here you go:
The Art of Momentum: Why Your Ideas Need Speed
by Jocelyn K. Glei
In his wonderful book Musicophilia, neurologist Oliver Sacks describes Clive Wearing, a musician and musicologist whose memory was erased almost entirely after a severe brain infection. Post-trauma, Clive’s short-term memory lasted only a matter of seconds. Sacks writes, “He remembers almost nothing unless he is actually doing it, then it may come to him.”
Yet Clive’s musical self, his performative self, remained almost completely intact. It just needed to be activated. When playing music or conducting a choir, Clive could re-attain his former virtuosity. As long as his fingers and his mind were in motion, he could play beautifully. Clive’s wife writes, “The momentum of the music carried Clive from bar to bar… He knew exactly where he was because in every phrase there is context implied, by rhythm, key, melody… When the music stopped, Clive fell through to the lost place. But for those moments he was playing he seemed normal.”
We are perhaps not so different from Clive when it comes to creative projects. The minute that we lose momentum, we lose the thread. We become extremely vulnerable to distraction and defeat. Our inner critic awakens, and we start second-guessing ourselves, doubting the possibility of success. Other people’s demands creep in, vying for our attention and focus. We start to generate shiny, new ideas that seem even more worthy of execution, tempting us to move onto the next big thing without ever finishing.
The minute that we lose momentum, we lose the thread.
It’s just like Newton’s First Law of Motion: The tendency of a body in motion is to keep moving; the tendency of a body at rest is to sit still. In other words, it’s a lot less work to keep moving once you have some momentum, than it is to start moving from a dead stop.
If we can keep moving on our projects every day – stoking that creative fire regularly to keep the flames high – it’s infinitely easier to stay focused, make great strides, and blast through the roadblocks that inevitably come up.
Here are a few tips on how to build and maintain momentum:
1. Know that momentum takes time to build.
As serial entrepreneur Andy Swan has written, one of the most common mistakes is to “set lofty goals from a resting start.” With images of fame and success dancing in our heads, we set the bar too high, fail to make the grade, and quit because we’re discouraged.
Just as you would start training for a marathon by running a few miles and building from there, if you want to write the great American novel, you might start by trying your hand on a short story.
It’s important to set small, realistic goals at first. Challenge yourself, but don’t overdo it. Setting achievable goals, and experiencing incremental success will help you build momentum and confidence.
2. Carve out a consistent block of time to work on your project.
Particularly if you’re juggling creative work with other commitments, finding regular time to devote to your project in a daily way can be extremely challenging. But there is nothing more important. Consistent execution is paramount: it keeps your head clear and focused; it rewards you with a constant feeling of progress; and, most importantly, it keeps the ball moving forward.
Don’t wait for this free time to magically “open up.” Rather, proactively carve out a block of time in your daily schedule – and make it public. As Gina Trapani advises in a Fast Company article, you’ll want to honor this commitment the same way you would a meeting with another person. Think of it as a meeting with your muse.
3. Work on your project every day. No seriously, every day.
In his collection of interviews with painters like Chuck Close, Dana Schutz, Fred Tomaselli, and Julie Mehretu, author and artist Joe Fig observes, “They are successful because they work incessantly. Several work seven days a week.”
When it comes to momentum, frequency of execution is perhaps more important than the duration of execution. Even if you’re working on your project for just an hour a day that’s enough to keep your objectives and recent activities top of mind. Then, when you sit down to work on it again, you can slip quickly back into the flow.
Occasionally, something will knock you off course, and you won’t be able to work on your project that day. But if you’re striving to push it forward every single day, you’ll stay on track regardless.
4. Once you really get some momentum going, don't be afraid.
Anyone who’s ever been downhill skiing knows about the scary flipside of momentum. We yearn for it, but we’re also afraid of taking it too far. What if we start going too fast? What if we get out of control?
Seth Godin writes, “Many of us fear too much momentum. We look at a project launch or a job or another new commitment as something that might get out of control. It's one thing to be a folk singer playing to a hundred people a night in a coffeehouse, but what if the momentum builds and you become a star? A rock star? With an entourage and appearances and higher than high expectations for your next work?… Deep down, this potential for an overwhelming response alerts the lizard brain and we hold back.”
Don’t hold back. When it comes to creative execution, the key is to get moving, and keep moving.
Make fashion an investment and join the growing trend for clothing that never tires.
If you still think luxury is about a constant stream of low-grade bling rotating in one end of your wardrobe and out the other (straight into landfill), you're behind the times!
The 21st century ethical luxury has taken on a whole new dimension. Rather than bulk-buying disposable fashion with a short shelf (or rail)-life, savvy fashionistas are investing for the long term. With a few tricks of the trade, they're looking great without leaving a trail of textile trash behind them.
Here's how to get in on the act:
Buy to last: Choose clothes that are well made from good quality materials that will wear well.
Look for classic cuts that will transcend the seasons when updated with different accessories.
Buy vintage: The quality of fabric and workmanship is often much higher than with mass-produced clothing, and you'll be guaranteed a unique look.
Customise your kit: Re-style old garments you no longer wear, to make new and original outfits. Shortening a hemline, adding a belt or sewing on quirky buttons or patches are super-cheap and eco-friendly ways to create a totally new look.
Try a complete makeover: If you're tired of wearing something, try it in a different role. Wear evening clothes in the day, tuck, pin or ruffle fabrics, and if that's not enough get out the scissors and dye for a complete transformation.
Love it for longer: Really look after your clothes. Learning to sew on a button, fix a hem and patch or darn a hole could double your wardrobe's lifespan. If a repair job's too daunting, hand it to the professionals. If clothes are worth wearing, they're worth caring for!
Pass it on: When you've exhausted these possibilities, rather than sending clothes you've finished with to landfill, give them a second (or third) life.
Host a swapping party with friends, or log on to one of the growing number of swapping sites - for example, www.bigwardrobe.com and www.fashionspace.com.
Recharge your fashion fund by selling clothes on Ebay (a great source of recycled fashion).
Help others to benefit by giving unwanted clothes to charity shops (in-store or via a collection bank or collection service). They sell-on decent items, and designers such as TRAID's (Textile Recycling for Aid & International Development) team fashion new items out of the best part of unwanted garments. If your togs are beyond even that, they can still be shredded and rewoven into new items via charity-run textile-recycling schemes.
Close the loop and buy recycled: When you genuinely need to buy something new, indulge in wonderful pieces made from recycled clothes. Try Junky Styling for fantastic directional couture tailoring made from salvaged suits; Good One for sassy streetwear; From Somewhere for impeccably cut pieces from offcuts from Italy's top design houses; and Howies, Muji or American Apparel for leisurewear from recycled yarn.
Joanna Yarrow is a broadcaster, writer and consultant specialising in green living. She's GMTV's eco expert and presented BBC Three's Outrageous Wasters
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