It is not how you start. It is how you finish.

I just came from my son's Boy Scout Court of Honor. The Scoutmaster told  the following story.

"While competing in the 1968 Olympic games in Mexico City, John Stephen Akhwari of Tanzania cramped up due to the high altitude of the city. At the 19 kilometer point during the 42 km race, there was jockeying for position between some runners and he was hit. He fell badly wounding his knee and dislocated that joint plus his shoulder hit hard against the pavement. He continued running, finishing last among the 57 competitors who completed the race (75 had started).  When Akhwari finished, there were only a few thousand people left in the stadium, and the sun had set. A television crew was sent out from the medal ceremony when word was received that there was one more runner about to finish. As he finally crossed the finish line a cheer came from the small crowd. When interviewed later and asked why he continued running, he said, "My country did not send me 5,000 miles to start the race; they sent me 5,000 miles to finish the race.""

In business and in life, it is not how you start it is how you finish. When it comes to the important things in your life, how are you finishing?