I often receive letters with questions, requests for help, to get out of the impasse. I answer and find solutions to my own predicaments. Armen Petrosyan is right when he says that the development process consists of three stages - Think, Do and Share. Final stage leads to new discoveries and realizations that raise us to new level.
Hello Olesya! We really need your help! The fact is that I am now working on writing a dissertation, or rather rewriting it. After studying in graduate school for the prescribed three years, at the end I presented full text dissertation, but the reviewers recommended that I redo almost 90% of the text (my supervisor and I went into the wrong area). I was so upset that I just hated my dissertation and didn’t touch it at all for two years.
As a result, my conscience tormented me, and I realized that I had to finish it. But as soon as I sit down to work on it, I have a bunch of other “urgent” things to do, just not to do. It feels like my whole gut resists it. I analyzed the situation a lot, I even thought about quitting my dissertation. But in the end, I came to the conclusion that I should still finish this business, otherwise I’ll “eat myself from the inside” later. I kindly ask you to advise, please, how to stimulate yourself, to put together, as they say, “in a bunch” in order to finish your dissertation! Thank you very much in advance!!! Really looking forward to your reply!
They strive for it with great enthusiasm, but give up everything halfway. Start a job but never finish it. I have emphasized several times in various articles that many successful people, just have a habit - to bring everything to the end. And not successful, there are many undertakings - but little sense. Familiar situation?
How to achieve the goal without leaving everything halfway. How to finish what you started
So how to achieve the goal, not go halfway, how to bring things to their logical end? The following 10 tips should help you do just that.
1. Choose "your" goals. Be responsible in choosing your future activity
When choosing a target or new activity, it is important that you like it, that it is interesting for you to work on the desired result. Very often you left everything halfway, because the “first love” was quickly exhausted, and what needed to be done turned out to be a tedious and unloved activity.
The way, if you are not sure that you will finish what you started, is to take a trial step towards it. Do a little, a little, according to - find out what kind of prospects open up, and only then decide whether you need it or not.
2. Assess if you have the strength and means to achieve the desired result
In paragraph 1, it was said about liking / disliking to work in order to reach the finish line. At this point: can/can't. This is logical, if you overestimated your strength, it means that you did not reach the end. The target was chosen too hard.
To avoid such a mistake: use the method (goal setting rules), and advance planning actions to be taken. This will help identify any pitfalls. Which, perhaps, cannot be bypassed.
3. Estimate how long it takes to reach the goal
If you have completed step 2, then you will have rough plan actions. Next question Q: Approximately how long will it take for each such action?
Perhaps a situation will arise when you will not have time to finish everything. This is important to consider.
4. Stop striving for perfection
At first, everything must be thoroughly prepared, then each step is verified and accurate, each intermediate result must be as perfect as possible ... If you agreed with the previous proposal, congratulations, you will never finish your job!
If you strive for perfection, which has no limit, how can you complete at least one action?
5. Put a "door to the exit"
Consider the option when you have the right not to complete what you started. Paradox? It seems to be describing how to complete, and not to commit ... Not at all. Firstly, why would you undermine your health with unbearable tasks and goals that turned out to be. Secondly, having the option of exiting the case, this case has a greater chance of being implemented (what to say - psychological tricks our subconscious).
6. Focus often on the end result - the goal.
Brian Tracy, a well-known Western motivator, focuses on this point in particular. He advises every morning, using, to remember your ultimate goal thinking about her. It fits perfectly.
The essence of the action: so that the goal remains desirable throughout the entire path to.
7. Follow the Path of Highest Pleasure
The path to the goal can be short and fast, boring or interesting, time-consuming or simple. You just need to remember: there are always other options to achieve the desired goal.
So choose the most interesting ways for you to solve problems and goals that will lead to the final result.
There are those things that need to be done, although they are generally completely “not fun”. In this case, there are two options. First: leave them for later, doing only what you like at first. Then making favourite hobby you will be charged with enthusiasm and desire to perform a boring action.
The second way, diametrically opposite: to do the most uninteresting first, and save the "delicious" for later.
8. Establish feedback on your actions by tracking success from them
10. Don't "force" yourself if the work is not going.
And if you set a goal, and your desire is great, and item 5 is not acceptable, you want to achieve at all costs cherished dream but it doesn't work. Do not mock yourself, tell yourself that you will definitely achieve it, but perhaps now you do not have enough: either knowledge, experience, strength, time, or you need to rest ...
You can afford a vacation from business for a couple of days or weeks, completely abstracting from achieving the goal (but only - completely, not a little bit, not to work, not to think). And when you return to the necessary actions, you will be surprised how easy it is to solve previously difficult tasks ...
All the best! Bring good things to the end!
One of the main reasons many people fail to succeed is that they cannot to finish what they started doing. Moreover, it is not so rare that people leave the race literally at the “last yard”.
Let's see why these sad events happen and what needs to be done to always bring any business to the end.
It's all about patience
If a person did not have enough strength, he could not continue the work he had begun, then most often:
- or he did not have the patience to reach the end;
- or he wanted to finish everything quickly (he was in too much of a hurry).
In both the first and second cases, a person leaves his business for the reason that at that time he did not see his end point. Excessive haste is also impatience. That. it can be said that this situation gives birth to lack of patience.
After all, this quality itself means not so much the ability to wait for favorable coincidences of circumstances. patient man able to show perseverance in his movement. When this quality is not developed in a person, one after another begins to appear in his life.
Real patience always goes hand in hand purposefulness. Those people who have developed this quality are able to put real goals, to plan and bring any business to the end.
They know not to wait instant results, but they can always imagine their path as a chain of successive steps and will persistently take them.
In this regard, I want to tell you one very interesting mini parable.
Swim for cucumber
A little boy swam across the Dnieper. A lot of people gathered, journalists and everyone asks him how he, so small, could swim across such wide river. After all, it is not in vain that they say that not every bird will fly to the middle of the Dnieper.
“Easy,” the kid replies. - I swam for a cucumber.
- Like a cucumber - everyone was surprised.
- Very simple. I threw the cucumber and swam towards it.
And then he threw it again and swam again.
How to learn patience
So this parable teaches us great wisdom: Every big thing has to be done in pieces.
. Moreover, each time you should track your small results. This is general rule that will help to overcome any, the longest path.
And now a few tips. How can you develop such required quality like patience.
The basis of your patience, its basis is the three:
- Faith.
- Will.
- Thinking.
It all starts with yours, that you will definitely see it through to the end. There is simply no other option.
Strength of will will allow you not to give up, even if something does not work out for you. What miracles our will is capable of are well demonstrated. It is they who, like no one else, know what “second wind” means when hands drop.
Right Thinking prepares us for the fact that there are no easy victories. And if you have not yet reached your result, then the reason is only that too little effort has been made.
A lot of people do not reach the result just because they initially believe that everything should go “like clockwork” for them. They're just not ready for the challenge.
Right thinking also means the right perception of your failures. Learn to correctly accept and draw the right conclusions from them.
Finished Cases Month
The power of patience can only be developed In action. In any business, you must set a goal - to bring it to the bottom. Basically, it's the same habit. And you can learn this, like any habit, if you start yourself train small.
Have a Month of Finished Things. During this period, whatever you do, define it as a goal. Those. communicate results clearly. Ate - all dishes should be washed. Sat down to write an article - a logical piece should be completed and placed in certain place. They downloaded something from the Internet - they immediately placed it in the right folder.
And one more thing - accustom yourself not to start another business until you have completed the first one. (Go have not brought it to a logical result).
Indirect practices
Sidu of patience is well developed by practices related to spiritual development, for example, yoga, martial arts, meditation. From this trio meditation- the easiest and most affordable way for any person. So be sure to make it yours constant companion. No wonder they say that meditation should be mastered and practiced by every person.
There are some more hobby that help develop the power of patience. For example, embroidery, beading, assembling models or puzzles. Find yours favorite hobby and be sure to make time for it.
The development of patience is one of the directions personal growth. Patience will be useful to you not only in order to be able to bring the matter to the end. This quality will be useful to you in all possible ways. life situations. As Benjamin Franklin said,
Many have faced a situation where things accumulate like a snowball, and it is not clear how to redo them all, because. even approaching the solution of cases and problems is scary. To prevent this from happening, you should use the tips from this article. You will learn to plan, distribute and complete all your affairs.
1. First, make a to-do list.
In fact, this is the basis of success and development. Expressing your thoughts on paper helps you better understand yourself, clarify your goals, highlight specific steps to achieve them. Right now, pick up a pen and write down all your desires on paper. Better to have at least a hundred of them. Have you written? Now you need to take a short break and look away from the paper and everything you put on it. Relax and do something for 15-20 minutes. Now you need to remove everything unnecessary from this list. There should be 5-7 points left. These are the basics - the most important thing in life, let's call it a person's credo. Based on this credo, you need to draw up a life plan. For each item, make goals for 3 years, year, month, day. Try to make such a plan as detailed as possible and act according to it within 2 months, even if it will be very difficult. With hard work and desire, the results can be very pleasantly surprised, and life will rapidly go up!
2. Cases should be divided into: important and less important, they, in turn, into urgent and long-term ones.
First you need to do important urgent things. Often these are the most unpleasant things that are postponed for later, but the implementation of which is vital! Then you need to do less important urgent things and important long-term ones. Less important long-term matters include bad habits, watching TV, surfing the Internet. When you organize yourself to do things in order of urgency, the last category of things will disappear altogether, or it will take a minimum of time and will cease to interest you.
3. For minimally urgent matters, it is convenient to use the five-minute rule.
If the task can be completed within five minutes, then it is performed immediately and crossed out. Success starts with small things! Do not put off small household household chores for later, use the 5-minute rule and your life will become much easier.
4. It can be useful to divide the most difficult and big things into smaller tasks with specific stages.
Having made such a division, we will explain to our brain how to do this “big” thing, and it will be perceived in our head as interesting game, which brings its dividends, and not be blocked and postponed as something unpleasant and impossible. The simpler and faster the subtasks are, the better. The main thing here is not to stop and follow all the intermediate steps to the end. Consider an example of how to learn Spanish language. It is enough to learn one grammar rule in the morning, learn ten new words in the afternoon, and in the evening make up a few sentences using what you have learned today. Using this approach, in a few months you will be able to communicate clearly with your partners from Spain.
5. After completing each major or intermediate task, do not forget to praise yourself.
The case is completed - cross out and praise yourself! With this approach, enthusiasm is greatly increased. You also need to reward yourself for a job well done. Let the amount of encouragement be curled from the size and seriousness of the case. From a cup of delicious tea with a cake, to shopping and a trip to the Dominican Islands.
6. The last rule of a completed case is summing up.
It is best to sum up the results once a week, a month, half a year and a year. This will help to look at all the work done from the outside, to highlight your positive traits and points where you need to evolve or take a different approach. Also, summing up will help to make personal growth and move on to the next goals.
Today Tatyana Trunova, translator and teacher, is visiting the blog “Life Optimization” Italian. Her author's website "The Ways of the Soul" rests, according to Tatyana, on three "pillars", her three hobbies. By an interesting coincidence, they all begin with the letter "P": Teaching, Traveling and Writing. In my blog, Tatyana shares secrets that help her to complete the work she has begun. So, how not to quit what you started halfway? I give the floor to Tatyana.
Sometimes we rush through life like a squirrel in a wheel. We don't stop for a minute. We grab onto the next project, not having time to complete the work we have begun. It’s not so scary when there are few such unfinished business, a couple of pieces. And if there are a couple of dozen of them?
The problem is solved very easily with the help of simple rules. They have been known for a long time, but for some reason many people doubt their effectiveness and are in no hurry to apply them. But in vain. Personally, these tips help me a lot to finish what I started.
A plan and prioritization will help you not to abandon the work you have begun halfway through.
To visually see the entire volume of unfinished business, I compose full list their mini-projects. My favorite format is the weekly plan. It is easy to vary the order of work in it if there are clear bindings. For me, such bindings are the deadlines for the delivery of translations and the schedule training sessions. Therefore, first of all, I arrange these “whales”, and the rest of the “fish” affairs are already swimming in the open sea, no matter how tempting to do them.
What to do if the list of "fish" turned out to be long and too voluminous? Prioritizing helps you finish what you started. And here the famous "Eisenhower matrix" comes to the rescue. It allows you to distribute all cases into four squares, depending on their urgency and importance:
| Important- urgent (1) | Important- non-urgent (2) |
| unimportant- urgent (3) | unimportant- non-urgent (4) |
As soon as I write things down by squares, the whole picture becomes clear: what needs to be done first (square 1), what can wait a little (square 2), what should be delegated (square 3), and what can be left off at all, but with with a clear conscience to postpone or not even start at all (square 4). From personal experience: placing tasks in the last square saves the mass from imminent death nerve cells and, indeed, helps to bring the important things started to the end!
We systematize the material
Most of us run multiple tracks at the same time. In my case, these are teaching, translations, writing, family and home, travel, hobbies. Tons of material. And if I don’t sort it out and put it in order, then in a week I’ll just drown in a boundless ocean of motley information.
How can the material be organized? It all depends on the specifics of the work. For example, as a teacher, I record all classes (dates, topics studied, results verification tests), select and complete educational materials(vocabulary, grammar, texts for listening, for reading, for translation, linguistic games, etc.). As a translator, I compile glossaries and keep records of translated documents. There is not only order in the records, but also good habit bring the job to the end.
By the way, Tatyana has her own language studio “Make friends with Italian!” - drop in if you want to master this language for a long time!
Your work materials can be in both electronic and paper format. If they are stored on a computer or on an external drive, then it is better to expand them into traditional thematic folders, which may contain subfolders. If you have to keep notes in a notebook, then I suggest that you get acquainted with my e-book"How to organize notes in a notebook: 10 tips from the teacher."
To complete simple things started, use pauses
Sometimes it takes quite a bit of time, 5-10 minutes, to solve a certain problem. Finding them isn't that hard. When you switch from one activity to another, pause. And complete one of the planned tasks. It takes a little time, but in the end it turns out that the list of unfinished tasks magically “dissolves” by itself.
What can be done? Get out on the shelf. You look, and in a week the order is already on all the other shelves. Iron the laundry until it is full whole mountain. Pay online invoice. Call. Reply to the letter. Immediately read the material you like, and not put it in the "Disassemble" folder.
Such pause-switches are very helpful when working on major projects. you look over fresh eyes to what has already been done. After such breaks, I finish my work related to written translations. For example, I immediately find errors, typos and bad wording in the texts.
Combining several cases will help to bring what has been started to the end.
I confess right away: I'm not a fan of multitasking. However, life often throws up situations where you can do several things at the same time. Why not take advantage of this to complete some work that has been started?
Probably, everyone has periods of forced waiting. It doesn't matter where you are "stuck" - in line, at a car wash or in traffic jam You can finish small things you started. For example, plan, summarize, make calls, read, sketch for future texts. Or just relax. Believe me, your body and your brain will be sincerely grateful to you for these moments of relaxation. By the way, often at such moments come the most interesting ideas. It is for them that I keep a notebook with a pen in my purse.
