Movement, Momentum, and Results

A lot of people are doing the right things.
They’re showing up, putting in effort, and staying engaged.

And yet, sometimes the results don’t move at the same pace as the work.

That’s often because movement and momentum aren’t the same thing.

Movement is activity. Momentum is when your actions begin to build on each other. When today’s effort makes tomorrow’s effort easier or more effective.

If you want to create momentum instead of just movement, here are three simple shifts to consider.

1. Choose the action that changes the next moment
Not all actions are equal. Momentum usually comes from the one step that alters what happens next, not the one that simply feels productive. Look for the action that creates a new conversation, decision, or option.

2. Focus on outcomes, not to-dos
To-do lists reward activity. Momentum comes from asking what result you’re actually trying to create. When you start with the outcome, the right action often becomes obvious and the unnecessary ones fall away.

3. Try one thing you haven’t tried yet
Momentum often shows up when you stop repeating what you already know and test something new. A different approach. A different question. A different way of showing up. Small experiments create information, and information creates forward motion.

When things feel active but unchanged, it can help to pause and ask a better question. Not, “What else should I do?” but, “What action would create momentum right now?”

That question has helped me reset more times than I can count. It’s also the reason I wrote Start With What If. (Amazon | Signed copies) I saw how often progress wasn’t about more effort, but about choosing a better next action.

What if today, instead of doing more, you chose one action designed to create momentum?