3 Steps to Building Momentum

If you live in or around the St. Louis area, or you’ve been following my stories over on IG the past few weeks, or you’re a St. Louis Blues fan, you have probably heard the song “Gloria” by Laura Branigan a few times. It’s not the greatest song, and honestly, it really has absolutely NO meaning for why we play it, but the song has basically become a pop anthem for every Blues win since January.You see, back on January 3 of this year, the St. Louis Blues hockey team was in LAST PLACE. Not just in their division… in the ENTIRE NHL. They made headlines for fighting EACH OTHER on the ice during practice. I will admit that I am not a diehard Blues Hockey fan, but I follow along because they’re one of our hometown teams, so I will ALWAYS cheer for them. Year after year, the entire city has been let down by a lackluster season or a season cut short in the playoffs. The Blues have NEVER won the Stanley Cup and it’s been 49 years since they have even had a chance to be in the finals.Well, we’ve been playing “Gloria” A LOT lately because…THE BLUES ARE GOING TO THE STANLEY CUP!It certainly is an exciting time in our great city! Talk about a Cinderella story and basically an unbelieve movie script. Check out what one of our local news people (and fellow runner) wrote up after the Blues’ win to advance to the Stanley Cup finals…It’s almost too good to be true, right?!Well, let me tell you what the Blues have on their side…MOMENTUM.It’s usually not the best team who makes it to the championship. It’s the team with MOMENTUM.I started 2019 off very much like the Blues. I was at a low point in my life. I was overwhelmed from saying yes to too many things. I was struggling to prioritize my work and how I spent my time. I couldn’t focus well, so things went by the wayside. When I get overwhelmed + stressed, I tend to get into a deep state of depression. I was finding myself crying more and more and just simply feeling helpless. I wasn’t hitting my goals. I was feeling uninspired. I was ready to give up on everything - including the life that I created for myself. It just didn’t feel worth it anymore.It took a retreat in Nashville to really turn things around for me. During that retreat, I sort of woke up to reality and knew that if anything was going to change in my life, I was the one that needed to take control of it.Mid-February began a huge shift in my life, in my business, and in my running. Things started to pick up. I had a lot more clarity on things. I stopped doing the things that didn’t serve me and focused more on the PROCESS and ACTION of the things that were going to move me forward.And guess what happened?!I gained Momentum.Maybe you’re feeling the same way. Maybe you’re feeling stuck and getting depressed that things aren’t going the way you want them to in your life. Here are 3 things that you can start implementing TODAY to help shift yourself into that MOMENTUM…**WARNING: It’s not going to be easy. It’s not going to happen overnight. But, it will be WORTH i!**1. You need to be CONSISTENT.I had this on my side for the most part. I am a very routine, structured person, so consistency isn’t really one of my issues. BUT, I realized I wasn’t being consistent with some things that would truly move my business + my life forward.So, I gave myself a challenge. For 30 days, I was going to do this ONE THING that I had avoided doing - talking about my hair or my business every single day on Instagram. Y’all, it’s REALLY hard to grow a business if you don’t TALK about it! I am CONSTANTLY thinking about my business - where are my numbers, how can I help my team, who do I need to talk to, who do I need to ask to do this with me, who do I need to follow-up with, what do I need to post about, what do I need to go live about, etc. It is ALWAYS on the forefront of my mind. ALWAYS.But, I wasn’t doing the action that I truly needed to be doing, and that was TALKING about my business! So, for 30 days, I got on my stories and did hair tutorials. I talked about how this partnership has helped me stay at home with my kiddos. I talked about the benefits of the products. I created flatlays for promotions. And I did it every. Single. Day.Was it always easy? ABSOLUTELY NOT. There were definitely days when I struggled with what I was going to talk about. I stumbled over my words. My posts fell flat. But, guess what? It shifted the MOMENTUM in my business. It was planting seeds ALL over the yard instead of just focusing on growing one or two seeds. Just 3 months later and I’m having one of my most successful months to date.Momentum didn’t happen overnight. I’m still not where I want to be, but by being CONSISTENT and taking action to work toward my goal every single day, I’m seeing BIGGER results now than I was in January + February. A bag of popcorn doesn’t pop if you only put it in for a minute at a time. It’s gotta be in the microwave for 3 minutes total, non-stop. Just because something doesn’t happen in the first minute doesn't mean that NOTHING is happening.2. You have GOT to BELIEVE in yourself.I recently had a mentor tell me that she thought that she believed in me more than I believed in me. And, as much as I hate to admit it, she might be right about that.We are CONSTANTLY talking down to ourselves and limiting our true worth. Girlfriend, if someone hasn’t told you lately, YOU ARE AMAZING! Whatever your dreams are, they are possible for you!BUT…YOU need to BELIEVE their possible for YOU.Every single day, I write down a list of 10 goals. Those same 10 goals (and more affirmations) go off on my phone every single hour of every single day. I have post-its on my closet mirror of those same goals and affirmations. By writing them, manifesting them, speaking them out loud daily, I am putting that in my head that those things ARE HAPPENING. That I BELIEVE those things are possible for me.I encourage you today, write down 10 things you want to happen in your life. But, I want you to write them AS IF they’ve already happened. For example, I have the goal of earning a free trip to Cancun this fall. Instead of writing, “I want to earn a free trip to Cancun,” I write it as if it’s already happened - “I have earned a free trip to Cancun!” Write them EVERY SINGLE DAY and watch the shift in MOMENTUM!3. Take uncomfortable action.This really goes along with that consistency piece but I think it needs to be separate because of the focus on one word…UNCOMFORTABLE.Yes, PLEASE take consistent action. But, you MUST get out of your comfort zone! Believe me when I say this is preaching to the choir. I’m the World’s Most Comfortable Person. I love my bubble of comfort. But, in order for me to grow, I’ve got to do the things that scare the shit out of me.I HATE talking to people in person. I was the girl who never raised her hand in class because I didn’t want to look stupid. I am not the smartest person, I don’t have an extensive vocabulary, I worked hard to get good grades because it didn’t come naturally to me. I’m shy to a fault. But, I know that what I do takes HUMAN INTERACTION. If I’m not willing to talk to REAL HUMANS, how can I expect to have a business? Is it comfortable? ABSOLUTELY NOT. I hate every second of it! But, getting out of my comfort zone has been something that has propelled me forward every single time.If it makes you uncomfortable or if you’re scared to do something, that’s your sign that you NEED to do it. Stop putting it off. Stop making excuses. Do the damn thing that is scaring the shit out of you and WATCH the MOMENTUM shift.Now, girl, what are you waiting for?! Go start gaining momentum and see where it takes you!