On the other side of the finish line

I recently read a  quote that truly got my attention as truth:

“EVERY FINISH LINE IS THE  START OF A NEW RACE”

which got me thinking about the other side of the finish line….,,,
 What an interesting thought. A concept that is so important for achieving continued success as  success is dependent on what actually happens on the “other side of the finish line”…
This finishing with a beginning  was something I have kept in mind while I was in the process of ending one year and beginning a new one.

How important it is to set up the new year while you are in the final days of racing to cross the finish line.

Have you ever noticed in the days after a deadline has passed all that momentum is gone..and you  wonder what happened? How could everything have been firing on all cylinders and now it is on a dead stop?  The reason is that the ‘race does begin on the other side of the finish line’.

Success is on-going…we go from one accomplishment to the next… I found that the set up for the next goal had to be targeted before actually crossing the finish line of the current goal. I looked at June (last month of one company’s fiscal year) and  December (calendar year end) as “pivot months”... I called them pivot months because they were transitional months that would enable me to keep the momentum ongoing; moving from one goal to the next. Everything  that I did in the last month of the year was the ‘start’ for the first of the new year. The strategy might have been in adding lots of new team members, personally being fully booked with appointments for the first days of the new year or planning for a KICK OFF event on the first day (or week ) of the new year. This was the time to set in place details for the announcement of a three month court for sales or team building accomplishments with the qualifications beginning the first day of the new year cycle.
Everything I focused on was not only to finish out my current year but even more importantly to set in motion new achievements for the new year. These were activities that would  continue on in the first days of the new year. It was not a time to stop and take a vacation or rest… It was a time to keep the activity going. If you use the last month only to close out the year … Just to cross your finish line…You will not regain your strength to continue to run your race in the new year for 3 or more months.
Momentum is a fickle friend… If you break the momentum it takes 3 months to regain it but if you keep it going it builds even greater strength.
So what does the other side of the Finish Line look like for you?
Who are you moving up this month? How many are you adding to your team who will start their new venture in the first days of the new year? How many selling appointments do you have booked for the first week of the new year.? Is your ‘kick off’ event planned and booked for the first week of the new year? Do you have a challenge for a 3 month court (we called it a Summer Court) planned out with all the details ready to launch on the first day of the new year?
Yes! It is vital to race toward your finish line to close out your current year, but you don’t want to arrive exhausted; spent … How much better to keep going with focus and exhilaration for the next year. Leaders take the lead by knowing the way and showing the way. What does the other side of your finish line look like?

~Barbara