How should you finish the year?

In my opinion, it should end with a story for the ages.

It should end with the immense satisfaction of someone who dug deep…who paid the price…who pushed themselves to the extreme limits of their potential and who EMERGED VICTORIOUS.

It should end with the score tied in the bottom of the ninth and you, the base runner representing the winning run tearing about third base and high tailing it for home.

It should end with a shot deep into right field…and the outfielder with a rifle for an arm who has just fielded the line drive that has sent you racing flat out.

The outfielder slings the ball like a bullet toward home plate, where the catcher is waiting, eye on the throw…and braced to receive the shock of your full force as you hurtle toward home.

It should end with the third base coach waving frantically for you to round the corner.

Go! Go!

It should end with every fan in the stadium on his or her feet.

With the kids going crazy.

In the broadcast booth, the play-by-play announcer is losing his mind…his voice is screaming with excitement.

The whole stadium is going insane.

Okay, maybe that’s not the way you’re seeing your year come to a finish. I get it.

But, I want to remind you that the year is coming to a close…and YOU my furry friend get to decide how it’s going to end.

And it should end with a great performance and on a very high note.

Pick your metaphor…ninth inning, final stretch, two-minute drill or the 20-second clock…they all represent the same thing…the end is near.

If you want your 4th quarter performance to have the fans (boss, family, friends and colleagues) screaming in their seats…then you have to play the 4th and final quarter for all it’s worth.

Pick any great closing performance in history, and what you’ll find is a rising crescendo, drawing upon every stitch of drama, conflict and opportunity that has been set up from the beginning and paying it all off in one thunderous, do-or-die climax.

This is the architectural shape not only of someone who finishes the year strong but of a story, a joke, a litigation, an election, and an act of love.

Finishing Strong and crushing your 4th quarter goals is not about nuance.

• It’s about speed and momentum.

• It’s about heart and hustle.

• It’s about grinding it out and getting sweaty, dirty and stinky.

• It’s an understanding that glory awaits you at the finish line.

I’ll leave you with a thought…a pretty good one I might add.

Choose to become the hero of your story.

View the 4th quarter like you would an action movie.

Create a plot dripping with excitement, boldness, courage, big thinking, overcoming adversity, relentless execution and epic accomplishments.

You have the power to change your life by changing your story…and you get to decide how the story, especially how the 4th quarter is going to end.

And it deserves to end with a spectacular finish.

I know you can finish strong. The real question is will you?

It would be my honor to show you how we help our clients finish the year strong!

Gary Ryan Blair is creator of the 100 Day Challenge…a radical approach to goal achievement that shows you how to 10X your goals by applying the strategies of growth hacking.

Join an enthusiastic community of 675,000+ aspiring people and get the training, support and accountability you need to turn your big goals and crazy dreams into breakthrough success.