Momentum is crucial in organization success. Momentum carries your mission forward. Momentum solves certain kinds of problems on its own. Momentum creates powerful narratives that will be told years from now.
Momentum = mass * velocity
A gunshot delivers momentum because the bullet is moving at high speed. A big diesel engine pulling a hundred railcars down the track at 40 mph can blow through 3 feet of concrete and barely slow down.
That same big diesel engine can’t move forward from a standstill if you put a 2-inch block of wood in front of its wheels. The organization must be moving. Smaller organizations MUST move fast to have momentum.
Velocity is both speed and vector. An organization center going in 6 different directions has very little useful velocity.
Key to remember: Leaders create momentum; Managers solve problems. [Both are important!]
Sustained energy input is necessary to create momentum. There are two other aspects of leadership that are critical for momentum:
- Trust. More trust, faster decisions, less resistance, more likely to accomplish difficult objectives.
- Authority. There are empty words and platitudes. Then there are words which galvanize a team and unleash energy – it’s not just the words, but the person sharing them who makes the difference. Truth spoken plainly conveys authority, even if it is not “charismatic” in delivery.
