Nothing Good Can Happen Unless You Finish What You Start
“Start less, finish more.” This is something I repeat to myself regularly.
No matter what I’m working on - an online product, a screenplay or pilot script, an article for Wealest, or even a Tweet I’ve been battling to get right - it’s almost always better to finish what I start and send it out into the world than abandon it.
Because shipping is the only way you can get lucky. That’s the only way good things happen. You’ve got to finish what you start.
Be overly Obvious About What You’re Trying to do.
When I start something new, I write out in overly-obvious terms what I'm trying to do. I’ll literally write it out on the page:
- Write TV pilot.
- Finish writing movie.
- Write article about XYZ.
- Create product that turns “A” into “B.”
- Write tweets for this week.
If I don’t write it out in simple terms, it’s too easy to slip into doing more urgent, but less important stuff. As Charlie Munger says: “A majority of life’s errors are caused by forgetting what one is really trying to do.”
Simplicity helps you stay on track and finish what you start. And nothing good can happen unless you finish.
Stop Changing What You’re Building Midway Through.
It’s much better to finish something in any form than to never finish because it keeps changing form.
Here’s what I mean: I’ve been working on a “Content Curator” course for over two years. But I haven’t finished it yet because I keep changing what it is. I keep changing what form it’s going to be.
First, it was a video course. Then it was an e-book. Then it was an e-book with video elements. I couldn’t just pick a form and stick with it. I kept changing it and moving the goalposts further away.
This is despite the fact that the content is pretty much the same no matter what form I go with. I got so lost trying to find the perfect format, I stopped working on the stuff that really matters - the content of the course.
The creative process is messy. So you have to allow for some amount of change and moments of inspiration that spiral you into a different direction. But if that new direction is an entirely different thing, then just write it down and get back to what you were doing before.
Focus on finishing what you set out to do. Only once you’ve finished delivering what you planned on delivering should you turn to your next “best” idea.
Luck Can Only Find You If you Let It.
You can only capture upside if you execute. It’s not just about having a bias for action. It’s about finishing what you start to give yourself a chance to get lucky.
Every tweet you send is a chance to get another follower. But that can’t happen unless you send it.
Every script my wife and I write is a chance to sell a project. But that can’t happen unless we finish the script.
Every product you develop for your audience is a chance to make a life-long buyer. But that can only happen if you put it up for sale.
Yes, it’s scary to finish and let the world decide the value of what you’ve done. But it’s the only way to expose yourself to upside. To luck. To the power of a good break.
So “start less, finish more.” And good luck.