Getting Finished

Getting finished. 

“Do not plan for ventures before finishing what’s at hand.”

Euripides

Yesterday I posted about my difficulty in getting started. I found that some of my friends agreed, while others reported that starting was never the problem, rather finishing was. 

One of my very talented friends is always coming up with something new to tackle, but struggles to complete what she starts. She said, “So here I sit with a plethora of half finished projects.”

In reading this it reminded me of something I had read in Gretchen Rubin’s book about habits, Better Than Before. She asks the question, “Are you an opener or a finisher?”

Some people are naturally inclined to get started, and don’t hesitate to begin a new project. Unfortunately, they may lose steam half-way through, or find themselves bored and ready to start the next new thing. Unlike the finisher their tolerance for risk may be greater, but their discipline to finish might not be as strong. 

You might find that those who struggle to start, actually have very little trouble finishing once they get started. Finishers may have more of a need to see things come to a conclusion. 

What I have learned over the years is that self-knowledge can be a catalyst to change if you want it to be. This doesn’t mean that you can change completely, and nor should you. However, if you know that you are not a finisher by nature, and want to complete more of what you start, then you might want to be more aware of this as you begin something new. 

Not everything that has been started necessarily has to be finished, however, it’s kind of a shame if something really deserving never reaches that stage. 

Opener or finisher there seems to be room for both.