Have you ever started a book, a fitness regime, a course, or set a personal goal, only to leave it unfinished? Starting is crucial, but many times, the real challenge lies in finishing what you start.
In this little guide, I’m all about helping you ‘finish what you start.’
That’s right, we will focus on those essential tasks that really count. Unfinished tasks can make you feel like you’re stuck and can’t move ahead.
But it’s perfectly okay to let go of some tasks. The world won’t end if you don’t finish every little thing you start.
However, when it comes to those big, meaningful goals, the ones that matter, the ones that could cost you if left undone, we need to buckle down and see things through.
Are you wondering why it’s such a struggle to finish what you started? Let’s dive into this together and figure out not just the whys but also how to turn those unfinished dreams into proud achievements.
Why is it difficult to finish what we start?
Loss of Initial Motivation:
When we first start a task or project, we’re often fueled by initial excitement and motivation. Over time, this initial enthusiasm can fade, especially when faced with the more mundane or challenging aspects of the work.
Underestimating Complexity and Time:
People often underestimate the time, effort, or resources required to complete a task. When the reality of the workload becomes apparent, it can be overwhelming and lead to procrastination or abandonment.
Distractions and New Priorities:
In a world full of distractions and constantly evolving priorities, it’s easy to shift focus to new, more immediately gratifying tasks, leaving older projects unfinished.
Lack of Accountability:
Without someone to answer to or a system of accountability, it’s easier to let tasks slide. Self-imposed deadlines can often lack the urgency of external ones.
Perfectionism:
The desire to make everything perfect can be paralyzing. Perfectionists might delay completing a task due to the fear that the outcome won’t meet their high standards.
Attempting to accomplish too much:
The issue of not taking breaks and attempting to accomplish too much in a short period is a common productivity pitfall. It can paradoxically lead to decreased productivity and an inability to complete tasks effectively.
Why is it a big deal?
One psychological phenomenon that highlights the impact of incomplete tasks is the Zeigarnik Effect. It implies that people remember uncompleted or interrupted tasks better than completed tasks.
Think about it. Do you often think more about the debts you have yet to pay off than those you have already cleared?
Similarly, every task we start and leave midway creates an open loop in our minds, causing mental clutter and reducing productivity.
Regularly leaving tasks unfinished can affect self-esteem and self-confidence. It may create a pattern of negative self-talk and a self-image of someone who “doesn’t follow through,” impacting future motivation and engagement.
How do you finish what you start?
To combat this, here are some actionable steps:
1. Brain Dumping:
I find this practice extremely helpful, where I jot down everything I have in my mind in a paper. It may be the blog topics I want to write about, the places I want to visit, or recipes I have thought of trying. I have made lists of everything.
Having written all my thoughts on paper helps me clear my mind, and it simply helps me organize, schedule, and prioritize. At least I don’t have to carry the burden of remembering everything that comes to my mind, and it saves me from missing points.
Whether you’re a night owl who likes to prep before bed or a morning person who prefers to start the day with a clear plan, making brain-dumping part of your routine can help you stay organized, reduce stress, and even boost your productivity.
Give it a try, and you might just find it’s the thing you didn’t know you needed to help you boost your productivity and finish what you started.
2. Prioritize:
Once everything is out of your head and onto a list, it’s easier to organize. You can categorize tasks, prioritize them, and plan your actions more effectively. Arrange these tasks in order of importance or urgency.
Not all tasks hold equal weight, so focus on what matters most.
Warren Buffett, the renowned investor, uses the “2-List” strategy. He lists 25 career goals, picks the top five, and focuses solely on them, ensuring he completes what’s most important.
3. Break It Down:
When you have a massive project in front of you, it’s easy to get overwhelmed by the sheer size of it. That’s where breaking it down comes in. You take that big project and chop it up into smaller tasks, each one acting like a mini-goal.
And don’t forget to give each of these smaller tasks its own deadline. This is crucial because it keeps you on track. Deadlines create a sense of urgency and accountability, pushing you to focus on one task at a time and steadily move forward.
Have you heard of the Parkinson’s law?
It basically says that the more time you give yourself to do something, the more likely you are to take all that time… and maybe not in the most efficient way. It’s like when you have a whole weekend to clean your house. Suddenly, it’s Sunday night, and you’re wondering where all that time went. But, if you only had a few hours on a Wednesday evening, you’d probably get it done quicker.
So, the formula to finish things is to set break down the tasks and set deadlines for each, stricter deadlines are more helpful.
4. Follow the 2-Minute Rule:
If a task takes less than two minutes, do it immediately. It’s surprising how much mental space these small tasks can occupy.
David Allen, a big name in the productivity world, devised this simple yet effective rule. Following the 2-minute rule keeps those small tasks from piling up.
You know how it is; one minute, you have a couple of quick emails to send, and the next, you have a whole list of little tasks that have somehow become this big, daunting cloud hanging over your head. By following the Two-Minute Rule, you nip that problem in the bud. You keep your to-do list shorter and your mind clearer.
5. Practice Self-Reflection:
Make it a habit to practise self-reflection. Take notes of your strengths and weaknesses. But it gets really interesting when you think about that one thing that just makes time fly by for you, that activity where you’re totally in the zone, or as some call it, in a state of flow. Ever wonder why you love it so much?
And then there are those moments when we’re stuck, unable to move forward on a task. It’s easy to fall into the trap of self-criticism or procrastination. But what if, instead of beating ourselves up, we got a bit curious? Start asking yourself the tough questions.
Why are you putting off that particular task?
Is it a lack of interest, or maybe you’re distracted by something else?
Could it be that the task turned out to be different from what you initially thought, and now it doesn’t excite you as much?
By asking meaningful questions, we can uncover the real reasons behind our actions or inactions and start to make changes.
Consider Reading: Meaningful Questions to Ask Yourself
“You don’t try to build a wall…You don’t start by saying, I’m going to build the biggest, baddest wall that’s ever been built. You say, I’m going to lay this brick as perfectly as a brick can be laid…you do that every single day, and soon you have a wall.”
Will Smith
Wrapping this up, let’s take a moment to reflect. We’ve journeyed through the why and the how of finishing what we start, uncovering the obstacles that often lead us to leave tasks halfway and exploring strategies to overcome them.
I encourage you to integrate these insights into your daily routines. Remember, every completed task, no matter how small, is a victory in its own right, proof of your ability to overcome procrastination and distraction.
So, as you move forward, let the mantra ‘finish what you start’ be your guide. Here’s to finishing strong, one task at a time.
