In the September series, Finish Strong, we’ve talked about five tips to help you finish projects. Finishing strong takes more than putting your shoulder to the wheel and pushing through—it helps if there’s a little fun along the way. Yep—you heard me—fun is essential.
Here’s why: Goals start because we have joy, and we’re excited about what’s ahead. When you have one adversity after another—kind of like this year has been—you may feel like giving up! But don’t fall for that old habit. Instead, backtrack to Why you started and anchor that feeling.
Let me tell you how my friends Billy and Lakshmi are pushing all the hassles aside to find their fun.
My friends Billy and Lakshmi were thrilled to purchase waterfront property. Their vision was simple: Tear down the existing rotting house and build a gorgeous forever home. Sounds pretty straightforward, right?
But then they discovered they might need to adjust their house design due to waterfront soil concerns. On top of that, their new next-door neighbor started squabbling about the trees. And the Seattle weather hasn’t been cooperative for construction.
Sometimes, I shake my head when I hear their latest update. But Billy and Lakshmi keep saying, “It’s going to be beautiful. We’ll have so much fun living here!” And you know what? They’re right. It is going to be fun. They’ll have fun hosting friends for a Seattle Seahawks football game. They’ll have fun decorating the house for Billy’s favorite holiday, Halloween. They’ll have fun watching the little kids in the annual Fourth of July neighborhood parade. And they’ll have fun kayaking together on the lake.
There’s a lot of work ahead before the fun begins, but they will get there.
You may have the perfect world domination takeover plan mapped out, but adversity can still happen. Sometimes you’ll feel like everyone else is moving in slow motion. A strong partnership will suddenly hit a rough patch. Or you’ll get frustrated sorting through the million little details necessary to make your goal happen. But don’t even think about throwing in the towel just because you hit a couple of hard spots. That’s letting those hard spots become the boss of you!
Instead, go back to basics and find your Why. That Why can be any quality that lights you up—you get to decide what matters to you.
Take Billy and Lakshmi, for instance. Yes, they want a beautiful home, but their Whys are so much deeper than that. They want anyone who enters to feel joy. They want the feeling of freedom that comes when they’re out on the water. And they’re searching for love and belonging in their new community. When you have a long list of Whys as your backstop, it’s easy to finish strong!
Right now, you could feel nostalgic, remembering everything you accomplished in the Fall of 2019. But there’s no way 2020 can fit neatly into last year’s model—it’s been a rollercoaster! So, change your approach this year. Instead of starting many goals in September, find one or two projects to finish or make progress on by the end of the year, and use soft skills—like adaptability, creativity, discernment, compassion, and healthy self-esteem—to achieve quality results.
For instance:
* You may discover through a second look that your plan needs small modifications. Be adaptable and creative when you update your goal.
* You could realize that you’ve been trying to juggle too much at once. So, make smart choices and design a priority list. Getting it done one step at a time is still getting it done!
* You might decide that it’s best to use the rest of the year for visioning and planning, and hit the restart button in 2021. Strengthen your healthy self-esteem with compassion.
You can also rely on the five tips you’ve learned this month. Here’s the overview:
You may have felt like you’ve gone through the fire in the last six months. However, that doesn’t mean you can’t come out of 2020 with something good. When you feel stuck, finish strong by asking yourself a simple question: What would I love to accomplish?