Today I learned about the flywheel effect. I came across this idea watching a BBC documentary of Amazon. Amazon cites this idea as how it continues to grow. Developed by Jim Collins in Good to Great. The idea is basically a methaphor for the turning of a massive metal disk mounted horizontally on an axile. In order to get the flywheel rotating for as fast and as long as possible one would have to incessantly push with great effort. The results of the first number of pushes would be minimal since the flywheel to so giant and so heavy. But after a hundred or so pushes results begin to show. Then eventually momentum takes full swing and it becomes easier and easier to push. Suddenly a breakthrough occurs and the flywheel is seemingly spinning itself. In the documentary about Amazon, the narrortor explains how when a customer is pleased with their purchase at Amazon they tend to make another purchase and also tell their friends. This increases demand for Amazon which allows them to offer more products at lower prices, which then attracts even more customers. This cycle builds incredible momentum which can be seen by the sheer size of Amazon. I like this idea because it basically says start small and push as hard as you can. From what I understand of this idea, it’s not a single key event that makes the difference it’s the overall effort that makes the difference. That gives me a sense of relief because of now and then there are going to be screw ups. No matter how diligent you are mistakes are going to be made and bad days will occur. But according to this idea it’s about the accumulated effort applied in constant emotion. This gives reason to believe why focusing on one thing is so important. Starting and stopping kills momentum. Changing direction because I feel that doing something else would be easier is really just trying to skip the buildup stage. I like this idea the most because it speaks to discipline and patience. Two things that I’ve been working on in my own character. With discipline and patience miracles can happen. This idea reminds me of a biblical verse that Jordan Peterson rephrased. Peterson paraphrases “To those who have everything, more will be given. And from those who have nothing everything will be taken away.” This idea kinda proves that. The more effort one puts in eventually the effort compounds upon itself and the return seems to be disproportionate. But with every failure, with every half-hearted attempt the “flywheel” seems to turn slower and slower. This idea makes me want to focus on the smallest parts possible and stack little wins. Becuase according to this author it’s never a single event that makes the difference.