Start Strong But Never Finish? 4 Causes and 4 Solutions |
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Starting strong and then quittting is a common problem.
Often the underlying drivers are managing the tedium of the middle stages, poor plannig, getting discouraged.
The keys are recognziing your pattern, learning skills, having realistic expectations, getting support.
You’ve probably met people like Anne. If she looks back on her life, she sees it littered with hobbies—knitting, painting—that ran out of steam, house projects—planting a garden, building a bookcase—that were never finished. Others might have a great idea for a new business, or date someone new, but like Anne, it all fizzles out after a few weeks or months.
Quitting often makes sense for a lot of good reasons, but if you have a pattern of starting strong, then sputtering and eventually stopping, never gaining momentum or reaching your goals, maybe it's time to take a closer look at what might be going on. Here are the most common culprits:
#1: The excitement wears off.
Newness is often its own reward, a dopamine hit—the thrill of the novelty, the fantasies of what the doing will be like, what the finished product will look like. But excitement is hard to sustain; eventually, you slump into the more tedious middle. The oxytocin-fueled chemistry of those first dates naturally begins to wane; the digging in the garden and the hammering of boards become mindless chores, or a........