The Most Powerful, MOMENTUM

How do you create a sculpture? One carve at a time.

How do you eat an elephant? One bite at a time.

How do you summit a mountain? One step at a time.

Known as the Mozart of Psychology, Lev Vygotsky founded the idea of being “in the zone.” In less than 37 full years on this planet, Vygotsky recognized and researched how children learn, how they go from babble to sentences then speeches, how they evolve from unskilled in a craft to various levels of greatness. Through social interaction and play, kids advance by putting themselves on the edge of their current limits of competence.

Imagine three concentric circles: the inner region represents unaided behaviors; the second ring represents actions with assistance from others, and the third, final ring represents peak performance. Each line that separates a ring from another is known as the *Zone of Proximal Development* (ZPD). Vgotsky’s discovery of ZPD highlights what happens when an athlete, artist, or performer catches fire… enters a flow state… or, as announcer would exclaim, is “in the zone.” Progress from one ring to the next requires an individual to focus on one specific ingredient, improvement.

That’s how we prove ourselves: improve.

The Japanese term for this is Kaizen: constant and continuous improvement.

The biblical Matthew Principle echos this same notion: “to those that have, more will be given to them, and they will have it in abundance.”

One of my best friends and role models is John Campana. His family and friends call him “Jack.” Currently, he is 98 years old. Over 80 years ago, he served in the United States Army during World War II. Once he returned home from overseas, he went to Bucknell University via the G.I. Bill. One growth opportunity to the next. His first job was selling 3M Scotch Tape door-to-door in Brooklyn — many butcher shops and delicatessens used yarn and rope to wrap meats and groceries so tape was an innovation invention back then! Continuing a career in sales, Jack was one of the first to sell mutual funds — one of his largest clients turned out to be a tomato farmer who made a handshake deal from his tractor as Jack stood ankles-deep in mud while wearing dress shoes, slacks, a suit jacket and a tie. Whatever it takes. Working late hours, meeting with clients after his young kids went to sleep, Jack continued to get promoted as he sold more and more investment packages. One client turned into two, two into four, and so on… He became a district manager. He rose to a regional manager. A few years before his 60th birthday, he retired as a Vice President of American Express.

Jack is my grandfather. I call him, “Pop.” Pop has embodied ZPD for decades. He still invests today, carving out two hours per day to read current events, to study market trends, and to speculate on what may happen next. He continues to push his own limits as a philanthropist, an investor, and a soon-to-be centenarian.

There’s nothing more powerful than momentum — once a body, mind, and spirit is in motion, it stays in motion… gaining speed and enthusiasm along the way.

A position becomes a passionate profession through everyday persistence.

A spark of interest becomes a flame of intensity.

A flame of intensity becomes a fire of intention.

We can only inspire by discovering our gifts, developing them steadily over time, and then delivering them enthusiastically for others as education or entertainment. The best educators entertain and the best entertainers educate. Who could we become decades from now if we started the necessary work today? What does it truly mean push our limits? Are we satisfied with our everyday effort?

“Stay edgy!” I oftentimes shout with clients, friends, and teammates. It refers to expending energy at the verge of our comfort zones to find each other’s limits. How would we ever know what our best looks like unless we tapped into latent potential?… unless we truly failed amidst full effort?… unless we came up short of our goals despite giving all we had?

Sad truth: most people never come close to fulfilling his or her potential because peak performance contradicts human nature. We are innately wired for comfort, safety, and energy conservation. To discover our best we must put our mettle to the test. 

“Stay edgy!” I repeat. Expend energy to excite inner excellence. Go to the edge. Push limits. What if the best version of us is found through that kind of effort, all we have? What if we could experience more love, joy, and meaning through that kind of effort? What if we could inspire others to tap into their own latent potential? Because we absolutely, positively could… even if it’s just one person!

Call to action: Reverse engineer your dream through ZPD. Write for a few, uninterrupted minutes on an identity you would love to become several years from now — perhaps it’s a grandfather that created financial freedom for his family through decades of determination, and whose best friend is his grandson. Then, draw three concentric circles. The middle, inner region is filled with your roles and responsibilities right now. The second ring encapsulates who you plan to live into, as well as mentors you will meet, within three to five years. The third ring includes future-you decades from today, along with the relationships and resources you will attract. Finish this exercise by writing down three tasks • • • that you would, should, and could take as starting steps. Then, immediately, go take those! Why immediately? Because motivation is ephemeral, action cures fear, and momentum is the most powerful.

Do what’s necessary now to enjoy later — rough roads end smooth; smooth roads end rough.

A deep present-moment-focus on improvement puts us in the zone.

Consistent ZPD makes us holistically healthy and wealthy. 

— MG