Husband and wife team Jason Womack and Jodi Womack recently launched their first co-authored book, “Get Momentum: How to Start When You’re Stuck“. Unlike the promise of many self-help books, their book isn’t a typical one-size-fits-all recipe for success, but instead provides valuable insights into the psychology of change and how to direct focus to experience fulfillment. “Get Momentum” aims at coaching individuals on the mindset, skill set, and toolkit required to make progress to achieve goals faster and easier, while living a less stressful, more meaningful life.
We speak to Jason and Jodi Womack to get their thoughts behind the book.
What inspired you to write your new book “Get Momentum“?
We’ve been working together for more than 20 years, and over the past 9 years we’ve served as leadership and executive coaches helping busy professionals improve their productivity – and their lives. We wrote this book to share the secrets to success that we know will help people achieve more, work smarter, and be happier.
What are the key themes of the book?
When you know what you want to be known for, it’s easier to decide what to do and what not to do. As you read through each of the 5 stages of momentum that we describe, you will begin to understand the approach you can take to Get Momentum on projects you want to start or changes you want to make.
There are 5 distinct stages you’ll pass through, they are:
Motivation: Here, you decide what you want to be known for so that you can more easily decide what to take on and what to let go of.
Mentors: At this stage, you identify the people you can learn from, the ones willing to help you by sharing what they have learned (often, the hard way) so you don’t make so many mistakes.
Milestones: By choosing 3 sub-projects (milestones) you can complete over the next 90 days, you are spreading the work out. Even a project that will take you a year or more needs to be divided into chunks that you can work on.
Monitor: At the end of the day, you must reflect on success. You have to look back and recognize that you “moved the mission forward”. Identify what you want to watch for, what you’ll want to have completed, and celebrate what you accomplish.
Modify: Along the way, you’ll make small changes, consistently, that act as guard rails that pull you back on track as you continue moving toward the goals you’ve set. As you become what you want to be known for, you’ll be ready to take on new goals.
What is the most important thing you want readers to learn from the book?
Ask for help. So much time is lost and so much hardship is endured because we wait too long before we ask for the assistance we could have used to achieve success. Once you know what you want to be known for, and as you surround yourself by people willing to help you, it’s easier and easier to make progress on those sub-projects you’ve set for yourself.
Why do you think it’s so hard for people to get and keep momentum?
Many leaders subconsciously believe that they should already know everything there is to know about how to work, manage teams and projects, and make progress on their goals. When people lose momentum it is usually because they’re comparing themselves to someone who has it different than they do. There’s only one person to compare yourself to, and that is you!
Reflect back on what you did get done today and think about what you can do tomorrow. Create a plan, ask for the help you need, and honor the process as you move from where you are to where you want to be.
How did the two of you meet?
We met in the front row of a history class at the University of California. Jodi asked Jason if she could borrow his notes. He said, “No”, and that was the beginning of what has become a beautiful relationship.
After spending time as school friends, the “No” turned into many “Yeses” and 23 years later we are still sharing our notes and editing each other’s writing. We’ve grown up together as we worked in our local, small town high school where Jason taught history and Jodi worked in the Counseling office. We moved on to found our own consulting firm, The Womack Company. We help busy professionals be more productive through coaching, consulting, our Get Momentum Leadership Academy, and now (this) book.
What is your favorite thing to do together?
Our version of nothing… That’s going for a hike in the hills of Ojai, California or Costa Rica… a long road trip, singing (badly!) to the 80’s tunes we both grew up with…dreaming of the next article or book we could write that would help the people we love working with and serving all over the world. Basically, we love doing life together!
How do you balance being partners in both work and in life? How does that play out in a practical way for each of you?
We are different. Sure, some days it’s tough because we both can see the very same problem from two different perspectives, or with one perspective we see two very different problems. However, what our Get Momentum Leadership Academy members tell us is that the “she said / he said” approach is a healthy way to recognize the many ways they can address the projects they are working on and the problems they are solving. In a practical way, we work very well together when we recognize the strengths each of bring to the work we do.
What was it like writing your first book together?
Oh, it was easy! Jason wrote the book. Jodi deleted it! Seriously, we played to our strengths. Jason is prolific. He can write hundreds and even thousands of words in a sitting. Jodi can read through all that “raw material” and choose the best lines and paragraphs that are going to help readers Get Momentum!
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