The Real Reason My Unfinished Projects Stay Unfinished

Have you ever started reading a book and realized it wasn’t for you but you kept going? You didn’t like the characters, the plot was eh, and you’d rather clean the inside of a fish tank with a broken filter than go back to reading it? But the thought of DNFing* a book for some reason causes such an intense sense of failure that you keep slogging through until you reach the last page.

This happened to me recently. Three people in my book circle highly recommended the novel, Remarkably Bright Creatures. I didn’t like any of the characters, other than Marcellus—the octopus. I thought the heroine was uptight and I found the general tone to be depressing. Suffice to say, it wasn’t for me. And I knew this before I was halfway through. But not only did I finish the book, I had to check it out from the library twice, to ensure I wrung out every last bit of agony to reach the end. Unfortunately, this steadfast, albeit misguided, determination doesn’t extend to the non-literary areas of my life.

And speaking of octopi…

Last week, I went to the Usher/Chris Brown concert with some friends—more on that in this Saturday’s newsletter. We met at a friend’s house and her home was totally done. Finished. Nothing out of place. All of the rooms were beautifully decorated but still inviting. And all I could think was, I’ve had an octopus picture sitting on an ottoman in my living room waiting to be hung—for years.

So how do I apply the rigor and discipline of finishing books I hate to all of the unfinished projects in my life? Like the new pedals for my spin bike that have been sitting in the box since April. Or the downstairs bookcases that I was going to organize after I had trim added so they looked like built-ins. And don’t even get me started on my craft room. In my defense, I have tried—repeatedly—to ‘fix’ this room. I’ve even had a professional organizer come in more than once, with no success. It is my household version of DNFing. But that one is not for lack of trying.

I recently realized my biggest challenge in completing any project: I consistently underestimate the level of complexity and then give up when it’s harder than I thought it would be.

Take the downstairs bookcases. They need trim, lighting, and a white library ladder. I’ve had the vision for them since I moved into my house—five and a half years ago. Who’s going to do the trim? The electrician that addressed my inspection list retired, so who’s going to do the lighting? So now the Billy bookcases I dragged my cousin to Ikea to help me purchase because I saw them as an easy Pinterest hack—have been housing disheveled piles of book chaos instead of serving as Instagram-worthy reels.

So I did what anyone in my position would do to address this—I consulted AI. It gave me a ten-step checklist. Seems like overkill for switching out bike pedals, then again—mine are still in the box.

Do you have an easy process for getting unfinished projects back on track, or finishing the unfinished? Please share. 

In the meantime, if you know anyone with a reliable stud-finder who’d be willing to hang an octopus picture in my entryway, let me know.

*DNF: Did not finish