Subscribe to Love Mondays newsletter updates via email »
LM: #387: The finisher’s oath
Recently I lost the fancy lav mic that connects to my phone.
For a moment, I thought, Damn, I can’t record more reels until I buy a new mic.
Then I remembered the finisher’s oath.
WANT TO WRITE A BOOK?
Download your FREE copy of How to Write a Book »
(for a limited time)
It is so easy to do anything but finish a project.
There is no end to the gear, courses, and books you can buy. You can easily convince yourself each purchase will make the final product that tiny amount better. That it will be worth every penny, not to mention all that attention.
But there comes a time in every creative journey when you must recite the finisher’s oath:
I will not buy more gear, courses, or books before I finish this project. I have all I need to do this now.
The moment you tell yourself you have all you need is the moment your energy redirects to The Work. You thought your lack of something stood in the way. Instead of thinking about that, you get creative with how to use what’s in front of you.
After I recited the finisher’s oath, I reminded myself that I did, in fact, have all I needed to keep recording reels. I dug up my old wired white iPhone headphones, and used them as a mic.
And I’ve created some of my most popular reels ever. I currently have no plans to replace my lost mic.
When you tell yourself you have all you need to finish, it becomes true.
Aphorism: “How many incomplete or uncompletable passages there are, in what man calls a finished or complete work.” —Eugène Delacroix
Cool: Olivaia makes small-batch olive oil in California.
Best,
David
P.S. In my latest YouTube I show how I turned my echoey bathroom into a professional audiobook recording booth.
