There’s a verse in Ecclesiastes that reads “It is better to finish something than to start it.” I have a confession to make, I’ve gotten really good at the latter. I may have even perfected it. I’ve started dozens if not hundreds of projects. I’ve written ideas for apps, books, TV shows, and blogs that sit in old notebooks on shelves that are collecting dust (metaphorically, in reality the notebooks and shelves are files and folders on my computer.) I’ve started workout routines, diets, and habits at the starts of weeks and forgotten them by the end. I’m really good at starting things but awful at finishing them. I’ve gotten so used to not finishing things that I start every project with the underlying assumption that it will never get done, which has become somewhat of a self fulfilling prophecy. It’s a viscous cycle that I fear I’ll never leave.
How can I change this?
This is the question I’m struggling with today, just as I have on many days before this. Usually right about now I’d write some detailed plan for myself of how exactly I’m going to overcome it this time. I’d write a list of goals I want to accomplish, then set some milestones for each of those goals, then write some detailed schedule for how I’ll split up my time over the coming days and weeks to keep me working towards those goals. I might also include a list of other activities I’ll do each day to keep me motivated and focused, like meditating for 20 minutes before work or envisioning the process of completing one of my goals. I’d stick to this new plan for a day or two, maybe even a week, but at some point, I’d give up, because that’s what I do. I give up.
I want to do something different this time. I don’t know exactly what yet, I haven’t thought that far ahead. If I had, I probably would’ve given up on it already.
That’s what this article is. It’s something different. I have one goal and one goal only, to finish this article and post it online. I don’t exactly know what it means to finish this article, I’ve set no guidelines or goals or set any a definition of done. But maybe that’s part of my problem? Maybe I set too many expectations and goals when I start projects, to the point where it becomes so overwhelming that I just give up. Not this time. I’m going to finish this article before I move from this seat.
In all likelihood no one will ever read this but me, which is fine. If this blog ever takes off I’ll probably delete this post completely, or hide it from the public. But hey, I need to stop thinking so much about the future and focus on what I’m getting done in the present. Right here. Right now.
I’ve decided I’m almost done with this article. There’s just one missing piece. I need a new goal. Something else I can do tomorrow to practice the art finishing, just as I’m doing right now. I don’t know exactly what it will be yet, but I know I want it to be something small. Maybe another article like this, or maybe something entirely different.
I’ve reached a decision. My goal for tomorrow will be to write another post about the process of writing this post today. I’ll touch on how it felt to actually finish something and post it online, and whether or not I feel I learned any valuable lessons about how to approach things in the future to get better at getting things done.
That’s all. This post is finished.