How to finish (or discard) unfinished projects

So with the delightful idea that swallowed you up during a recent bout of genius? It no longer seems so cool after you spent a few hours on it. And how are you doing with that big task, for the sake of which you used to fill yourself with caffeine and who were pointedly threatened with a finger? It did not pay the slightest attention to your furious attempts to finish it ... You are sitting at the table (on the couch?) With a cooled keyboard and remote control from the TV, and the stomach is full of chewing candies ... But the track for overclocking the project has already ended, the personal growth instructor cannot be found within a radius of several kilometers, and everything should be ready by 9 in the morning. So, here is what you need to do!

We are all people with hemispheric-right-hemisphere, unfinished-projects that have missed-on-coffee-we know too well how time and our inner critic weaken bright impulses. What looked like a breakthrough in human ingenuity yesterday turns out to be another unfinished project today; or even worse, another stupid idea.
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If we were all lucky enough to get a tiny, similar to a Chinese dummy, a life coach stuck to the dashboard of the mind, he most likely would have reminded at this moment that there are no idiotic ideas. What if we at least figured out on our desk or bought a few stationery folders, then the working rhythm and the ability to bring everything to the end would increase, and this would lead to the appearance of a whole brood of completed cases.

But the track for overclocking the project has already ended, an instructor for personal growth cannot be found within a radius of several kilometers, and everything should be ready by 9 in the morning.

So, here is what you need to do:

Step 1.

Take this pause in your interest as the best gift. As an opportunity to overestimate first of all what you are doing and understand why you need it. What is the essence of the project? How did you feel creating it in your imagination? And what will be the true reward for completing the work?

I would like to say that all projects, by birth in your mind, are worthy of completion. But sorry, our optimism is not ready to show itself right now and to cheer you up. Take time to evaluate the project: is it worth your attention? If work or position depends on him, it is likely to spend on him the strength of meaning. And if you are obsessed with them, then passion also deserves attention.

However, if this is just a wayward and aggressive weed, rooted in the brain, pluck it out and throw it in a compost pile. You have too many great ideas to be distracted by something shallow and weak. No guilt, just forget it. If the concept has something fascinating, but it is inappropriate at the moment, then you will not be able to remove it. Trust your instinct, briefly describe the idea so that the note will later spur your memory, and put it in a bank safe for random plans. In this way, you will give due respect to new ideas, giving them a home, and be attentive to concepts waiting in the wings.

Step 2.

If you have determined that the project is worth the current effort, it’s time to silence your mind and be bothered with this baby for a while. Feed him, sing him lullabies and do not leave him unattended.

First of all, try to put a stop signal for all those internal critics who start talking at the moment when you start to work. Do it almost literally. Draw a stop light and show it to your mind’s eye - a sort of Cyclops-internal critic — every time he tries to attack your project.
Stop worrying about a lot of work ahead.

Stop telling yourself it's damn hard. Continue to show a stoplight every time you see a violating critic rule. “Hey, you fool, can't you see? I'm coming here! ”

If this happens too often, STOP the “job” and just sit for 15 minutes in silence. This is meditation, and it works. You need a rest.

Set the timer for 15 minutes and let the clouds run away in your mind. When the time is up, eliminate any clutter on your desk, lay out the materials in a different order and try again. Do not think about completion. Do not remember the impressive size of the project. You already know all about the ending and swing, so - Stop. And go ahead.

Step 3.

Concentrate fully on the present moment and type one word. Write one line. When finished with a word or sentence, focus again on creating the text. Focus on investing one minute in the work. Then next.

You break a huge task into the smallest pieces that you can handle in a short time. You can only do what you have now, so concentrate on the tree, not on the forest.

Step 4.

If Step 3 does not work - you have been sitting for 10 minutes and nothing happens, and you get upset - get up and do something "easy" for 5 minutes.

Do not be distracted by the new task. Do not turn on the TV and do not dive into the Internet!

Just have a snack or take a breath of fresh air and come back. We absolutely do not intend to teach the brain to "run off" with every disappointment. But at the same time, we do not need you to sit at a table and plunge into hopelessness growing like a snowball. Aim for a balance between walking for the sake of reloading and eliminating the discomfort caused by a working stupor.

Overcoming and concentration will create the willpower and confidence needed to complete projects.

Note: Trust your instincts. There are at least two voices in your head that will lead to the right decision.

One is likely to say: "If I take a reasonable break now , it will help me better prepare for work after returning."

And another voice will declare: “Enough! You already had 15 damn pauses, no more excuses for work! ”

Step 5.

Emergency plan: run away from here! For some reason, which someone will probably be able to explain someday, there is something magical about working from the cafeteria, not from the office.

And there is such a terribly ancient myth that all good work is done at a cold hard table. If you cannot work at point A, find a warm and cozy point B and repeat steps 1 through 4.

Immersed in the project, keep the momentum, not responding to distractions. Drop short pauses that will only interrupt the flow of work. Again you can not eat for hours or even weeks! And it will not bother anyone until you complete the project. And you will do it.

PS Some of these ideas may seem very simple and obvious to you. But did you actually use new behaviors to increase your productivity ?

If you need to change behavior, you need to really review it. By adhering to this simple routine, you will be able to concentrate more time on the project being carried out and less time on studying all those steps that seem to lead to the finish. You can do it!

PPS We recommend another article on the topic - How to keep cool at work in all situations .

Translated by Vyacheslav Davidenko, founder of MBA Consult .