Do you finish each project as well as you began? Anyone can jump into a project with both feet, but many times the energy fizzles and the plan just fades to a finish. The ending is just as important as the beginning. Maybe even more important.
As the term “short-timer” seems to indicate, it’s pretty common in our society to slack off towards the end, especially if you know you’re not going to be there much longer. It’s also very tempting to just give in to the urge to relax when you’ve spent a very long time slaving away at something and you’re finally seeing the end. This usually is not the best choice.
The problem is that while people may notice how well you start, often they look more closely at how you finish. You may have a long list of achievements, but if you didn’t seal each one of those accomplishments with a strong finish, people will not be as likely to remember them. Achievements tend to fade into the background when there’s not a strong finish to seal the deal in everyone’s memory.
Ending strongly can be as simple as finishing a course or closing out your last day on a job with everything in order. Or it can be a complicated production to go out with a bang at the end of your career. Keep in mind, each time you finish any project with an outstanding ending, people will remember.
One big reason to always make sure you finish strongly is your reputation. If you always wrap up a job with a bang and a strong finish, people will remember and your reputation will grow. For example, a man named David started working at a finance company when he was young. The end of every month was difficult because many, many customers were always rushing in with last-minute payments.
He figured there had to be a better way, so he began asking questions. He decided to call together a team of co-workers, friends and other people that knew about the banking industry and mastermind this frustrating ‘last-minute’ situation. During that meeting, one idea that developed was to “Go out with a bang!”
Keeping that advice in mind, he started learning how to look at the system more in-depth instead of just entering the payments in. As a result, he began closing the end of each month with higher and higher marks. He finished each month with a bang!
Before long, everyone began to hear about how he went the extra mile. David ended up becoming president of that bank. Eventually, he went on to become chairman of the board on several growing banks. He taught many people the importance of finishing strong.
This can be a simple way to change someone’s life forever. If you set a goal to always close out the end of your month or your week with something small like encouraging one person, you’ll change more lives than you’ll ever realize.
Les Brown, a well known professional speaker, author and television personality, was greatly impacted by a very special teacher at his high school. Mr. Washington used to go out towards the end of each month with the purpose and intention of making a positive impact on someone’s life.
One day, Les went into this classroom to wait for a friend. While he was waiting, Mr. Washington asked him to go to the board to work something out. Les said he couldn’t, first because he wasn’t one of his students, and second, because he was mentally handicapped.
With those words, Les Brown became the one Mr. Washington set his sights on. Mr. Washington said, “Don’t you ever say that again! Someone’s opinion of you does not have to become your reality.”
Wow! Les Brown learned it did not matter how he started. What really mattered was he could finish strong! It became his passion to share this message with others. He has made a positive difference in a many, many lives.
Your own emotional benefit is another reason to close out things strongly. It’s sort of the “Man in the Glass” effect. This poem, “The Man in the Glass” by Dale Wimbrow, starts out with these words:
“When you get what you want in your struggles for self,
And the world makes you king for a day
Just go to a mirror and look at yourself
And see what that man has to say.”
Before you reach the end of any project, ask yourself if you have really put forth every single effort to do your best. Will you be able to look in that mirror and be happy with the person you see there? Give yourself every opportunity to create strong endings.
Xerox CEO David T. Kearns said, “In the race for quality, there is no finish line.” There also can be no finish line for a quality life. Many have found if you want to have a quality life, there can be no end to your striving. Success, happiness, love, self-worth, whatever you’re striving for, it will be worth it to keep pushing for the best.
As a runner sprints to the finish line to finish as strongly as he or she can, so should you sprint to the end of whatever you’re working on. The difference between you and that runner is that your life does not have to be a short sprint.
Your life can be a relay – a marvelous marathon! That means you get to keep running. Find the joy in the journey. Each strong finish can be a stepping stone to a new adventure. Happy endings make the best beginnings!
You don’t have to consider a strong finish to be a finish line. The ones who make the history books are the ones who keep going. Are you ready to keep going? You certainly can! Simply choose to take action, finish strong, go out and do it again with a BANG!
About the Author:
John Carpenter Dealey, International MasterMind expert, entrepreneur, philanthropist and author is dedicated to helping people solve problems, finish strong and reach their goals with “ease and grace.”
To learn how to use the powerful principles of the mastermind to bring even more of what you love into your own life, sign up for a free subscription of MasterMind Tips ezine at: www.dr-mastermind.com/
