How You Can Finish Anything That You Start
#14 issue of LifeHighlights...
Hey there, friend!
Just a quick note to say I’m really sorry for not sending out last week’s issue of Life Highlights. Life got a little busy, and I didn’t want to rush something that deserves my full attention. Thanks so much for your patience—I’m excited to be back on track. Let’s get to today’s issue.
I’ve been thinking a lot lately about something that sounds so simple but can honestly change your entire life: the magic of focusing on just one thing at a time. You know how everyone’s always preaching about multitasking, like it’s some superpower? Well, it turns out that trying to juggle a million things at once is more like a recipe for confusion than a productivity hack. I learned this the hard way—and I thought I’d share a little story with you because, hey, we’ve all been there, right?
Picture this: it’s 2023, and there I was, all fired up to level up my tech skills. I couldn’t decide between diving into Python or getting my hands dirty with HTML, CSS, and JavaScript. So what did I do? Oh, I tried to do them all at the same time. Every evening, I’d bounce between tutorials like I was channel surfing. One hour I’d be lost in Python syntax, the next I’d be tweaking a CSS file, then I’d end up googling how JavaScript closures work until 2 a.m. And you know what? After weeks of this back-and-forth, I realized I wasn’t really learning anything. I was drowning in confusion, and the only thing I was getting better at was procrastination. If there was an award for “Most Time Wasted Feeling Busy But Getting Nowhere,” I swear I’d have taken home the gold.😀
It was honestly kind of depressing, and it hit me that my excitement about these new skills was slowly turning into frustration. I felt like I was letting myself down because I couldn’t seem to finish anything I started. And looking back, I can’t believe how long I let myself stay stuck in that cycle—just because I thought more was better.
But somewhere along the line, maybe during one of those late-nights “what am I even doing with my life?” moments, I had a breakthrough: what if the only way to truly focus… was to pick just one single task? I know, groundbreaking, right? 😅 But the difference it made in my life was mind-blowing.
Now, I’ve learned to make a conscious choice about what to focus on, whether it’s a work project, a book I want to finish, or a new skill I’m picking up. Once I pick it, I pour my energy into it until it’s done. And let me tell you—it feels so good to finally finish something instead of leaving everything half-done.(Developing my website made me proud) My efficiency at work has shot up, and learning doesn’t feel like a chore anymore; it actually feels fun again. It’s like giving my brain permission to breathe and really absorb what I’m working on, rather than always feeling like I’m lagging behind some imaginary to-do list.
These days, I don’t just drift between random ideas and tasks. Instead, I take a step back and ask myself: “What’s the one thing I can work on right now that would make the biggest difference?” Then I do that, and only that, until I wrap it up. It’s not always easy—sometimes the temptation to jump ship to something shinier is strong—but I remind myself how miserable I felt back when I tried to do everything at once. That alone keeps me grounded.
What I wish I’d realized a year ago is that multitasking isn’t the badge of honor it’s made out to be. Focusing on one thing at a time doesn’t mean you’re slow or unambitious; it means you’re smart enough to know that getting one thing done is a thousand times better than starting ten things you never finish.
So if you’re feeling stuck, overwhelmed, or just tired of spinning your wheels, maybe give it a try. Pick one thing. Just one. Stick with it until the end. I promise you, there’s a kind of peace—and a powerful sense of accomplishment—that comes with that focus. And trust me, you’re going to love the feeling of actually finishing what you started.
Catch you in the next issue—and hey, remember to go easy on yourself. You’ve got this! ❤️
‘You can do anything, but not everything.’
~ David Allen.
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Living the LifeHighlights,
Thamu Allan