We all want to finish our projects. And yet, we often end up with half-finished or even abandoned projects. This post explores what you can do when you think about projects and get started on them but don’t complete them.

A few years ago, I realized I was spending far more time on unfulfilled projects than on those moving forward. These incomplete projects were taking up both physical space in my home and mental space in my mind. I decided to focus on the projects I felt could be completed in my own time. This shift in strategy has worked.

Having a lot of half-finished projects drains your energy and prevents you from actually launching anything successfully, trapping you in the dopamine cycle of starting new visions instead of finishing the current step.

If you get organized, you can finish more projects more effectively! Learn how to develop a better project management system and complete your projects faster.

How Many Unfinished Projects Do You Have?

Stop for the moment and take a piece of paper to write!

Write a column with a title like “current projects“ and list all the projects that you are working on.

Make another column titled “half-finished projects,” and write all unfinished projects temporarily in standby mode. Consider using labeled boxes to organize these half-finished projects for better management.

Next, continue with a third column titled “future/ideas,“ where you will list projects that you plan to start later.

You can also use a spreadsheet tool like the one below to write your current (in-progress), half-finished, and future projects.

As you can see from this simple example, there are 20 different projects inside the mind of an entrepreneur in this case. This is a large number, but remember that, in reality, they can be much more than 20. When I did this exercise, my number was 47.

Now, do simple math. For how many projects are you responsible?

Understand Unfinished Projects

What is an unfinished project?

An unfinished project can be anything, from a work of art to a piece of writing to any other creative work that is not fully completed due to a lack of resources, time, or other factors.

Famous examples of unfinished projects from around the world include the Sagrada Familia in Spain, Leonardo da Vinci’s painting of the Battle of Anghiari, and Charles Dickens’ novel “The Mystery of Edwin Drood.”

So, an unfinished project, or half-finished project, is one that has already been analyzed and designed but has been a work in progress for a longer time. Here is an example from my OmniFocus unfinished projects, some of which are around two years on the list.

Unfinished projects can be a source of frustration and guilt, destroying our energy and causing feelings of overwhelm or resignation.

What Went Wrong: The Gap Between Originally Intended and Current State

As an entrepreneur, you often have visions for your projects and can get excited about their potential. However, unexpected circumstances or challenges may prevent you from fully realizing these visions. This can lead to an unfinished project, with a gap between what was initially intended and its current state.

Managing unfinished projects is like managing belongings in a house. Just as you might struggle with deciding what to keep or let go when downsizing from a larger house to a smaller one, you need to make decisions about which projects to continue or abandon. Finding new homes for unused items within the house is similar to finding new directions or solutions for stalled projects.

The reasons for this gap can vary from person to person and project to project. There are three possible areas of reasons for anyone to have an unfinished project:

• Lack of resources. One possible reason you have not finished your project is a lack of resources such as time, money, or human resources.
• External factors. Other times, it could be because of external factors such as technological changes or market demands.
• Personal reasons. Personal reasons like illness or major events can also stop progress on a project.

Whatever the reason, the result is often the same—a sense of disappointment and a cluttered project list. So, before you take anything else, first define why you have abandoned each specific unfinished project.

What to do with your half-finished projects?

This question is legitimate, but you have already invested so much time, money, effort, and other resources in your unfinished projects. Do you need to give them up right now?

Usually, when it comes to starting a new project that has become an unfinished project, the process is similar to this:

• You start with a basic idea.
• You are so excited about the new idea and started working on it.
• Then, you transform your idea into a project.
• Then, you start through the action steps defined in your project.
• You work hard to start and walk through the steps.
• Then, for some reason, you lose your excitement.
• Now, you don’t know what to do next.

Why do you stop working on the specific unfinished project? For sure it was not originally intended by you. However, in this situation, the question is why you don’t know what to do next.

You probably have started another project, then another, then another, etc. Because you have much higher expectations than you need to, you lose your most important energy, which was the key driver for working on that specific project.

I have experienced such situations very often, and I can only say that they are stressful and exhausting. If this didn’t happen to you, you are very lucky.

Let’s start with the first question: what should you do next with these unfinished projects and stuff? Decluttering and simplifying your projects by letting go of unnecessary items can free up space in your mind and help you focus. Then, I will explain what can you do differently that will enable you to avoid such a situation?

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Steps You Need to Take With Your Unfinished Projects?

There is a lot of value in the projects you don’t complete. Whether because of your personal life or other business commitments, they represent the energy you have left over after a task, project, or event. 

If you’ve ever made a mistake and you feel stuck, you can do one of three things with your unfinished project:

• You can either let your unfinished project stay there until you feel ready to finish it again,
• You can remove the unfinished project from your list of unfinished projects and lose your previous efforts to work on them,
• Or you can take the initiative and start working on a specific unfinished project as soon as possible.

I know you are already working on something different, but let’s try to save what can be saved.

I want to present one possible solution: “Save what you can save.”

1. How much time you can spend analyzing the potential of unfinished projects

First, decide how much time you can spend analyzing the potential of your unfinished projects. You need to spend some time not finishing projects but deciding what you want to finish, what will stay on your standby list, and what can be removed.

2. Analyze each unfinished project

Second, start with the analysis of unfinished projects. It would be best if you ranked them.

The critical ranking criteria can be the project’s return on investments, the time you need to complete it, and the resources you will need to use.

You must understand the time you need to spend on the project, so start with an estimate of how long it will take to finish the unfinished project. This is an essential step to get a rough idea of how long it will take you to finish the project.

3. Prioritize the unfinished projects

When you have your list, you can prioritize the unfinished projects.

The following rules can help you with the prioritization process:

• projects with a higher return on investments,
• the shortest time required to be accomplished, and
• The minimal resources required to be allocated will be the highest priority when starting work.

The second group of unfinished projects can stay on your standby list, and the last group of projects you can forget will be those with a low return on investment, require a significant amount of time to be finished, and need a large number of your business resources.

You can prioritize your projects based on their order of importance and how urgent they are. Some say that the projects that require the least amount of money, the shortest time, and the least amount of resources are the most important. This may or may not be accurate, but you will know better when you try this out yourself.

4. Start Working

Once you decide which unfinished project to begin, start working on it. It would be best to start working on the first item on your priority list. The next thing to do is decide when you will work on your project. If you are working on something at home, you can work whenever you can. If you are working on your project at the office, you can choose a particular time to work on it.

Once you complete the first item, you can move to the next one. Try to finish all the items on your list and keep this process going until all the items on your list are completed.

How Can You Avoid Situations With a Large Amount of Half-Finished Projects?

Now, I explained a possible process for starting to do something with your unfinished projects as a reactive approach. But we need a proactive approach that will not put you in situations where you try to save what you can.

The best way to avoid problems is to avoid starting a project. If you are unsure, you can complete it.

Let’s continue with proactive tactics that will allow you to escape becoming a part of such a situation.

1. Start using a business ideas book.

A business ideas book is where you collect each of your business ideas. But it is where ideas stay without judgment. An idea can be translated into a possible project only when you evaluate it and are sure it is worth implementing.

2. Implement a system for evaluating your ideas.

You need a robust system for the evaluation of your ideas. Suppose you don’t have such a system in place. In that case, you will come in the position to have a business ideas book with too many ideas that will stay in the book without any future actions to take about them. In such a situation, you will ignore your business ideas book.

Conversely, with the system in place, you will have one day in your week to evaluate your ideas. At least, you will schedule some subsequent basic actions about each idea or delete some without the need for future actions.

3. Prioritize your ideas.

After evaluating your ideas, you can prioritize them, showing you what can be implemented first and what can remain on the standby list.

Your goal is to choose an idea that you think you can put into practice in your everyday work life. Remember that your priorities and your goals are all your own. They’re not anyone else’s. What you are choosing to focus on is yours and yours alone. Don’t let others dictate what you should be doing or what you can or cannot do.

The highest priority ideas will be the ones that you will implement first. The second priority ideas will be the ones that will be implemented next. After you have prioritized the ideas, it will be easier to implement them.

4. If you can’t finish something alone, start delegating.

When you finish your active project, you can start with the first idea on your list as a new project. If you think you can’t finish something alone, begin delegating some of the activities to your team members.

5. Don’t start another project without finishing one already started.

One important rule you need to use is not to start with another project until you don’t finish one that you have already started. So, you will finish all your projects if they have already begun.

However, in some exceptional situations, you can stop working on some of your current projects because of the wrong expectations or because you are waiting for something. In such a case, you can start working on another project from your priority list.

If you discard some of your projects, do so without putting them on your standby list. Forget about them and start with the next one.

6. Break Down the Project into Smaller Tasks

When working on a project, looking at the big picture and trying to work on all aspects at once can be overwhelming. That’s why breaking the project into smaller, manageable tasks is essential.

Start by identifying the project’s main objectives or goals. Break down your project into smaller tasks and write down each step, no matter how small, to help you feel a sense of accomplishment as you complete each task.

You use a computer or a free or paid project management tool to help you organize your tasks and stay on track.

7. Delegate Tasks When Possible

As a team leader or manager, handling every aspect of a project alone can be impossible. This approach can quickly lead to burnout and delays in completion.

Instead, consider delegating tasks to team members or outsourcing certain aspects of the project. So, you can scan project tasks and decide who can help you with some tasks inside your project.

8. Create a Schedule to Work on It

Your commitment is important if you want to finish each project you have started. One of the best ways is to schedule a specific time to work on your project and commit to it. This will help you progress and stay on track.

How to Overcome Obstacles to Complete the Project

When it comes to project management, there will always be some challenges and obstacles. Here are some ways to overcome them and complete your project:

1. Identify potential obstacles. The first step in overcoming obstacles is to identify them. This could be anything from a lack of resources or funding to unexpected roadblocks in the project timeline.
2. Develop a contingency plan. Once you have identified potential obstacles, you must develop a contingency plan that includes finding alternative resources or adjusting the project timeline to accommodate any delays.
3. Communicate with all stakeholders. Communication is key in successful project management. It’s essential to keep all stakeholders informed about any challenges or changes in the project plan.