Endings That Stick: Why Finishing Strong Changes Everything

“Many will start fast; few will finish strong.” – Gary Ryan Blair 

That’s the truth. Starting something is easy. There’s excitement in the beginning, momentum to get you moving. But finishing? Finishing strong—that takes something deeper. It takes resilience, focus, and heart to see something through to the end and still give it your all, nomatter what. It’s rare. And it’s what separates the great from the rest. As Rickey Minor once said, “There is no traffic on the extra mile.” In music, this lesson is built into the craft. A show doesn’t end with a throwaway song or a half- hearted effort. It ends with the encore—the high note that sends people home buzzing. The last impression is everything—it’s the moment that sticks, the part that defines how people feel about the whole experience.

The Lesson That Stuck

This idea really took hold for me years ago during a side job at the Beverly Hilton. Like most musicians, I had to hustle to make ends meet, and this gig in the audio-visual department was a way to pay the bills while I chased my dreams. My boss, Mark, wasn’t a loud or flashy guy—just steady and calm, the type of leader who kept things running smoothly, even under pressure. “Even if you mess up along the way,” he told me once, “you finish strong. That’s what they’ll remember.” He was right. Those events weren’t perfect. Things went wrong all the time—equipment failed, schedules slipped—but none of that mattered if the ending delivered. The last impression is what stuck.Now, here’s the thing: finishing strong isn’t a free pass to blow everything else. Mark’s point wasn’t that you can fix a bad job with one big final effort and expect everything to be fine. But what a strong finish does show is care. People see when you care about what you’re doing— when you push through and give it your best, even when things don’t go perfectly. That effort matters, and it leaves an impression.

What It Means to Finish Strong 

When I’m performing, it’s not just about me. The audience sees everything—they feel my energy, the band’s energy, the whole vibe we’re creating. Their experience depends on my ability to stay present and deliver, no matter how tired I am. If I fall apart, they feel it. If I let up, it shows. That awareness forces me to rise to the challenge, to push through, and to finish strong. But finishing strong isn’t just about stamina. It’s about focus. There are days when nothing seems to go right—the sound system’s acting up, the energy in the room is off, or everything just feels like an uphill battle. Those are the moments that test you. They challenge your flow and force you to make a decision: will you let the chaos get to you, or will you stay locked in and see it through?

The Power of Resilience

That’s where finishing strong becomes more than a practice—it becomes a mindset. It’s the ability to keep your head in the game, no matter what’s going wrong. To push through, not just for the result, but for the pride of knowing you gave everything you had. And here’s what I’ve learned along the way: people respect heart. They respect grit. Even when things don’t go perfectly, they notice when you give your all. It’s like those Super Bowl moments where a team, down to their last ounce of energy, refuses to quit. Whether they win or lose, they earn respect because they left it all on the field. That’s what finishing strong is about. It’s not about being flawless—it’s about having heart. It’s about resilience, focus, and care. It’s about pushing through when it’s hard, when you’re tired, when the odds feel stacked against you. Because in the end, the last impression you leave becomes the story they tell about you. It’s proof of who you are—not just to others, but to yourself. I hope Mark’s simple advice sticks with you the way it stuck with me. It’s just a small reminder of a fundamental concept—but it’s one that can set any performance, task, or goal apart. And if you practice it, you’ll find it doesn’t just change the way you finish. It changes the way you live.

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