The Jazz Process: Collaboration, Innovation, and Agility

Chapter 11. Maintain Momentum

“It does not matter how slow you go,so long as you do not stop.”

—Confucius

Concepts of Momentum

Any system must expend resources to advance or move in a specific direction. Energy that a baseball pitcher transfers to a ball, fuel that a car consumes, and a team’s united intellectual efforts to solve a problem are all examples of expending resources in pursuit of a goal. When resistant forces such as friction are present, making progress is harder, and additional resources must be expended. The pitcher must exert more energy when throwing into a strong wind. If you add parts to a car’s exterior, such as a roof rack, or if you open one of the car’s windows, the vehicle’s wind resistance increases. If the car’s ...