GNT #119: How to finish that thing you've been working on

read time: 4 minutes

In 2012, my husband and I decided to do something crazy.

We started building a full-blown airplane — a Vans RV-10 — in our garage.

Ed and I began the project on Valentine’s Day, unboxing the tail kit over a heart-shaped pizza from Papa Murphy’s.

Every day, we chipped away at it.
Riveting. Deburring. Sanding.

It was exciting… until it wasn’t. The middle part was absolutely brutal.

Ed came down with pneumonia and was in bed for two months.
Progress slowed.
Motivation dipped.
And we began to question whether we’d ever finish.

Time passed. We started our family. And when EJ was born in 2014, I focused on taking care of him. I remember looking at Ed and saying: “Get out there and finish the damn thing!”

And eventually — we did.
It took 3.5 years and 2,300 hours of sweat equity.

That experience taught me something I now carry into every creative project and business launch:

Starting is easy. Finishing is a skill.

And if you’re anything like me, you’ve got a few things that are already in motion… but still unfinished.

Most of us have half-finished projects taking up space on our mental shelves.

The workshop that’s outlined but not built.
The website that’s 40% done.
The 1st chapter of your book collecting digital dust.

In today’s newsletter, I’m breaking down how to actually finish that thing you’ve been working on — or maybe avoiding.

We’ll talk about:

• A powerful mindset shift called creative diligence

•  Why you’re probably more stuck than lazy

• 5 ways to get moving again, even when motivation is gone

Let’s get to it.
 

What's creative diligence?

Designer and storyteller James Buckhouse (yes, the guy who helped punch up Shrek and The Matrix scripts) studied how Oscar winners, CEOs, and explorers get things done.

He found that it wasn't discipline or genius that made the difference.

It was curiosity combined with consistent action.

[image cred: buckhouse.medium.com]

In his words:

“Creative diligence is about pushing your mind as far as it will go and observing what’s on the other side.”

Let’s break that down.

1. Reconnect to why you started

Every long project has a “this is stupid” phase.

There were times in our RV-10 airplane build where I thought: "What did we get ourselves into?" It was brutal. Tedious. Exhausting.

But we kept coming back to the whys:

Experiencing life and travel as a family.
The memories we would build with each other. 
Seeing the country from the air. 

If you’re stuck, revisit what made you excited to start in the first place. That spark might be the nudge you need to pick it back up.
 

2. Shrink the finish line

One of the reasons things stay unfinished is because we think the only finish line that counts is the “final product.”

But building the airplane wasn’t one finish line. It was thousands.
Drill this. Deburr that. Fit the cowling. Sand the fiberglass (again).

When we broke it into micro-milestones, we made progress.
Progress made us feel momentum.
Momentum kept us going.

💡 Try this: What’s one 15-minute task you could complete this week? Do just that.
 

3. If you’re stuck, dissect the stuckness

Another Buckhouse gem:

“If you’re stuck, stop and ask: what exactly isn’t working?”

Is it the wrong format? Too big of a bite? Not enough feedback?

Maybe your offer isn’t “off,” it just needs a new structure.
Maybe your blog post isn’t boring, it just starts in the wrong place.
Maybe you don’t need motivation—you need a due date. (more on that below!)

If you're stuck, start being a scientist, not just a soldier.
 

4. Find your version of a deadline

All the creatives Buckhouse interviewed said the same thing:
Deadlines are lifelines.

Whether it’s:

Announcing your launch date publicly.
Booking a co-working session with a friend. (or even just Zoom each other while you work!)
Creating your own “finish sprint” with a reward attached. (my favorite is a massage 😁)

Forcing functions and external accountability work wonders.
We were lucky to have our Good Plane Living YouTube channel and community awaiting our timelapse build videos. Talk about accountability!

No deadline? No finish.

5. Finish ugly

Not every project needs to be a masterpiece.

This might be hard for some people to hear. I know I still battle my perfectionist tendencies.

Some things are meant to be shipped, not in polishing mode forever.

We got the airplane in the air—then we painted it.

We documented the build on YouTube—not because we had perfect lighting, but because we needed a logbook and accountability.

Sometimes finishing messy is more powerful than not finishing at all.

Give yourself permission to ship version 1.0.
 

Takeaway

We all have unfinished things weighing on us.
You don’t have to finish all of them. Just the ones that matter.

So ask yourself:

Why did I start this?
What would it feel like to finish it?
What’s the smallest next step?
What's my version of a deadline?
Who can keep me accountable?

Then take the step. Don’t wait for clarity or motivation. Just take the next step.

You’re not lazy.
You’re not broken.
You’re just in the middle of the messy part.

Finish that thing.

Future you will thank you.

See you next Thursday, friends.

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If you liked this article, you might also like:

GNT #106: How I Use Cognitive Deletion
GNT #088: These 9 Reframes Change Everything
GNT #082: Early action or early planning?

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