Any 'starter planners' around as opposed to 'completer finishers'? What job do you do?

[Hollyhead]

Just thought I'd seek like minded people as I feel so lonely because I don't know anyone else like me in real life! I have come to realise that I am the opposite of a completer finisher, I am highly energised at the start of something, love solving problems and planning how it's all going to be done. In any task I lose energy about 50-60% of the way through. I have it with things like sudoku too - once I've done the heavy lifting of solving the puzzle enough so the rest of it's obvious I just lose interest! Are you like me? What job do you do? I think my working life is so draining of me because my job involves seeing everything through until the end - I obviously do it, because it's my job. Looking back I think a career in something like A&E medicine or nursing would have suited me really well - deal with immediate priorities and then people move on 😂

Yep that’s me. I work in corporate communications in big pharma, I’m basically an all rounder and get parachuted in to various projects when they’re going wrong.
i also do a lot of org design and operating model stuff. I never work in the design or run the model but I’m really good at designing and then handing over to someone else. And the pay is amazing.

Me. I work in consultancy and tell companies what's wrong and what to do to fix it, then leave them to it.

Never heard of a "starter planner" (too old for that bollocks), but it describes me perfectly. It's one reason I don't have a job - I know I am only interested in the bit at the beginning, and cba to complete anything. I was a journalist until I had children, and that suited me as it had deadlines.

I'm not sure what I'd gain from either self-diagnosing with ADHD or being diagnosed with it, as I've been myself for over 50 years and am still here. I fit the 'profile', but I'm still not sure where a label would get me, because I'm still me, and I'm still incapable of doing some pretty basic things and very good at spending time on things that are utterly unnecessary (my current area of interest is fire grates).

Yes me! I work in policy and my job is to have the big ideas and get stuff off the ground, then oversee it while other people see it through/ do the research/ write reports etc

Oh but I don't have adhd. It might be a key trait but doesn't mean there's complete overlap!

Yep I'm a starter planner too. I see it in myself though, and have actively taken on projects at work which require me to lush against that.

I have a specific project I do which takes 4m every year. Totally against my normal "do a rotation of 100 short tasks every week and repeat".

It's really really challenging. And I'm going to build on it by doing some Project Management courses which stretch me to try and learn how to see stuff through to the end.

I don't finish Patience when I've turned most of the cards over. I "plan" all the wonderful dishes I'm going to prep for Christmas and never make them etc.

I'm a starter planner and I'm in Comms. I figure out how best to spend a budget to promote something, decide on the design concept and key messages and copy, then brief it into others to actually do the work. I'm 6 evaluations behind because I'd much rather get stuck in the next one than review the last one.

I am a medic, then moved into strategy. I still see patients 1-2 days a week, but much prefer the other stuff.

Just saw someone mention planning their bathroom up thread.

My kitchen - I spend ages on Pinterest pinning shit. Daydream in the shower about it.

But when it comes to the visiting showrooms and deciding and thinking of dates, it's all just so fucking boring and not what I want to get 10k debt for. Like, the kitchen functions. Who cares if it was fitted in 1996? It does what a kitchen needs to do.

But equally, I hate my kitchen, let's browse Pinterest......

This is me. And I suspect I also have ADHD. I'm a Project Manager which does also require completing things. But I'll die on the hill that says you can achieve anything with a solid plan with risks identified and mitigated. And I love creating those plans! I do it in my personal life too. As soon as I get an idea or inkling for something I go all out creating a plan.

I work in management consulting in Financial Services and I'm surrounded by starter planners (of which I'm also one). Oooh how we love something new and shiny!! 😂And we're all terrible at being completer finishers. It's quite amusing (well, until you're the one who gets lumbered with the completion while everyone else is off chasing new shiny things).

We did a volunteering day recently where we all went and did (bad) gardening at an inner city playground run by a charity. It was hilarious. No-one was capable of knuckling down for longer than 15 mins and people just kept drifting off to start something new as they got bored with the original area we were supposed to be sorting out. I have (formally diagnosed) ADHD and even I was "guys! can we just finish this one flower bed first please?!!!" It was a very revealing day. 😂

I’m the same and do similar work to @PiggieWig. Love the dopamine of solving issues / getting started. All of the newness. I get bored VERY easily. Love to focus with no interruptions on discrete tasks. Also AuDHD.

@atthecoreofallyoudo not sure it’s an official label - I just made it up!

I'm a scientist. I was nearly unemployable until I worked out that buddying up with a completer and a project manager wasn't cheating or failing! As a team we're unstoppable

Me 🙋🏼‍♀️I love a plan, I have great ideas, I cannot finish them (I usually have too many). I’m best when I’ve got great teams to deliver but the last couple of jobs my teams have all been like herding cats / performance issues. ADHD traits strong in my family generally.

Starter Planner with Completer Finisher tendencies....

Can definitely confirm which is the harder bit! 😄

I am like this. Love analysis and planning, find having to do the stuff excruciating. I have a niche policy job that basically means I can do the start and then let others take over. Also fairly short deadlines which keep me motivated. I have developed strategies to help me get through the boring stuff in my personal life: mostly it involves avoiding only doing one thing at a time. Keep your interest by listening to music or podcasts, rapidly switching between tasks etc.