Sometimes you start a project of some kind and you don’t complete it. It happens. Do you remember “Reduce, Reuse, Recycle?” Let’s make a slogan for your old projects: “Revisit, Reclaim, Remember.”
Revisit: You can always come back to a project later! Just because it’s been a few days – or a few years – doesn’t mean the project can’t be picked up again. It’s right where you left it. Coming back to an old project can revitalize your creativity, even if you use that creativity differently now.
Reclaim: The bits and pieces of that project might become fodder for a new one. Started writing a book but never finished? Maybe the main character finds her way into the screenplay you’re working on. Our creativity is modular; use it where it needs to go.
Remember: You don’t owe anything to your past self. If you want to just remember – fondly! – the efforts of the past and the enjoyment spent on them, that’s fine. You don’t have to have finished something to have enjoyed it and gained something from it.
Don’t let the past weigh you down. If an old, lingering project feels like it’s tugging on you, figure out which of these three it’s asking you to do. Then do it – and be done!
The Opportunity Machine 