The End of the Line

My dearest readers,

it has been exactly 1809 days since I’ve started #MomentumToGo, since I wrote my very first post—a piece on Langston Hughes titled “Get Momentum!”—in a dark corner while laying on a couch about half my size. These words right here come from the same exact spot, and with this final post I don’t just want to proclaim that all good things must end, but I want to thank you all, from the bottom of my heart, for making this #blog become exactly what I wanted it to be: some momentum to go!

When I started this blog series, I had no idea it was going to reach people in 10+ countries, all reading, liking, and sharing it with family and friends. A special moment in all that time was when I met a stranger in Frankfurt and when we got to talk about reading and writing he told me not only had he read my blog, in fact, he’d even shared it with his family back in the U.S. and they were waiting for another post. There were other special moments, people telling me how one of the posts could cheer them up, would help them get over a loss, a break-up, or just motivated them to chase a long lost childhood dream. And then there were special moments, in which readers would just summarize a post to see if they got it right, wondering what they could learn. It were moments like these that delight me most as a writer, because they’ve shown me that my blog was not just a vague vessel for empty words but something that could speak, something with a purpose; and I can stress here that if my blog helped only one person to get a little inspiration, or motivation, or simply a smile, it worked and was a successful endeavor: mission accomplished, and major key alert!

But what I truly loved about all of these five years was your engagement, your comments, thoughts, critique, and anything in between, because you prevented this blog from being or becoming a one-way street. It was not about just throwing something out to you, in fact, most of my post have been inspired by your thoughts and comments, the manifold contributions by a faithful and loyal readership, and that you truly were, giving me some momentum to go, and go on, and go hard, and go for it, and go further. However, there came a point, recently, times in which my soul has grown deep like the rivers, when I decided to end it after this year, because we have reached the end of the line. It has been nothing but a pleasure and an honor to write for you all, and whether it helped you to grow or not (I hope it did in one way or another), it helped me to grow, and this is what I’m also truly thankful for. A part of my heart cries to think about no longer writing it, but what makes me stay positive is that you know it all by now, what I wrote, getting things started, chasing dreams, finishing strong. You know all about passion, patience, and perseverance, about momentum, overcoming obstacles, and growing with every step. This blog has been my song for the genius child, for you! You are “MomentumToGo!”

And for cuffing and holiday season, where you get to inspire by the fire, I want to close this blog with words by the same inspiring figure that started it all in January of 2012, Mr. Langston Hughes, who wrote:

I tire so of people say,

Let things take their course

Tomorrow is another day.

Thank you all so much for making this so special, so much fun, and so great! Goodbye Momentum, look at your watch, it's late, it's time to go! #M2G

...on second chances!

Dearest readers,

my loyal followers already know what to do with the year closing. They already know how to get things started, how to keep the momentum going, they already know how to turn lead into gold* and rise. But what about the ones who come up short, are frustrated, and wonder why none of this sh*t is working? In the last veritable, 24-carat #MomentumToGo post I want to stress something that got caught up in the whirlwind of hot pursuit: the secondary protocol!

In most of my life, especially where I am right now, there has been little or no room for mistakes and every single day demands my everything. But what shall we—who are constantly on the rise—do when mistakes happen? We’re all human and, whether we want to admit it or not, full of flaws. Mistakes happen. I was always certain that “[a] lifetime isn’t forever, so [you would have to] take the first chance, don’t wait for the second one! Because sometimes, there aren’t second chances!” (C. JoyBell C.)—truth being told.

However, if you did mess something up, don’t be discouraged, because life wasn’t meant to be easy, rising was never meant to be easy. If rising were easy, why wouldn’t everyone do it already, and why are you not at the top yet? C. JoyBell C. writes further: “And if it turns out to be a mistake? So what! This is life! A whole bunch of mistakes! But if you never get a second chance at something you didn’t take a first chance at? That’s true failing.” We must understand that nothing is handed to us, the little things we have, passion, determination, perseverance, all of that is our lead. It’s on us to turn that into gold, where knockbacks are simply a recurring part in the process. For someone who always thought poorly of second chances I must say these are, in fact, the most valuable, because we all learn from mistakes and get to do it better the next time around.

With first chances falling by the wayside it is natural to be frustrated. Bear in mind you are only human, we all are, but take courage and work toward a second chance, earn it, do it better next time. Sometimes missed opportunities and failed first chances are the only way to make second chances happen. How dare you wait for a second chance, knowing you haven’t even taken the first chance?

We shouldn’t strive for a perfect season, but be aware that no rookie QB makes it to the post season with a 16-0 record, no scores allowed on defense, and every drive ending in a TD. What would life be, if everything worked the first time? How would we learn? How would we walk with every road already paved, what would be the point, what would be our purpose?

We must pave our roads, step by step, piece by piece, and build our walls brick by brick. And you can easily think in binaries here, there is no high without a low, no success without failure, no rise without a fall, just as there is no light without darkness. If you want to rise like the Phoenix, I suggest you must first fall to ashes, because if you were to just fly that'd be all you're doing, right next to anyone else who's doing just the same. You want life to be easy? Well, then make it as easy as a Luke Bryan tune, M-O-V-E and love it when you get that deed!

*Big S/O to my brother Rich. Check out #AllThisGold

...on falling leaves!

My dearest readers,

in the break of autumn we might celebrate the remainders of not only a promising summer but (perhaps) already the recollection of a successful year. However, slowly approaching a cinnamon finish we must be aware that the outcome still hangs in the balance and it will stay that way until we hit the ground. As for now we're floating like falling leaves, and it is up to us on what side we land by the end of the year. Until then: keep floating!

With only a couple of posts following after this, I want to start you of with a few lines by Roman Payne: "It's not that we have to quit this life one day, but it's how many things we have to quit all at once: music, laughter, the physics of falling leaves, automobiles, holding hands, the scent of rain, the concept of subway trains… if only one could leave this life slowly!" To not stretch it too far, we shall interpret these lines in a temporal manner, annually, and not necessarily in context with our lifeline, for may there be many more years to come. Therefore, bear in mind that busy times on so many ends are most likely yet to come and it is our task to manage and balance, to pan them all out until our deeds come to a halt after the work is done.

It is "Finish Strong!" all over again, in good ol' fashion. And to keep the "changing-colors-in-fall" rhetoric: we are still required to conform to the arboreal adaptation (in the sense of adjusting to the cause of the year). The year still holds leverage over us and can affect, even shape how we feel, for instance "like a little wave person, floating around on the stormy sea of life" (Ruth Ozeki). But the good news is: there is still time to do (or act)—a little less conversation, a little more action, if you want to take twenty sixteen to the house (without showboating).

It might be tiresome, exhausting, and too demanding (or might only feel as such), but if you want that reflective "finishing" moment to recall this year and garnish it with a little learning twist that floats just below the surface of your success, finish what you started and keep floating until you hit the ground and contribute to the beautiful color scheme of dirt roads covered in fallen leaves. You don't want to land upside down, do you? Then keep floating, not in terms of floating as an idle flowing (cf. Criss Jami), but more in the sense of surprising ease and keeping the momentum up.

Consequently, I want to make you all perceive the fall not as a depressive period to whine after a summer passed. See it more as an opportunity to add a little flavor to your (overall) year—a little less fall season, but a little more seasoning added to your fall. Spice it all up in the end; it's not too late (yet). Let the wind (and sometimes a heavy wind chill) carry you along the course you've set earlier this year, and make sure you look good and content and beautiful when you hit the ground. #MomentumToGo

The Difference pt.2

My dearest readers,

in this conclusion to the previous post I want to stress what Orrin Woodward once wrote: "You can't make a difference until you are to be different." Far too many have the desire to be outstanding, but only a handful are willing to accept that only being possible if you stand out and are different of some sort. "Why spend your life trying to fit in, when you are born to stand out?" (Ziad K. Abdelnour)

Difference often has a negative connotation, because it strongly opposes the mainstream, contemporary commonalities we either afflict upon ourselves or have society do that for us. Who wants to fall out of line and be approached as someone different, non-compliant with what culture dictates at a given time? It often resonates in how we present ourselves and how we are perceived, eventually coming down to a "somebody versus nobody" debate; but the matter specified therein is our standpoint.

Are you somebody, or willing to be nobody? Are you a nobody, because you stand out and don't quite match with the rest of the bunch, are incapable of meeting our society's demands, or are you a nobody, because you do fit right in and no one (yourself included) sees you as someone special, as someone different? Conversely, you could ask yourself whether you're somebody because you are just like your peers or somebody because you're not. Understanding that standpoint and interpreting these tenors is often only a matter of confidence, because "[c]onfidence is knowing who you are and not changing it a bit because […] someone's version of reality is not your reality" (Shannon L. Alder).

What is your reality? Are you the one with jeans and a tee, the one to mimic the "appropriate" attire policy, or are you the one to break the code of culture, suited up with people a week later still chit-chatting about your choice of tie and handkerchief (or dress)? There are certainly times when your choosing is to match with what is required, but likewise are there many opportunities when it is just not the right thing to do. Be strategic! It is on you to make that choice every day. "Strategy is [all] about making choices; it's about deliberately choosing to be different" (Michael Porter), but we're talking about the kind of "different" you can back up and wear with distinction.

"Be different so that people can see you clearly amongst the crowds" (Mehmet Murat İldan), but be different in a way that reflects who you truly are. Don't be different simply for the sake of being different, but be different because you never intended to be just one out of many. And even if it might be intimidating at first, all of us who have been different at some point know how much comfort actually comes with it, and, more importantly, how much confidence these situations can teach us. If you want to be the difference, the key player, the game-changer, you first, of all, need to be different, because there is only one way of being outstanding: by standing out! Know that "[b]eing different and thinking different [is what] makes a person unforgettable. History does not remember the forgettable" (Suzy Kassem), but it remembers you if you're original, special, and willing to stand out. #MomentumToGo

The Difference

My dearest readers,

with the year moving along I want to refresh your memory and touch on what it means to do things differently, and I mean not only differently from how we've handled situations previously but how we sort them out compared to the people around us. We are to decide whether us "being" makes a difference in the world, because that decision will be a determining factor of how we can review our lives at some point. Let me show you the difference…

Nelson Mandela once wrote: "What counts in life is not the mere fact that we have lived. It is what difference we have made to the lives of others that will determine the significance of the life we lead." I could end this post right here, because with those words all has been said. We can strive for so much renown or legacy, but is not what we seek this: knowing that what we do makes a difference? Is not our mission accomplished when we can honestly say that we have made a difference, that in the end it did matter we were there? We don't need to seize everything at all times, but it can't hurt to consider it and claim a thing or two.

When you wake up in the morning, do you tell yourself you want to go out there and make a difference? When you're struggling, don't you want to take on whatever needs fixing, find a solution, and be different and not give in, but do things differently this time, better, with more confidence, so you and nearby or distant observers see you were the difference in the end? I'm not saying we shall enslave ourselves for recognition, but if we make a difference, others will notice, because it comes with results and it's important to realize the effects to our causes.

Imagine a warehouse, untidy, filthy, an uncomfortable place that dust, rats, and mites have vanquished long ago. This warehouse has been in the same condition for a decade or two, business was "alright," and no one felt the urge to clean up. "It's always been like that," they said. When you'd walk in on your first day, would you float alongside your peers, or would you be moved and bold enough to roll up your sleeves, play in the dark, and turn a gloomy hellhole into a pleasant storage facility, a thing for a decade or two no one else would've dared to do?

How dare you!

Fortune favors the bold, they say, the ones who dare. The bold are the ones that want to make a difference, the bold want to be the difference and do what no one else would (want to) do. If you dare, you will definitely note how impressed your coworkers, even the management was that you had the compulsion to finally clean out that sordid store where custom and carelessness had taken over. They notice. No one might talk to you face to face and tell you about it, but they sure as hell talk about you.

There is no need to dare or save and change the world every day. Although, at times you should realize this: "I am only one, but I am one. I cannot do everything, but I can do something. And I will not let what I cannot do interfere with what I can do" (Edward Everett Hale). Do something. Dare! Do something worth doing, something that makes a difference and something you will be known for. Do something that still echoes long after you vanished, when a once small storage facility has ultimately become a global logistics enterprise, because "[t]he best the world has to offer comes from the best you have to give to others" (Matshona Dhliwayo). Take courage and be different; and if you haven't been different before, why don't you start with being different today, just this one time? #MomentumToGo ...to be continued!

Let It Be

My dearest readers,

following the last post on living large I must stress that doing an extra step is not entirely a subject grounded in our sense of motivation and inspiration. Sometimes we have to give it a bit of time and be patient, give it time to grow, needless to say that we cannot control it all at all times. Sometimes we just have to whisper words of wisdom to ourselves and let it be.

On our way to making dreams come true there is no one size fits all, there is only a need for action in due time. We have to wait for our shot, take and catch a breath, observe, prepare, and be ready for when our time has come. "The sun will rise and set regardless. What we choose to do with the light while it's here is up to us" (Alexandra Elle). Therefore we must, in fact, know when to stand up and when to stand down, know what is right that day, this very hour, what is right in the present moment, because we have to make decisions and are—personally—held accountable for whatever decision we make. We have agency, but what we must not or don't need to do is succumb to the urgency of inspiration, and we often tend to wonder whether we're doing enough.

We can pump inspiration and motivation into our lives with thousands of pounds per square inch every day, but we must be aware that there is a vortex of circumstance beyond our control. "You don't get to game the system of your life. You just don't. You don't get to control every outcome and aspect as a way to never give in to the uncertainty and unpredictability of something that's beyond what you understand. It's the basis of presence: to show up as you are in this moment and let that be enough" (Jamie Varon). Let it be, but don't let it slip.

A hunter doesn't go out into the woods for a minute or two and expects to bring home some game, he prepares, studies maps and terrain and more, veils himself in camouflage to sit out in the cold long before the sun comes up. He can do so much and be in the prone for hours, but there are days nothing shows and he goes home only to try it again another day.

We can think of all things up front, before going out and hunting dreams, but we must also be aware that we are not in control over when we get our shot and can throw our lucky punch. "Patience," David G. Allen writes, "is the calm acceptance that things can happen in a different order than the one you have in mind." The timing you have your mind set on is often not the right timing for your wishes and dreams to come through and true. But preparing for that one shot can give you the necessary confidence that when you have eyes on the target all you've got to do is pull the trigger. Be patient, but be prepared, because when you're prepared the question whether you're doing enough or not is redundant.

Lose yourself, in your dreams and in your heart, full-heartedly, with a clear focus through your scope of passion and faith, your finger sliding the trigger backwards with the tranquility of an ancient Stoic. And ask yourself: If you had one shot, one opportunity, would you capture, or just let it slip? Let it be, but when it is, let it be yours and snipe and make things happen and shoot...bang! #MomentumToGo

...on living large!

My dearest readers,

after recently hearing a lovely song about living large in a small world, being young and timeless, and flying, I was carried away by this stark collective proposition that dealt at large with previous posts on living in the moment as well as breaking free, consequently on living (life) in general. Therein I find it quite necessary to express again: “Don’t fear death, fear the un-lived life” (Natalie Babbitt)—this is on living large!

In spite of the daily rush in which we tend to drown out in the crowd too often, it is not always simple or given that we can rise in order to make moves. It becomes even more difficult, once we perceive the world around us being small; often we fail to belong or feel like not being strong enough to rise and make moves, accompanied by a little lack of life (and sense, or purpose) and far-reaching love we ought to have for and within our lives, but it is necessary for us “[t]o enjoy the beauty of love, [and to] be a big person in this small world” (Debasish Mridha).

It is not so much about the purpose we serve, or the business we pursue; it is more so the involvement and the devotion we bring along and ultimately to the table. The famous writer Walt Whitman once wrote: “Do anything, but let it produce joy.” And that is, in the end, a strong value that always helps us to rise and make moves, and even more so, to enjoy it, ourselves, and, eventually, have others enjoy it as well.

I’ve written about the extra mile quite thoroughly and what it means to be on it, for when we are given an opportunity we shall always do a little more than the small world around us would do. And we’re not exclusively talking about the extra mile, but about the extra step, because we move forward in life step by step, and then—after many and many more steps—we make miles. Step up! Know when to step up, and when to stand down, because the difference between the two is determined by the courage we all need in order to live large.

When you are given opportunity, or when you’ve earned yourself opportunity, make an extra step and do a little more than what you think is required, a little more than what you think is enough. “Do more than belong: participate. Do more than care: help. Do more than believe: practice. Do more than be fair: be kind. Do more than forgive: forget. Do more than dream: work” (William Arthur Ward). In a small world it is often these little things that count the most; and even more often the lack of doing a little more than needed.

We might live in a small world, a very small world, with too many small things making a difference of who we are and whom we are to become, but out of these minimalistic circumstances, drenched in succinctness of the aforementioned courage, it is neither magic nor a miracle to rise and make moves. It is a choice we are all given, some call it "agency," others call it "free will," some might call it "determination" or "dedication," but regardless of what anybody might call it, it is only a small step to escape a small world, and might only be another small step to rise, and perhaps another to make a move, and possibly not many more to live large! #MomentumToGo