Abundance is one of those new age terms that can be overused to express positivity and gratitude.  Personally, I like the world view that this usage expresses.  Scarcity seems too confining and untrusting.  But there are many cases in which abundance expresses a supply reality.  There exists much more of something than we ever knew or have ever seen before.  I believe that energy is abundant, and that is a good thing for our businesses.

Not Energy Policy Debate

I am not really talking about national energy policy debates, although the same could probably be said.  Whether you are for or against fossil fuels, the sheer volume of barrels of oil that are put on the world every day is simply astounding.  Then you have the energy of the sun, delivering heat from micro nuclear explosions to our planet every day.  Then, of course, wind.  And water, too.  All formidable energy sources.  Not fully harnessed, but formidable.

Business Momentum and Human Energy

When it comes to building momentum in businesses, I think about human energy.  It is not as concrete to us as the energy sources we use to power all the different things we use daily, but in my mind human energy is every bit as formidable as all the types listed above.  Whether we are burning, boiling, or spinning things with the physical sources listed above, what is really happening is intense vibration.  The molecules of some form of matter are vibrating to create energy.  Sometimes they vibrate so violently that matter literally explodes.

I have never seen a human being explode, at least not yet, but I know the effort that human beings are capable of when their inner spirit explodes with desire.  We have all heard stories of mothers lifting cars up off children.  In our family, the mom lore focuses on the time that the minivan began rolling down a steep parking lot toward a busy street with our small children in it.  I think my wife could have beaten Usain Bolt in the hundred that day the way she bolted after the vehicle, jumped in, and brought it a halt.  We always cringe when we tell that story, but it is true.  That is what we are capable of when we love and care.  Multiply that times several billion people on our planet and you have something formidable.  And it is renewable, too!

Different Kinds of Energy

In my blog, The Miracle of Small Business, I share some thoughts about this creative energy and why it inspires me so deeply.  It is less important that it inspires me than it is to recognize that it is the basis of entrepreneurship all over the globe.  But that internal vibration to create is not enough.  At Bizzics, we talk about energy and direction together, not independent of each other.  We do that because there are four different types of energy.  The one we like best includes direction.  Here they are, and I hope you agree.

Potential Energy

Potential energy is energy that is never set in motion.  It is that personal creative vibration that is never acted upon.  Whatever entrepreneurship represents today, it is a fraction of what it could be if every person acted upon the inspired ideas they have to serve others in a new way.  I know that there are many reasons why people choose not to act, some of them valid, many of them excuses.  Potential energy is like a large rock sitting at the top of a steep hill, waiting to be pushed.

Kinetic Energy

Kinetic Energy is energy in motion.  But kinetic energy lacks direction.  It is heat, spraying everywhere.  In a business sense, a new idea or industry player bursts forth on the scene.  Maybe they think they know where they are going, but it is never that easy.  It feels chaotic and primal, trying to build and blend all systems into something that is moving decidedly forward toward intentions and dreams.

Linear Energy

At Bizzics, we focus on linear energy because, by definition, it is momentum.  It is a step beyond someone’s passion and life dream exploding on the scene.  The dream has clear direction.  It is how fast you are going and where, and that includes distance.  That burst of energy that got you started transforms into an intentional multi-year plan with benchmarks and guidance systems.  It is more of a long, slow burn, but increasing amounts of energy are required the further and faster you choose to go.

That sounds kind of crisp, but it is much more complicated than that because there are all kinds of other vectors at work.  Some are tailwinds that propel you.  Some are headwinds that thwart you.  And, some are cross winds that do their darndest to throw you off course.  The Bizzics coaching platform builds awareness and inspires action to keep things moving in the intended direction.

Circular Energy

At Bizzics, we do not like going in circles!  Circular energy is another form of momentum, with all the same properties.  But it is called angular momentum, not linear momentum.  You have seen this kind of momentum in figure skating competitions.  It is beautiful to watch and kind of awesome to know that there is some law of physics at play that we love but do not completely understand.  But if you are like me, you probably wonder how the skater spins in circles that fast without becoming physically ill.  I would certainly not want my business to be that way.

I am more captivated than ever by the potential energy in business and society.   If all human energy were released into the greatest desires and hopes of humankind, our world would be decidedly different, and in a good way.  That may be a Pollyanna thought, but I am convinced that effective coaching is one of the post powerful ways, if not THE most powerful way, to take decisive action and build momentum.  It is rarely one big push, but a series of pushes with cumulative effect that build and sustain momentum.  Look inside yourself to find the right answer and do not quit until that vision has become reality.