My regular biking circuit includes a pair of side-by-side, one-way streets. One runs east, the other west. They’re set up with timed stoplights so you can drive the speed limit without stopping.

It just so happens that on my bike (which I ride at much less than the speed limit) the westbound stoplights are spaced in such a way that I can hit most of the lights when they’re green. On the return eastbound leg however, I catch every single red light.

The restart forces you to get your heart rate up again. Breathing is difficult for the first minute or so. The legs stiffen up, and rhythm is lost along with time. Momentum is huge when you’re the one applying the pedal power.

When I shared that with my wife, she commented, “Well, at least it gives you a chance to rest.”

“Yeah,” I responded, “The rest is nice.  But, it’s the getting-started-again part that kills.”

The same is true for leadership. Losing momentum sucks the air out of your organization’s lungs. Restarting takes an emotional toll. Extra energy has to be spent, which means productivity and results go down. Rhythm is lost, and it may take a while to find it again.

And don’t forget: You lose more than momentum with stops-starts — you lose some leadership credibility. It’s like a tax: If the restart is necessary and unavoidable, the tax is minimal; if the restart comes from poor strategy or sloppy execution, the tax can be costly. Your staff members are the ones pedaling the operations. So be wise about how many times things get stopped and stared again.

Here are some questions that might help you avoid unnecessary restarts:

• Can you see patterns in your management that add to the loss of momentum?
• What do your new strategies look like to those who are pedaling? Remember, what looks like a great new idea to you might look like an unnecessary stop-start to your staff.
• If changes need to be made, what can you do to redirect without restarting?
• And if you’ve found some momentum — if you’re hitting all the lights when they’re green — what can you do to sustain it?

This week we happily welcomed a new person to our family, a lovely, tiny girl for each of us to love and cherish. An amazing transition is taking place in the home of her parents. They are adjusting to the new ‘life” they have and experiencing the process of replacing their old “life”. Lots and lots of changes are so hard, but the routine of doing things a different way will eventually happen and that will be their “life”.

On a sadder note, I have a dear friend who is very ill. Her family is and will face so many things in the months ahead. Their change will be their loss. The “life” they once had will change as well. They will adjust with time, but things will never be the same for them either.

As we grow older we recognize that change comes whether we like it or not. Look at all the changes that have come in the past 10 years. Too many to count from the affect of terrible injustices, famine, war, weather, media, and the leaps we’ve made in communication with the iPhone, iPad (thank you Apple), Facebook and other social networking venues. It’s no longer “six degrees of separation.”

We often bump up against things that make no sense, seem wrong (and they may be) or just take too much time to figure out. It’s a value judgment. What do we value? Do we value and embrace the fact that although God does not change, everything else does! Do we believe God has allowed these changes in our lives and the world around us? Some people thrive on change. They do not fear it; they make it work for them. It helps them understand what God is doing in this world that seems so out of control. It gives them an opportunity to give something to others that is new, insightful, productive and maybe even healing.

Serving God in your business, in your home, in your neighborhood means that we must adapt, listen and change. He uses all things for his purpose.