Inertia (ĭ-nûr’shə)
- n. Physics. The tendency of a body to resist acceleration; the tendency of a body at rest to remain at rest or of a body in straight line motion to stay in motion in a straight line unless acted on by an outside force.
- Resistance or disinclination to motion, action, or change: the inertia of an entrenched bureaucracy.
Inertia will make all the difference to your next year: It will either be the key to your success or the roadblock.
Inertia is the main principle behind Newton’s first law of motion and, essentially, says that an object will resist a change in its direction or motion unless acted upon by an outside force. In other words, an object in motion will remain in motion (or an object not in motion will remain still) unless a strong enough external force is applied to the object.
Okay, this is a bit heavy for an early morning on December 7 but it is important. Think about it this way: most people will set goals or resolutions and vow to start doing something, or stop doing something else, magically on the first day of the year. The trouble is that to do that — make a massive change to your behavior or routine — requires a great deal of force if you didn’t start the process and get a running start.
A car uses the most gas just to get moving.
A plane uses the runway to get up to speed before attempting liftoff.
Today, start thinking about 2011 and what you hope to achieve and take a few small steps in that direction. Use December as your 2011 runway.
What resolutions are you likely to set and what small steps or routines can you start now to create the right kind of inertia?