“To finish first, you must first finish.”

-Rick Mears

Starting things gets a lot of attention. Business ventures. New Year’s resolutions.  Exciting launches.  IPO’s.  The world is chock full of new beginnings and great intentions.

Watching the Masters Golf Tournament this past Sunday was a great reminder though of how critically important the finish is to everything we do in life, and in business.

There is no doubt that the way the Masters play when they start is important but after 72 challenging holes of golf over four days – there are many players who finish within one stroke of winning.  Physically tired, mentally spent and in the home stretch of a long competition— the player who wants to win must do one thing extraordinarily well:  finish.  In the heat of the battle on the final few holes, the start is long  behind them – the only thing that matters now is the end game.

Finishing Matters for Everyone
You don’t need to be a world-class athlete for finishingto matter.  For example, why do suppose I use a personal trainer? Let’s face it:  After using a trainer for years, I know how to lift the weights.  I’ve created the habit of working out.  So why would I use a trainer? Simple. Because when it comes to getting results, it’s not the first few reps that matter.  It’s the last few.  It’s the finish.

The last 20% of my effort produces the greatest results. On my own I can do the first eight reps but it’s the last two that the trainer gets me to do that make all the difference.

– The start is important but the finish is what delivers the results. –

The Masters of Sales
One of our great coaching clients, and a highly productive real estate agent, contributes his success to never ending the day without making three attempts to get a hold of all his leads each day.  Like the Masters, and like my workout, his success is in the finish.

Those last few calls at the end of the day when you’re tired and would just love to head home are what separate the good from the great.  The starters from the finishers.  Not leaving until you’ve made that last call, returned all your emails, cleaned off your desk and planned the next day – now that’s a finish.

To become a Master of sales, these things are the last, crucial hole. They’re what produce the greatest results.  How we start each day, week, month and year is not nearly as important as how we finish.  Many start strong, but only the very best finish that way, too. 

How do YOU finish your day, week, month or year?  Let us know in the comments.   

Until next time, make it count.

Rich