Newton’s first law

Fauja Singh was the first 100-year-old to complete a marathon. He picked up running at 89 years old and hasn’t stopped. Objects in motion stay in motion.

That’s why management tends to give the most important projects to the busiest person in the room. Not because he can’t find someone else with more time on their hands. It’s because there’s no need to motivate the busy person—she’s already in motion.

The flip side is: Objects at rest stay at rest.

Pushing a boulder is difficult at the beginning. The boulder doesn’t want to move.

Which explains why it’s difficult to do something that has never been done before: moving from the industrial economy to one of connection, traveling to Mars and back, creating artificial intelligence. Or why it’s difficult to do something for the first time: riding a bike, voting, marriage.

But once you get the ball rolling, it’s easier to keep the ball rolling.

There are lots of outside forces trying to slow us down. Steve Pressfield calls it Resistance. Resistance is the voice in our heads telling us that we are not good enough and who do we think we are. But we can use Resistance as a compass. To guide us. If you are feeling Resistance, you are the verge of doing something daring and great. You should follow that.

My advice: Pick the right boulder (not too big, not too small) that you can start pushing today. Keep it rolling for the next 20 years.