From Half-Finished Projects to Sustainable Success: The Entrepreneur’s Guide to Finishing What You Start

How to Stay Focused, Follow Through, and Finish Strong—Without Killing Your Creative Spark

Our real superpower? Learning to finish what we start, to execute consistently, and to build the structures that let us do just that—on our terms.

If you’ve ever found yourself surrounded by half-finished projects and a kaleidoscope of “next big ideas” whispering for your attention, you’re not alone.  As a matter of fact, it is one of the most common features I see among the entrepreneurs with ADHD that I coach. 

Picture this.  You’re in your office, eyes darting between twenty-seven open browser tabs, minimum. There’s a whiteboard crowded with four separate business ideas—and your poor laptop, trailing reminders for a webinar series you totally forgot about. Meanwhile, your actual bread-and-butter offer? It’s gathering digital dust in a folder called “Q1 Priority.” Sound familiar? That, my friend, is Shiny Object Syndrome, entrepreneur version, and it’s a silent saboteur for so many of us.

Shiny Object Syndrome isn’t just some quirky personality trait or a harmless attraction to novelty. For entrepreneurs, especially those of us with ADHD or ADHD-ish tendencies, this pattern quietly derails our hard work and our profitability. Our brains are chronically underfed in the dopamine department, which is the neurotransmitter that keeps us feeling motivated and engaged. While plenty of people can push through with a simple to-do list or sheer willpower, our brains crave the thrill of the new, the challenging, the urgent, and—above all—the passionate. Each time a new project or tool or marketing idea pops into our view, bam, there’s a dopamine rush. But when the shine fades and what’s left is the slow grind of implementation, the excitement dries up and our attention drifts elsewhere. I’ve been there too many times to count.

When I first started this business, I had a solid, well-loved coaching offer that clients raved about. It was working—actually working: consistent sales, glowing testimonials, clear proof of value. But within a few months, I had already mapped out plans for a group program, two online courses, a membership site, and, as if that wasn’t enough, was looking at yet another certification when I am already an expert in what I do. 

Meanwhile, the original offer, the one people actually wanted, quietly slipped out of view. My revenue, not surprisingly, hit a plateau. This pattern isn’t unique to me; I see it in so many entrepreneurs I coach. We’re visionaries, brimming with ideas and creativity, but the real challenge isn’t starting—it’s sticking with it when things get repetitive or, let’s be real, boring. You’ve heard me say it before - folks with ADHD treat boredom like a life-threatening condition. No wonder we are so susceptible to going off track. 

This shiny object stuff plays out in all sorts of sneaky ways—the endless launching of half-baked offers, jumping between marketing platforms (LinkedIn this week, Instagram the next, maybe Pinterest after that), and that irresistible urge to overhaul your tech stack whenever things get just a little too “comfortable.”  We are fantastic at starting things; finishing them is often a different story. But shame or self-criticism gets us nowhere. If anything, radical self-acceptance is key: there’s nothing “wrong” with us—this is simply how we’re wired. The question is, how do we work with our brains instead of turning every Monday into a fresh chase after shiny new distractions?

Let’s talk solutions, because I’m all about practical steps that actually work for brains like ours. The first thing I did was embrace what I call “dopamine scheduling.” No more expecting myself to trudge endlessly through a dull project without reward. I started breaking down every big project into micro-milestones—smaller than you’d think reasonable—and attaching a meaningful reward to each one. Finish a sales page? That gets me a fifteen-minute dance party. Hit an email streak? I treat myself to lunch out with a friend. Set and meet a revenue goal? That new tech gadget I’ve been obsessing over is as good as mine. This isn’t just self-indulgence; it’s about training my brain to stay on task with the dopamine hits I need, not despite needing them.

Another strategy that changed everything for me is what I jokingly call turning the “messy middle” into the “sexy middle.” Every offer, every launch, every plan has that exhilarating start and, hopefully, a satisfying finish. But the middle? It’s usually where things lose their charm. Instead of dreading this phase, I ask myself: how do I bring an element of surprise, innovation, or delight back into what I’m working on? Maybe I challenge myself to write the most engaging newsletter I can instead of “just getting it out.” Maybe I ask, “What’s one small tweak I could make to delight my clients this month?” That fresh twist gives me energy and helps me stick with what matters, rather than abandoning it for the next bright and shiny object.

The hardest, but most necessary, shift was building in accountability structures. If intrinsic motivation alone worked for me, I’d be a millionaire by now. Instead, I started making public commitments—announcing launch dates to my audience before I was ready. Or partnering up for weekly check-ins with a fellow entrepreneur equally committed to her goals. There’s something about knowing others are watching, or that I’d have to sit in silence during a group update if I didn’t honor my commitment, that makes pull-through way more likely. For me, public accountability is powerful. For you, it might be something private, like a reward system or even a financial penalty (I know people who donate to a cause they despise when they miss a deadline; desperate times!).

I even developed a ritual I call the “project pre-mortem.” Before leaping into a brand new offering or marketing channel, I imagine it’s six months later and the project fizzled. What went wrong? Where did I predictably lose interest or hit a wall? By anticipating those drop-off points, I can plan support systems or built-in innovations ahead of time, so I have a fighting chance of making it through the slow patch.

And here’s what may be the most important lesson I’ve learned—and what I now teach every female entrepreneur in our ADHD-ish community: you don’t have to suppress your appetite for new ideas. In fact, you probably can’t. Instead, satisfy your craving for novelty in controlled doses. For me, this meant creating a “shiny object fund”—a set block of time and a percentage of profits devoted just to exploring new ideas. I capture every brilliant new spark in an “idea parking lot,” and only revisit them once a month (or longer, if I have the discipline). This keeps me from dropping everything for the newest idea but doesn’t deny my creativity the space it needs to breathe.

The wild creativity and out-of-the-box thinking that comes with an ADHD-ish brain is an incredible asset in entrepreneurship, especially in a world that rewards innovation. But our real superpower? Learning to finish what we start, to execute consistently, and to build the structures that let us do just that—on our terms. If you recognize yourself in these words, start by picking just one change from everything I’ve shared. Maybe it’s dopamine scheduling. Maybe it’s setting up your own shiny object fund. Maybe it’s simply being kinder to yourself when your mind inevitably wanders. Consistency compounds, and even a small shift can profoundly reshape your business—and your confidence.

Want a quick guide to these strategies?  To make it extra easy to go from innovation to implementation, I created a free companion handout with all the go-to strategies mentioned in this episode. Grab your copy right here.

If you'd like to hear the full episode on the ADHD-ish Podcast, you can do that here.