Photo by Selective Focus Photography
QUIZ: What do these three things have in common?
A. A playground swing
B. A pole vault
C. A web development project
ANSWER: If you want to be successful, you need momentum.
Sam loves to swing, but he needs to practice the leg pump. No matter how hard he pulls on the chains, he still slows to a stop unless someone’s there to push him.
You can imagine what happens to a pole vaulter who doesn’t have enough momentum. (Ouch)
A major web development project is no different. Momentum will propel your project forward and help you generate more and better ideas.
In geek speak, momentum is a property of the project, not the team. There are things both you (as the client) and your web development team need to do to gain and maintain momentum throughout the project:
1. Keep your project on the front burner
Simply put, all parties need to be paying attention. Developing a website is a collaborative process between you and your writers, designers and developers, and the world is full of distractions. The more attention the team applies to your project, the faster it will get done.
2. Do what you say you’re going to do
If you say you’re going to write the content, then write the content. If you’re going to gather testimonials, gather testimonials. Nothing says “full stop” more than “I haven’t had a chance to do that yet.”
3. Apply focus time
Set aside a chunk of time every week to work on activities related to your web project. Spending fifteen minutes here or there, or letting weeks go by without thinking about your project, is a recipe for lost momentum. Basically, multitasking is the bane of creative work. Don’t try it.
When momentum’s on your side, you’ll find your web development project will not only get completed faster, but the whole process will be more enjoyable as well.
And, because I can’t leave the subject of pole vaulters without a Land of the Lost reference:
Dr. Rick Marshall: “‘If you don’t make it, it’s your own damn vault.’”
Will: “You mean ‘fault.’”
Dr. Rick Marshall: “No, I mean ‘vault.’ It’s from a poster with a pole vaulter on it.”
