Do You Always Have To Finish What You Started?

[MysterionMuffles]

This is something I've been wondering about lately; do you always have to finish what you started?

 

I have an over abundance of new games I bought off Steam during a huge summer sale last month, along with a few books I bought months ago, but still haven't gotten around reading.

 

A part of me often feels guilty for wanting to move on to a new game or book when I'm not done one before moving on to the next. Like I won't get closure on a story, or certain information educational books can offer--but lately I've been taking the attitude of "I got the value I needed for the amount I paid, and even if I didn't complete it, it's okay to move on to something else. Nothing bad will happen. I'll just miss out on the rest, and that's okay since I lost interest."

 

After my huge purchasing binge and sampling a few at a time, there's probably only 2 out of 20 that I've beaten the past month and I wonder if at this rate it was worth buying so many.

 

Same thing with books, the synopsies and first pages I sampled of the ones I bought were great when I decided to buy them, but I also wonder if I could ever pick them up and find the same interest in them--and enough interest to complete reading or at least get far into.

 

I wonder to what degree that attitude is healthy. I think, yes, you should be free to do as you please without having to force yourself, but at the same time, it's like if you never commit to anything to completion, what's the point? Isn't that kind of lazy? 

 

On top of that, I finally finished writing the 2nd draft of my novel, and that felt rivetting. To commit myself 75 days straight into completing it. With that amount of drive and committment, I feel a lot less inclined to HAVE TO complete things of lesser importance such as video games or fiction novels.

 

What are your thoughts?

[shirgall]

I used to be a "completionist" gamer, but I eventually came to the realization that I bought the game to entertain myself, not to give myself work. Maybe, sometimes, it was "something to do" but as Stef says when you are doing one thing, you aren't doing other things...

 

Reading all the books in a series used to be a pastime, but I discovered how to put down a series of books, even if I bought them, when I ceased enjoying them. The Chronicles of Thomas Covenant comes to mind... how many ways can you say "argent"?

[Eternal Growth]

So long as you got what you wanted out of the activity (the amount that you did do) and opportunity cost begins to tip in favour of another activity you want to be doing, I don't think it is automatically necessary to fi

[NotDarkYet]

Knowing when to quit is so important:

 

For example:  

 

I started learning Chinese in Shanghai.  Then I quit.

 

It would have taken 2-4 years to get fluent.

 

Instead, during that time I wrote songs and recorded albums.

 

Now, I have a whole life that revolves around my music and playing shows/parties.

 

If I had stuck with Chinese, I'd have a stupid party trick.

[WasatchMan]

You could consider this a "sunk cost fallacy". 

 

You don't have to do anything - what you shouldn't do is nag yourself about this type of stuff because that just pulls at your self esteem.  Figure out why you wanted to do these things - and why you now don't want to, and if you are fine with not doing them, don't.

 

One thing successful investors tell themselves when they make a bad investment is that "its all new money now".  Meaning that the money is already gone, so there is nothing you can do about that, all you can do is make the most out of what you do now have.

[TheRobin]

In addition to what everyone else already said: It might also be that you made some bad judgements about how much money to spend on certain things. If that happens on a more or less regular basis it could be worth to just keep that in mind before the next purchase and then just wait a few days, to see if you still feel the buy is worth it.

I started doing that for certain things and it definitely safe me some money, cause some times I would just see some new game and feel like I could really get into it, but then would just drop it after a day or two, but usually when I wait a day or two (while maybe watch one or two reviews or gameplay videos during that time) I get quite a good grasp if it's something that's worth my time and money or not.

[MysterionMuffles]

Thank you EVERYBODY for your contributions. Allow me to respond to each of you individually

 

I used to be a "completionist" gamer, but I eventually came to the realization that I bought the game to entertain myself, not to give myself work. 

 

Yes, yes, when I notice myself having to refer to guides or relying to hint systems in say a point and click game--I recognize and respect my irritation. Granted, there are times where I'm still having fun with the game, but am stumped, I will look up the answers whether online or through the in game hint system (which I spammed in Randal's Monday). But when I recogize I'm just resenting the game and feeling hopeless about it, I know when to quit. When it feels like I'm giving myself another chore, that's when I usually drop the game for a few days if not indefinitely.

 

 

So long as you got what you wanted out of the activity (the amount that you did do) and opportunity cost begins to tip in favour of another activity you want to be doing, I don't think it is automatically necessary to fi

 

LOL nice finish there. Yeah, I often find myself thinking, "well it was fun while it lasted, but I really don't FEEL like playing/reading this anymore." A part of me still nags at me for not finishing them, but if it was a really good game or book that I just spent too much time away from, I respect that a part of me will feel naturally drawn to go back to it.

 

 

Knowing when to quit is so important:

 

For example:  

 

I started learning Chinese in Shanghai.  Then I quit.

 

It would have taken 2-4 years to get fluent.

 

Instead, during that time I wrote songs and recorded albums.

 

Now, I have a whole life that revolves around my music and playing shows/parties.

 

If I had stuck with Chinese, I'd have a stupid party trick.

 

Right! There was a time in my 75 days of writing where I got bored or frustrated with some games and realized that time I spent stressing was costing me time where I could have been writing. So I wrote instead. As linked in my OP, I managed to finish the 2nd draft of my novel because I knew when it was time to quit at certain games from either boredom, frustration, or my favourte; being immensely compelled by a story progression that it would be better if i wait til next time to play knowing that I'll be excited to.

 

 

You don't have to do anything - what you shouldn't do is nag yourself about this type of stuff because that just pulls at your self esteem.  Figure out why you wanted to do these things - and why you now don't want to, and if you are fine with not doing them, don't.

 

I'm struggling with that when it comes to this point and click adventure Broken Age. It's separated into two acts and the first one had reasonably challenging puzzles. They were logical and you could figure them out if you put enough thought in them. I maybe looked up for two or three solutions for other ones, and even then I felt like if I spent more time thinking instead of conceding, I would've figured them out. However, Act II apparently takes a 180 in terms of the storyline's power and the difficulty of puzzles get ramped up. I saw nothing but negative reviews for it on Steam, everyone saying how much they loved the first act and how the second one ruined it with weak writing and tedious and cryptic puzzles.

 

That made me feel weary, but not even knowing that I GOT Act II automatically as part of a game update, I played far into it not knowing it WAS Act II. For the most part I think the writing is still as good as ever, I figured out even more puzzles myself this time around, thus contradicting what people said in reviews. BUT...then I reached one that everyone has struggled with and so have I. Even looking up guides I still don't understand it.

 

A part of me wants to love this game to death and prove the Act II haters wrong, but it IS incredibly difficult further down the line.

 

I'll get back to you on that conundrum. Despite of establishing my earlier statements, I still don't know if I wanna plough through this game or give up on it as well. I'm too curious about how it will all end because despite of reviews, I still think the writing is as good as ever.

 

 

In addition to what everyone else already said: It might also be that you made some bad judgements about how much money to spend on certain things. If that happens on a more or less regular basis it could be worth to just keep that in mind before the next purchase and then just wait a few days, to see if you still feel the buy is worth it.

I started doing that for certain things and it definitely safe me some money, cause some times I would just see some new game and feel like I could really get into it, but then would just drop it after a day or two, but usually when I wait a day or two (while maybe watch one or two reviews or gameplay videos during that time) I get quite a good grasp if it's something that's worth my time and money or not.

 

Yeah that's a good idea. There were many games I got during the sale that were thankfully really cheap, but I do not see myself committing to if I came back to them. From now on, I will consider people's reviews based on the hours they've clocked into it, and then watching gameplay videos to see if it's the kind of game I could be playing consistently. After the amount I spent, I feel like I could've saved 1/4 of what I spent had I not a bunch of small cheap games that I won't like vs some of the higher priced games (but thankfully discounted) that I'm still enjoying to this day. Yes, even the one I suggested that you didn't happen to like Hyperdimension has been the #1 game I will always fall back to among all the other ones I grabbed during that sale XD I don't even know why, especially since its art style embarasses me. That battle system I guess is too boss!