I don’t know about all of you but I am notorious for not finishing what I start. It’s not that I’m lazy or don’t like working because I am a workaholic. I usually have more things on my plate than any one person can handle. So starting a new project isn’t the problem but following it through to completion is.

Since I am mostly self-employed (I teach a few days at Musicians Institute) I am responsible for finding my own work. I don’t have a team of marketing and sales people to work for me so I always have several different projects going at the same time. Some of those projects come together quickly some take a bit more time and then some, and usually the really good ones, take a long, long time to get up and running. And this is why it’s challenging, at least for me, to finish what I have started.

Example: I’m in the middle of a big project that I really think is going to pan out. It takes way more time to get off the ground than I anticipated. It’s a great idea so I stick it out for a bit but as time goes on I start to see it as a “lot of work” instead of still seeing it as the good project that it is. Now I start to second guess myself. I start to think that I’m wasting my time. I get discouraged so I start to lose interest. Then I start fishing around for something else to work on, something that will be easier, something that I will be able to do. I’ve seen this happen a lot with musicians.

Now let’s say that this happens 5 or 6 times in a year. Now I’ve spent countless weeks and months with nothing to show for it except for a handful of unfinished projects. Maybe it’s making a record, shooting a video, writing a book or maybe it’s that long over due landscaping job in your yard. I don’t have a yard so I don’t have to worry about that but I do have several unfinished books and a couple of records that are unfinished. Why? Sometimes I get so caught up in the day to day rat race that I lose site of the bigger picture.

That’s why tonight I am very happy that the EGH “Live at Musicians Institute” video is finally and absolutely DONE! I know we announced that we are releasing it on July 1 but there were times, more than a few, that I didn’t think it would ever get done. I can’t begin to explain how good it feels to have that project in the bag! Now I can’t wait for all of you to see it.

Don’t get so caught up in the day to day rat race that you lose site of the bigger picture. Be determined to finish whatever you start. It’s a great feeling!

The Basher