Getting yourself in a position to own your cow isn't easy. But it sure is worth it. It's always easy to put off doing the things we know will benefit us in the long run with all the 'NOW' tasks staring us in the face. Yet in five years the 'NOW' tasks will still be there. And the long run will still be out there. You have choice. Do you want to be the hamster? Or the wheel?

Design your personal flywheel

Which brings me to Jim Collin's concept of the flywheel in business. In mechanical terms, a flywheel is a wheel that requires a lot of force to get it going. Once it gets going, the momentum keeps it spinning and it requires a lot of force to stop it. The heavier the wheel, the more it takes to get it going and also the more it takes to stop it.

There are different designs, though, depending on application. A carbon fiber race car needs a lighter flywheel than a turbine to keep the weight down. Flywheels run on lubricated bearings but can only spin so fast due to drag and friction. To get around this, the best are made of sophisticated, lightweight materials and ride on magnets inside sealed cylinders.

Jim Collins applied the flywheel concept to explain what makes a company great. The best companies operate as a flywheel with a well executed strategy that builds momentum with each turn around the wheel. They take a compelling vision, execute it over and over, and refine with growth. Their business concept becomes more powerful with the momentum.

On a recent podcast, Jim used the example of Amazon and how they started with offering just about any book you want at low prices with easy ordering and fast delivery. As they grew, they were able to offer lower prices and add more products using the same concept. Then came third-party sellers which contributed to a larger and larger marketplace.

Combine that with making it so easy to order and they've grown to be the juggernaut they are, for better and worse. It's not about just low prices though. They look at removing friction in every aspect of the customer experience.

The opposite are companies like Comcast which would benefit from removing the friction from their customer experience, yet seem to increase it.

Think about how you can apply this concept to your personal life. We all know that ideas without execution do not create value. And execution without repeatable processes isn't sustainable. Like those new year's resolutions.

Whether you call it a routine or a habit, what matters is how you make it easy to do the work you need to achieve your goals. You need to remove the friction slowing down your progress. The flywheel can be used to decide where to start, where to push, and how to get the wheel turning so that it pulls you along.

Get into the habit

In issue three I talked about Charles Duhig's book The Power of Habit. Another take on habits is by Stanford Professor BJ Fogg who launched his book, Tiny Habits, in January. His concept can be like the design of a flywheel. Change happens by making motivation, ability and a prompt work together. He focuses on the smallest action you can take to make it sustainable. And once you make it sustainable you gradually increase it until you're achieving the big changes you seek.

By applying such a framework to your biggest goals, you're more likely to make them happen. And avoid the regret that comes with only working on the tasks. We don't get to our long run goals in a single leap. It's step by step. For example, you don't become a writer by talking about wanting to write.

You become a writer by writing. Even when you don't feel like it. A writer's flywheel design might include looking at what time of day they're the sharpest and writing then. Day after day. Even if it's crap. Insert whatever your specialty is, or what you want your 'Cow' to be.

Mindset really Matters

Knowing I'm keen on Carol Dweck's work on mindset, my good friend Steve sent me this link to a 2007 Stanford article on her work, which is still one of their most popular. It's proof that mindset is key to success. Take a look at the differences between a fixed mindset and growth mindset. That you are here reading this already means you have a growth mindset. Keep going!

It pays to get a big head

Speaking of mindset and flywheel design, the key instrument you have to enable your work is your mind. And what you feed it makes you more or less creative. And more or less resilient. The obvious food is the information and content you consume.

Binge watching The Floor is Lava may bring some laughs, but it's not going to grow your capabilities or get stuff done. Given the time you have between the demands of the now and dreams for your future, how and what you consume matters. That seems obvious. Just like getting a good night's sleep.

Less obvious might be how what you eat impacts your mind. A daily cheeseburger and fries won't power your mind which can power your flywheel. I am personally looking at how what I eat impacts my performance. I can tell a big difference the day after I haven't eaten well. For me, I need a great salad most every day.

If salad's not your thing, I've been reading how these foods can help:

Green Tea is at the top of several lists for body and brain. It provides caffeine but with a gradual release that prevents the crash due to the amino acid theanine. Grab some when you need to engage in some complex thinking. Coffee is also a solid antidote to a slow brain, as most of us may know.
Blueberries consistently made the top of the list due to their antioxidants. Apparently if you feed blueberries to mice they can navigate a maze easier.
Pumpkin seeds for the high quantity of zinc, which helps with memory, cognition and critical thinking.
Egg yolks provide choline, classified as an essential nutrient that supports cellular growth and metabolis. Yolks help increase your memory along with brain speed.
Salmon is legendary. Did you know that you can increase the size of your learning center - the hippocampus by 14% by eating it once weekly? It has the fatty omega-3's plus antioxidants C and E. The omegas also protect against memory loss. But skip the fried as that kills all the benefits. Who doesn't want a bigger brain?
Who knew popcorn was actually brain food? While I enjoy mine with a little butter and fresh parmesan cheese, less healthy than it should be, it regulates your glucose flow, keeping you more mentally alert. Vitamins B6 and B12 within boosts concentration.
Red wine makes the list for helping break through creative block by relaxing an anxious mind. That assumes you imbibe moderately of course.

If you want to dive further into sharpening you mind, spend some time at Brain Health Kitchen. Dr. Annie Fenn's mission is to reduce Alzheimers and dementia through healthy cooking and living.

Looking for a change of scenery?

Now that most of us are working from home, we might get tired of the view out our window. Or maybe we just need a view. You seek and the inter webs answer. There's now a website that lets you randomly gaze out of windows all over the world. Go ahead and schedule your next daydream.