race is long, and in the end, it’s only with yourself.