Do You Finish Strong?

TGIF!! What do those letters mean to you? Thank God It's Friday? Thank God It's Finished? I remember clearly in my college days looking forward to classes being over for the week and getting started on weekend plans as early in the day on Friday as possible. Even now, as an adult, it's easy to think about walking away from some of the workday responsibilities and leave them for another day.

Right now I've got three work-related balls in the air. I've accepted a position with a new organization and I've got a contract that I committed to that runs through the end of January as well as a role with an organization that I helped start and have worked in for 22 years. It's a lot to think about over the next few months and my inner college girl is screaming "TGIF"!! Thank God It's Finished! But, truth be told, it isn't. Not just yet.

I've come to believe that the mark of a leader with true integrity is finishing what you've started and not just going out with a whimper. I plan to be fully engaged in transitioning my duties at the company I've helped run and honoring my contract to the fullest extent possible. I'm eager to learn everything there is to know about my new position, and I'm working on that already, but it's important that I honor the commitments that I've made. So "finish strong" will be my mantra for this time of change.

It's up to each of us to decide what "finish strong" looks like. It may be that you are moving to a new job and part of your responsibility is to train your replacement. It's tempting to be less then fully present for this process but you aren't just cheating the new hire and the organization you are cheating yourself. Perhaps you are in a relationship that isn't working. Would "finish strong" look like making every effort that you know of to repair the damage and make things work before you decide to walk away? Maybe you've been in a long-standing volunteer position and you really feel like people are taking your contributions for granted. Could "finish strong" look like being honest about needing to move on yet making sure all the records or duties you need to pass on are up-to-date and in order?

Certainly life isn't a race. There's no finish line. But there is the satisfaction and karma that comes along with doing what you said you would do. Right up until the end. TGIF!