I want to ask you a serious question right now. And I want you to answer honestly. No matter what.
Even if you’re scared to admit it out loud. Even if you’re judging yourself or afraid of judgment. Even if you don’t want anyone to know the truth.
Are you ready??
Here’s the question… How many unfinished projects do you currently have?
This doesn’t just mean creative projects. I mean ALL projects. That closet you’ve been decluttering for years now. That novel draft you started. That phone call you’ve been putting off. That TV series you’ve been meaning to watch the rest of.
It’s SO EASY to start things. Most people don’t struggle with starting (although some people do, and that’s a whole other convo).
Most people start things with total ease.
They get an idea for something they want/need to do. They start taking some action. Maybe they write the first couple chapters of that novel. Maybe they declutter their closet for 15 minutes. Maybe they watch the first three episodes of a TV series that interests them.
But then they never finish.
And years down the road… the unfinished novel draft still sits on their computer; the closet is still cluttered with crap that you no longer need; the TV series is onto the next season and you haven’t even finished the first one yet, etc.
Not finishing isn’t a bad habit. It’s not even the result of you being totally undisciplined. (Although it becomes these things.)
Not finishing is a PATTERN.
It’s one you learned early on in life–some way, some how–and it continued to follow you into adulthood. And then it became what’s normal for you. And then before you knew it, you’re starting things, starting things, starting things… but it all remains undone.
Sound familiar?
Luckily, a pattern can be broken. It’s not set in stone. It’s not unchangeable.
But it takes a willingness to break it.
And many people don’t have that willingness. Especially as they get older.
Instead, they continue to buy into the pattern that has held them captive, stuck in one place, for years.
Then to make it easier to deal with the stuckness and unwillingness to change, they tell themselves nonsense things like, “I’m too old; It’s too late; I don’t have the time; I’ll never get around to it; I don’t have what it takes; I can’t do this; it’s just not in the cards for me; maybe in another lifetime; maybe it’s just not meant for me; maybe [insert whatever bullshit excuse you’re using for why you don’t finish what you start].”
On and on and on the excuses roll. And it’s RIDICULOUS!
Because all you ever had to do to break the pattern is to FUCKING FINISH!!!
That’s it.
It’s easy.
It’s simple.
If you want to break your pattern of starting things, but never (or rarely) finishing them, all you have to do is FINISH. Choose something undone, make it a priority to take action on it every day until it’s done, and then do it.
Period. And when you do, you’ll have broken your pattern of not finishing.
Which will then motivate you to want to finish more stuff. Why?
Because finishing the things you start feels really, really good!!
Unfortunately, we’re taught that feeling good is bad. We’re taught that if we feel good for too long or if too many good things happen to us or if we’re too productive, too good at something, too whatever, eventually the other shoe will drop.
And so it’s easier to avoid finishing then it is to get to the point where you FEEL GOOD. Where you feel happy and excited and damn proud of yourself.
Finishing feels good. There’s nothing better than finishing something that you’ve started. Even if it’s something super simple.
But you must give yourself permission to break your pattern. To stop hiding. To stop waiting. To stop worrying about not knowing every step along the way. To no longer make excuses or allow yourself permission to not finish.
In the end, it’s all up to you.
You get to decide. You get to say what’s true for you. You get to create whatever reality for yourself that you desire.
And if you desire to be someone who finishes; if you desire to have a reality where your projects always get completed, then you must break the pattern of not finishing by fucking finishing.
It’s time.
If you’re brave, share in the comments how many unfinished projects you currently have (no judgment!!) and what you’re going to do about it.
Dream life or bust,
jen
