Completions. What didn’t get done last year.
On the theme of Beginnings. . . which is on a lot of minds these days, as we launch (or lurch, as the case may be. . . ) into 2012, I am thinking about completions, and why having things not finished keeps you from starting new ones and drains your energy the way having electrical appliances plugged in when you’re not using them siphons off electricity that you aren’t aware you’re losing. You aren’t aware that the energy is leaking, but it is. And it drains you in ways you don’t even realize. I found that troubling last year, and have given lots of thought to how to address this.
This year I am fairly clear about a big list of last year’s projects that didn’t get done. Just because it’s a new year doesn’t mean I’m abandoning them! I am somewhere in process with all of them. I’ve learned that the way to completion is to tackle each one sequentially and not try to do bits of more than one as I go. It’s a big temptation, though, to at least visit one or two of them while I’m working on the one I’ve chosen — because I CARE about them all!
But one thing I learned in 2011 is that each thing needs its own time and space. If I don’t give it what it needs, it won’t thrive; and neither will I.
So, this year I am starting with Things from 2011. And I’m setting myself a challenge to see how many I can knock off, and how quickly, because the sooner I do that, the sooner the world will be able to USE the Things I was working on and want to offer, and the sooner I can get back to what I love to do: create more Things 🙂
This probably sounds insane.
But it’s a shift from how I approached things last year, and because there was such a backlog of Things, I want to discover where I can leverage my time and resources to accomplish more. And that means finishing what I started before I tackle or take on more. I know I will always have ideas; I can’t help it. I generate multiple ideas daily. In fact I’m an Idea Machine! But I’ve been terrible at implementing the ideas and getting them into third dimensional reality so they can be offered and used.
There is only one way to change that pattern. And it isn’t gonna be to stop creating ideas! It’s got to come from what I do with the ideas after I get them. And that’s where I am finding new leverage and traction. Completion feels wonderful! Getting stuff done is awesome. It creates more room for new stuff. And I like that. It feels spacious; and I like that too.
So far, from my list of Things from 2011, Thing 1 is done. Thing 2 is done. Thing 3 is started. No, wait — Thing 3 is done, too! Thing 4 is started. These Things were all kind of small (in the scheme of things — no pun intended hehehe) — but some of the others are Big Things. Such as Ebooks. Coaching programs, Membership sites. Those might not be as fast or easy to complete. But I will do them just the same. Even the ones that sometimes feel to me like Things from Hell (but that still need to get done, like chores.)
Intentions alone aren’t enough; neither is will power. You need to decide you’re going to do it and just get stuff done. That’s what I did. And it’s working!
Thing 1 was a story that I started to write for One.Blue.Berry, at the request of my colleague and friend LaVonne Ellis. It was about half-done and I just never got around to finishing it and it was bugging me. And also LaVonne needed more stories this year, so. . . I pushed that up in the queue a bit and finished it. It will be published next week, I think, in two installments — and I will post a link here when it’s ready. That feels great!
So do all the other Things I completed so far.
How about you? What Things from 2011 can you knock off your list and complete? Let’s support each other and Get Things Done!