Welcome to Momentum’s Blog & Media page. This is the place where we share the information most aligned to our Mission. Whether it’s something we have created or the keen ideas of a collegial thought leader, this is where we provide insight and inspiration for people in business.
Enjoy!
In business as in life, we tend to look upon frustrating issues in isolation of their original source. When a problem or issue is experienced, once or repeatedly, it is oftentimes dealt with independent of that which has actually caused it to occur. This process likely ensures the problem will have a nice long run of creating havoc over and over again. It may show up wearing a new set of clothes, but trust me, it’ll be connected to the same root cause. That type of thinking and (re)acting are versions of really old thought and behavior processes. What began as a great way to respond to and hopefully survive saber-toothed tigers in the wild…”Tiger!!! Run!!!”…can often hamstring us in our more modern world. Add to that the parade of distractions technology has unleashed, and you have the perfect storm. A storm seeming to produce a need for the quick, the immediate and the impulsive. Our finely crafted ability to sort and compartmentalize has over time become a liability. Don’t get me wrong,...
read moreOne of the casualties of our time is the reduction of…well, time. By that I mean the steady erosion of what may be considered “available” time—time free of electronic distractions, scheduled events/activities, unscheduled events/activities and the myriad other “things” that eat up a day. I refer to this as a casualty, because this perceived loss of time can also seem to remove opportunities for generating deeper awareness. When I refer to “generating deeper awareness” I am not suggesting spending untold hours in contemplative quiet. This is not about sitting Zen or living in hermitages or reciting mantra’s, although, all are good and fine if they resonate. What I am referring to is becoming present to and aware of the brisk current of modern-day life, which has the seductive power to yank us into a default trance-like state. Being present is a state of deeper awareness, by its very nature. The fruits of deeper awareness are infinite. Cultivating a deeper awareness helps us to know who we are, what we value, what is truly...
read moreWe’ve all heard the line “too big to fail,” but what about the lesser known, “too small (or insignificant) to succeed.” Although, that’s not a statement articulated in the news, I hear business people refer to it frequently. It’s heard in things like “they don’t care about this department,” “we’re not considered the profitable part of this company” or “we’ve mentioned these issues ‘til we’re blue in the face, let’s get real, nobody cares.” Now, it could be that such comments represent idle belly-aching or a passing-of-the-buck. But, it’s also possible that they are very real business issues, both troublesome and persistent, generating frustration for people on an ongoing basis. Either way, any recurring claims of perceived obstacles are best explored and addressed. If it’s simply a case of whining, address the person or persons. If it’s a legitimate problem or issue, address that. Repeated roadblocks to one’s personal performance and ability to be successful have a corrosive affect. Over time they kill motivation. Not simply because they’re a pain in the neck...
read moreCompetition is a tricky concept within the realm of company and culture strengthening. Inherent at the onset of the industrial age, competition has established a deep root both in and outside of organizations over the last 250 years. Moreover, it is a global economic cornerstone and the largely unquestioned milieu of most business. Without a doubt, competition is an active and persistent juggernaut in the marketplace. But, how does it measure up within the walls of the workplace? In that particular environment is it likely to be a constructive force or a destructive one? Fortifying or corrosive? As a business advisor and organizational culture specialist, these questions are both significant and intriguing to me. When building a strong, unified company culture, where does internal competition fit in? Or does it? The more genuinely cohesive, collaborative and connected an organization is, the better, stronger and more profitable it tends to be. There is a synergy generated through a unified collective of people working for a shared purpose. A “power in numbers” effect that tends to...
read moreMy husband John and I made our annual pilgrimage to a sacred rite of summer’s end…the Minnesota State Fair. We get there early and stay late, covering miles of fair territory and eating more food than is normal for two human beings. As is customary, we ambled through the cattle and horse barns, delighted by the napping Brown Swiss calf with his unbelievably long eyelashes, as well as the Scottish Highland, looking laid-back, his long shaggy hair blowing breezily in the wind. In the horse barn we saw “Cayenne,” a majestic though anxious horse standing uncomfortably in its stall, a Post It note warning “Do not pet. I bite.” I asked a woman sweeping near the stall about Cayenne and she told me that Cayenne simply does not like being at the fair. She pointed to a fresh new board in the back of the stall, sharing with me that Cayenne had just kicked the old board out yesterday. Cayenne’s handler, she added, doesn’t know what to do to make him comfortable. That...
read moreCompanies, as an entity, emit a certain quality or energy. That particular quality is a product of the collective culture of the organization. Firmly within that collective is leadership, powerfully influencing and shaping both the culture and the quality it emits. Like a beacon or harbinger, this unnamed and largely unacknowledged quality broadcasts outward. Beyond carefully designed branding and/or PR, this quality is communicated through the interactions people of the company have with those outside of it. Vendors, customers, friends and family of employees, consultants and others are able to perceive a great deal about the company even tangentially. Like some kind of fascinating sonar, information is being transmitted. As humans, we are big energetic cue readers. We’ve needed it to get the group to 2015. It may seem like we are all communicating on a mostly verbal and visual dimension, but there is much more “communication” happening and much of it is soundless and sightless. This quality, that we are less aware of, is energetic. Try as we might, this is not...
read moreIt’s astonishing to me when I consider that we modern-ish human beings have been around for about 45,000 years. Even more astonishing, when I consider that the Industrial Age came into being only 165 years ago. A hundred and sixty-five years is not a long time to get the hang of something…in evolutionary terms. As such, we are still relative neophytes when it comes to organizing and compelling joint action from groups of people not considered slaves or enlisted personnel. Let’s face it, commanding and controlling other folks, being commanded and controlled ourselves is the longer legacy. Though the imprint of that consciousness remains alive either in memory or in reality, we are now in the process of moving beyond it to something different and more evolved. Unlike some extraordinary bacteria, able to change and mutate instantly with newer circumstantial information, we humans take awhile. The great news is that what we may lack in evolutionary speed we can make up for with awareness, creativity, intention, and will. These more advanced minds of...
read moreI talk a lot about leadership’s role in influencing and shaping strong and vital work communities. Most of us recognize that leaders play a critical role in the health and prosperity of their organization. However, there is another type of leadership that is of even greater significance—that of self-leadership. Whether or not we lead others, we are pre-ordained to be leaders of ourselves. We may not want the job, but like it or not, it’s ours…for a lifetime. For many of us, the self-leadership course can feel somewhat vague or even non-existent. Culturally, we are conditioned to look to others for cues, lessons, information and approval, rarely turning the lens inward. Of course, this makes sense when we are young and maturing, but at some point self-leadership requires, well, the self. Taking the time to uncover who we are, the gifts we possess, what brings us joy and happiness, the inner areas we choose to cultivate, the work we are called to do, the life we are compelled to live…all of these are...
read moreThere are two phenomena which both vex and fascinate me. The first has to do with perception—how our perceptions of both ourselves and others can vary so dramatically depending on environment. The second dovetails off the first, but concerns the myopic focus that many companies place on revenue generation and profitability above all else…including people. Beginning with phenomenon one: All of us move from environment to environment through the course of our day. Depending where we are, we likely view ourselves and others differently. If we are at a coffee shop, our perception may be one way. If we are at a community function or at the grocery store, it may be another. So it continues in our home, with friends, with family, at the gym or in a place of worship. Depending on the environment, our perception of ourselves and those around us will vary to some degree. As you consider the varied environments you inhabit…home, community, nature, church, a friend or family members home…pay attention to your perception of yourself and...
read moreI talk a lot about leadership’s role in influencing and shaping strong and vital work communities. Most of us recognize that leaders play a critical role in the health and prosperity of their organization. However, there is another type of leadership that is of even greater significance—that of self-leadership. Whether or not we lead others, we are pre-ordained to be leaders of ourselves. We may not want the job, but like it or not, it’s ours…for a lifetime. For many of us, the self-leadership course can feel somewhat vague or even non-existent. Culturally, we are conditioned to look to others for cues, lessons, information and approval, rarely turning the lens inward. Of course, this makes sense when we are young and maturing, but at some point self-leadership requires, well, the self. Taking the time to uncover who we are, the gifts we possess, what brings us joy and happiness, the inner areas we choose to cultivate, the work we are called to do, the life we are compelled to live…all of these are...
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