Momentum is a wonderful thing

Ever notice that the first few steps you make, in any activity, are the hardest? But, once you get moving, keeping going seems easier. Try this the next time you are doing your favorite cardio exercise: go 5% faster. Not 20% or even 10%, just 5% faster. You will find that it is easy once you get to that level and even easier to keep it there. You can use your own momentum to keep things moving. In addition, you have just reset your standard of performance to a new minimum level.

By the way, try slowing down to about 10% less than you usually go. It's harder, isn't it? You actually feel like you are trudging along. Remember that you are now going what you used to think in the past was possible. However, now it feels slow and arduous. It is a great lesson in how maintaining and adding to your current level of effort is much more satisfying and a lot less effort than you thought it would be.

Keep this in mind when you are also practicing business development. Momentum has its place here as well. When in doubt of how many appointments, meetings or contacts you can achieve, keep going at your present level and push it UP 5%. Over time, you will incrementally increase your effort, and you will be dissatisfied to drop down to a lower level.

However, keep in mind that diminishing your effort, even 10%, becomes overly comfortable. But it is a real pain to get back to that new standard. So, keep pushing the bar higher...