Our parents or another significant adult (teacher, coach, etc.) told us to “finish what you start!” As a result, we all find a level of responsibility to finish things at
different times of our lives. However, sometimes unfinished business has unintended consequences.
I remember while growing up that there were unintended consequences when you didn’t finish a job or your chores. While there wasn’t much harm in not raking ALL the leaves in the yard in the fall or not mowing ALL the lawn, we quickly learned that the important stuff had dire consequences. For example, you had to milk the cows every day at the dairy farm, including Saturday and Sunday! If you missed a day, the cows could stop producing milk, and then you’d have nothing to sell. So, you had to make sure those cows were milked at the same time every single day!
When it was time to harvest the hay, it had to be cut, dried and bailed. Then the bailed hay was placed in the barn’s loft so that the cows have feed all winter. If the hay got wet because you didn’t bail it on time, or if it were to rain before you could bail the cut grass, that hay would mold and spoil. You had to buy your hay, and that was expensive. You cut into your profit because somebody didn’t finish the job.
When did you learn about finishing the job, and who taught you those valuable lessons? What were the dire consequences that you or your family suffered if a job wasn’t finished?
How about those healthcare or retirement plans you’ve been meaning to manage? What about that income plan you know you need but haven’t gotten around to? We see folks on an almost