Are you a starter or a finisher?

A

re you the person that starts many projects and struggle to finish, usually finishing in a blazing glory with less than 3sec to spare, or after being reminded for the 5th time?

Productive people are known as finishers. The ‘dependables’ are usually finishers. In a world where so many feel the entrepreneurial bent, many projects are started, fail to progress after the first push and end up shelved.

If you are like me, you are probably going crazy with people who are starters. Are you always left to finish the work, never really getting the credit, because the starter has already sucked the rewards and recognition, despite not finishing? Sound familiar?

The world needs a combination of starters and finishers and the workers in-between. They all have their place.

Starters are usually energetic, ideas people with great passion. They are positive in their approach and willing to take risks to achieve outcomes. I consider them high GI food.

Finishers are problem solvers, usually see a pathway when it appears to be crowed with problems, are less likely to become despondent, are in for the long haul. I consider them low GI food.

A strong and powerful team is when the starter (ying) and finisher (yang) join together in a symbiotic relationship. That's when big projects take off. Of course it does require two very diverse personas to come together.

The Harvard Business School has a good short article on working towards becoming a better finisher: https://hbr.org/2011/06/how-to-become-a-great-finisher

So when you look to fill up your team, make sure you have a combination of starters and finishers. If you have a big project coming up – get the right people in at the right times.