This morning, I had an interesting conversation (read: argument) with my just-turned-2-year-old.
Me: “Time to change your diaper.”
My Son: “Mommy read my tiger book.”
Me: “We have to change your diaper, first. Then reading time.”
My Son: “Mommy read.”
Me: “Diaper time.”
My Son: “Later diaper time.”
Me: [Picks up toddler and puts him on change table.] “So, when are you going to learn to use the toilet?”
My Son: “Later.”
Later—An Insidious Word
We often think of procrastination as being something that keeps us from getting started. But, what about when procrastination doesn’t keep up from starting, but from finishing?
Getting to the point where you’re ‘almost done’ can be both thrilling and dangerous. Yes, you’re nearly there. You’ve come a long way. Now, all you have to do is put the final touches on that piece of writing (or whatever other project you’re working on). The thing is, you’re so close to being done, you just can’t get motivated.
Over Christmas, my husband and I got a bit lazy.
We’d over-exerted ourselves before Christmas—probably close to the point of burnout. My twin pregnancy had become a bit of a ticking time bomb: how much can we accomplish before our little angels are born?
But good food, good fellowship, the kids at home and hubby off work…those pressing projects that were almost done stayed almost done for a couple of weeks.
In the evening, when we’d usually be working or answering emails, we were watching television and saying things like, “We should really do some work.”
Later became the easier option.
Overcoming ‘Almost Done’ Syndrome
Thankfully, neither my husband or I are the type to let things linger too long. I’m happy to say we’ve now finished those things that were hanging over our heads.
Overcoming one’s urge to just let those projects sit and linger in their semi-complete states isn’t that difficult. Here are three steps to help you banish the word ‘later’ from your vocabulary:
1. Remind yourself how far you’ve come.
I needed to remind myself just how much I’d accomplished in the last six or eight months. Sometimes I forget I’ve written well over 100.000 words while carrying twins to nearly full-term and caring for two other children. I don’t have any reason to beat myself up. I just needed to finish. Finishing wasn’t optional.
When you’re at the end of a project, remind yourself how far you’ve come. Allow yourself to feel happy with your progress, because you’ve probably worked very hard on it. Maybe even too hard.
2. Set a S.M.A.R.T. goal for finishing the manuscript/project.
S.M.A.R.T. goals are Specific, Measurable, Achievable, Relevant, and Time-Sensitive.
After Christmas, I set a goal of having my eBook completed and available before the final month of my twin pregnancy. It was specific (finish the eBook), measurable (I’ll know it’s complete when I can send it out to the world), achievable (it was something I could absolutely do given my current circumstances), relevant (the book is relevant to both my personal and professional goals at this time), and time-sensitive (it needed to be finished before the final month of pregnancy).
Having one major S.M.A.R.T. goal to cover completing your project is a good way to focus on the finish line.
3. Visualize the finished product, and your final reward.
If your goal is to finish your novel, how will it feel to hold the complete manuscript? What emotions will you experience? Try imagining the weight of the actual pages in your hands. Think about how much more time you’ll have when you’re done. By visualizing the end product, you’ll put yourself in the frame of mind to finish.
Likewise, plan a reward for yourself for when you’ve achieved your goal. Is there something you’ve been wanting to buy? Somewhere you’ve been dying to go? Plan an appropriate and relevant reward for yourself to help with motivation.
Just Do It
You know how Nike says, “Just do it”?
In the end, finishing a project just comes down to that. You just have to pick yourself up and start.
Not the start-start, but the start of the end. (You get what I mean).
How do you motivate yourself to finish a piece of writing that’s almost done?
I find that it isn’t procrastination that stops me finishing but a fear of producing something that is mediocre. Something that will expose me as being a ‘fraud’. Sometimes I have written better in the past (and past is the operative word here) when I have just rattled it off and sent it out before the most devestating critic in the world got to shoot me down. No guesses as to who the worst critic is !
So now I have a new mantra to deveop………………….appreciate past successes and write even if it might be no good…………………..just get it out of my mind and onto paper and follow my gut and my heart ,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,not my HEAD !…………..and follow my journey wherever it takes me…………..oh! dear, oh!dear ! Can I do it……………qui sait ?
“Appreciate past successes and write even if it might be no good.” Wise words, Michelle!
I’m glad I hesitated in posting my comment, so as to read Michelle’s. I agree with Michelle that it is sometimes the fear of producing something that is mediocre that holds me back from completing a draft, or edit/revision. I am my own worst critic….
Your three step analogy in overcoming the ‘nearly done”… are helpful, thankyou.
Totally agree. I think we’re all our own worst critics!
That’s me, too! I have to send my ms in for a full request from a huge publisher, and I’m a bit terrified to finish the revisions that have to be completed first. Sometimes I feel like I’ll never get it right or even passable, but I guess it had to be to get the request in the first place. It’s hard to douse the fear. I suppose we shouldn’t try to get rid of it, but to work and succeed in spite of it.
Wow, that would definitely be an intimidating situation, Angela. I really hope you get some good news on your manuscript soon!
That is exactly what is egging me on right now: Visualizing the finished project. I am panting to keep up, to reach that high goal. Wonderful advice here with practical tips on how to go that last 1/4 mile around the mile track of our manuscripts.
Thanks, Rose! All the best.
Funny you mentioned Smart Goals, I blogged about them early on in the year and used them to create my writerly goals for this year (and now I have to use them at the day job, which is where I first learned of them).
Anyway, I’ve been dragging my feet on editing my WIp when I did exactly what you did and went – OMG look at how close to the end I am… Suddenly I’ve got the urge to finish it, because I can see the light at the end of the tunnle. My reward – going back over the whole trilogy, re-creating the map (map making’s so much fun!) and out lining the plot. Seems like a odd reward but I”m kind of excited to take soemthing I’ve writtten and break it down to see how it works. I’ve never actually done that before. *giggles*
:} Cathryn
I hope you get where you want to go with your WIP, Cathryn! I agree that map-making is very fun 🙂
The Care Bears were very popular when my son was 3 and 4 years of age. He wanted to watch another Care Bears video. I told him it was too late to watch another video, time for bed. He looked up at me with his big brown eyes and said “It’s never too late if you care!” (one of the Care Bear’s sayings.)
This exchange has helped me many times–especially when the excuse is “I’ll never finish on time” or “I’m tired of that project.” Just get it done.
I remember the Care Bears! Sometimes kids come up with the best advice because they think about things in the most simple way. Thanks for sharing, Sue!
Suzannah, how did you read my mind from all the way down in Australia? I have been perched on the precipice of ‘done’ for two weeks now. Someone recently asked me, “What is holding you back?” And, like your other commenters said, it’s fear! What if people hate what I’ve written? What if I really can’t write at all? What if I’m criticized for the stances I take in my book?
Sitting and having tea with The Critic inside me is paralyzing and no way to get anything done. Silly as it sounds, when she starts to talk, I put my fingers in my ears and say na, na, na I can’t hear you! And then I keep writing.
Fear definitely plays a part in this whole scenario. Maybe I should adopt your strategy of sticking my fingers in my ears!
Great post!
I have more to add — but I’ll be back to do it later…
😉
Very funny, Chris 😉
This was a helpful post and well-timed for me! I was really stumped on a project with a deadline– I’d been mulling over the details for a long time and just couldn’t seem to get the right words onto the paper (or the screen, as it were). I ended up discussing my dilemma of ideas with my husband and it was really clarifying. Speaking my thoughts out loud AND hearing an outside perspective were just what I needed to get the job done. As a result, I got a lot of productive writing done tonight. Thanks!
“Speaking my thoughts out loud AND hearing an outside perspective were just what I needed to get the job done.” Thanks for sharing such a great strategy, Sarah! Glad to hear you got a lot done.
Wonderful post! This happened to me this week quite a bit. I have such a long to-do list but find that once my hubby gets home, I just want to sit with him and not do anything.
Thanks, Ashley 🙂 I think my husband and I were pretty happy to have a bit more time to spend together over the holidays, so it gave us an excuse not to do much! Good luck with getting back on track.
I wish I had an “almost done” novel to procrastinate over! But I’ll return to these tips when I do!
You will one day, Wendy! Thanks for stopping by.
I’m supposedly on my Final Edit round after my Editor returned my MS with notes. But I’m so scared that it’s my last time through and I might MISS something important. I’ve been retweeting, tweaking my Twitter lists, checking back on my FB friends, oh, and even guest-blogging. Next thing, trimming my cuticles. I really have to get to it. Thanks for the timely kick in the pants.
The reward? HTML and CSS coding. I can’t wait when all that’s left is e-book formatting and getting rid of the MSFT tags.
Good luck with finishing those final edits, Rachelle!
Thanks for this post. I’ve been sitting on my WIP for the last few weeks just tweaking sentences here and there and then checking the word count every 10 minutes. Times like these make me think writing is a kind of self inflicted torture. I’m far from done, but needed the reminder to get a move on before procrastination and apathy eat me alive!
I get the twitches every time someone talks about SMART goals, because I hear it so much at work. But… but be honest; you couldn’t be more right. I need to start making some goals like that myself rather than constantly worrying about ‘if I’ll have time later.’
Like yourself, I’m pregnant with twins here and though they’re not due until May I feel like their arrival will be the END OF MY ENTIRE LIFE! ~its my first pregnancy. But the very least I can do for myself is finish some of my current projects before they’re born and I know that I can do it… if I pull my finger out.
Its also nice knowing I’m not alone; so, even though I’ve said it before; thank you! ^_^
Oh, I know your pain 🙂 My twins will be arriving no later than March 14th, but probably soon, and I feel like there’s a time bomb inside me in terms of getting things finished.
Don’t worry, it’s just the beginning of your life, not the end. I promise!
For me I have to ask myself why is watching the same old re-run of a TV program more important right now than finishing my book. Why is cleaning out my closet suddenly a priority, or any other project or distraction even happening? I have come so far…I am so close…and I have the completed story mapped out in my head; no writer’s block. I love being immersed with my characters in the world I have created for them, so what gives?
As much as I hate to admit it, it’s the fear of what comes next. As my fellow writers have shared; a completed project is a project ready for querying and a queried project is a target for less than favorable opinions and rejections.
It’s all part of the life of a writer; the good and the bad.
So how do I get past it? By telling myself I owe it to my characters. They are just sitting in limbo waiting for me to help them find resolution and live happily ever after. We have spent so much time together. I know them intimately…their thoughts and feelings, hopes and dreams, etc., etc. I can’t just leave them hanging. So, I work on finishing one paragraph at a time and before I know it…The End
Usually if I have started something and I am close to done, I have the motivation to finish it. Often it is the getting started and flowing that is harder for me.
Timely post for me — I’m still in the draft stage with this novel MSS, but am finding myself dragging my heels (fingers?!??). I know I have to plunge my heroine into something nasty for the climax and I just don’t want to do that to her! I know she’ll be okay, but putting my beloved MC into danger isn’t something I’m looking forward to doing.
Maybe I’ll tell myself I need to write the scene or clean the toilet.