Learn to Finish What You Start

Finish what you started

You know the feeling. The feeling that you're incapable of finishing what you start. Oh, you get the ideas. You mull them over, brew projects in your mind, pitch your aspirations to colleagues and friends. You get excited and you get started. Then, three months down the line, you start losing focus. You lose track of why you're doing what you're doing and your enthusiasm dwindles.

Sooner or later the fire burns out and your project ends up on the cutting room floor. This isn't just about the office to-do list. Unfinished conversations wreck relationships. Unfinished dreams, washed up on the beach of what-might-have-been, your life with regret. When it comes to the important stuff, it pays to reach the finish line. Here's how.

Figure Out What's Important you're probably not going to see it through.

The best projects come with an inbuilt reward. If you have a task with a deadline, do it. Your psychological pay off comes from submitting your work on time. If there's a promise you made to someone, fulfill it as your reputation is on the line. Dreams can be overwhelming because they take the longest time to finish. If you don't set goals and hold yourself accountable however, you'll never realize your full potential.

Create a Vision and Mission

A vision statement is a snapshot of your ideal future, motivates you to action. A mission statement describes the steps you will take to achieve your vision. Businesses use these tools to keep them moving towards their business goals, but they apply equally to individuals. Whenever you begin a new project, you're likely full of vigor and enthusiasm. The problem is, the more you embroil yourself in your task, the more tedious it becomes.

You may still be hyped about the overall project, but all that energy gets sucked away in the boring little details that stand between you and the finish line - despite the fact that these boring little details are the strategies that make your project happen. The chances are you've lost sight of your vision. Write it, print it out, hang it somewhere conspicuous. It's much easier to keep going when you can see your destination.

Sprint Through the Start

Don't get stuck in the planning stage, though. Many people don't finish projects because they take too long to get off the ground. An idea can only stay in development for so long before it fizzles out and dies. Your whole project may be a marathon, but you should treat the start-up phase as a sprint. If you're over-thinking it, you won't get round to doing it as it's as simple as that. Commit Once you start a project, commit to it. Whatever steps you've written into your mission, do them.

Forget multi-tasking

 Taking up too many projects will exhaust you physically and mentally, and greatly reduce your chances of seeing anything through. Don't Underestimate the Power f the Back Burner Committing to a project does not mean plowing ahead regardless. Sometimes you need a little time and space to let the things you've already done mesh together in a meaningful way. If things aren't working out, take a step back. What you have already achieved is an accomplishment, and it will still be an accomplishment tomorrow, next week, or even next year. Rest, recharge your energies, and come back to your project when you're ready. Even if what you've achieved only works as a first draft, you're further down the line than you were when you started.