Momentum – managing the moment to moment issues of daily business life. This was the title and tagline of the hour-long business radio talk show I hosted on Saturday mornings for four years on the only 50,000-watt radio station in Idaho.
My fiend and colleague Dave Lakhani hooked me on radio in the 1990s when he had me on his then-show. I pursued several radio opportunities until landing on the business talk-show format. Radio, I maintain, is still the strongest form of media – it captures our imaginations, provides news and information, and will stay strong even if the electricity fails us for a time.
During these stay-home workdays, I’ve weekly tackled cleaning out office files and cabinets. Great company history has been re-discovered: marketing materials, photographs, book jackets, and hundreds of cassette tapes from Momentum the radio show.
What strikes me about this cassette collection is the range of guests – from local business owners to internationally-known business authors; and the breadth of topics – from local artists and historians to internationally-celebrated, award-winning documentary producers, travelers, and even the U.S. Congress sergeant-at-arms during the Clinton administration. Invigorating experiences and conversations all. Each hour was an exhilarating exploration of ideas and experiences. Callers could even dial-in to ask questions and win book copies.
Momentum as a discussion and as an experience is important now more than ever. Are we losing momentum? Are we seeking a new momentum? I find myself at least once a week saying “work your plan. Don’t get distracted or disheartened. Work your plan. Something will come together.” It’s my reminder that many, many things are out of my control and that all I can do is to work a plan of action that moves me and my work life/business forward.
While the current business momentum in my work arenas seems slower than typical, other businesses are going at a pace that is faster and more demanding than ever. Times change and we must evolve with them or lose our momentum completely. Sometimes the momentum of our environments is bigger than our efforts and business doors must close for good – as we are seeing this year.
Other times, the momentum of our environment launches us in new, exciting, and rewarding directions. Adjusting as best we can is all we can do while staying in meaningful conversations with our customers to learn how we can remain viable, relevant, and in business!
What meaningful conversations will you engage in this week?
On what topics?
Note from Jana: Your meetings – online and in person – are your most important tool for achieving team successes. If you’re ready to take strategic steps toward managing meetings and results as effectively as possible, we’d love to talk with you about partnering.
Workplace – the Blog: Managing the moments of our day-to-day business lives takes work. Together, let’s explore what issues and activities affect us every day (or some days) that we go to work.