You Can’t Begin until You End (2 Min Read) | Vol. 219

September 4, 2026

“It isn’t the changes that do you in, it’s the transitions.” — William Bridges

You Can’t Begin Until You End

This week on the podcast, I talked with Shannon Anderson-Finch, an executive coach who spends her days with people in the middle of big transitions. She reminded me of a truth I keep forgetting.

We’re taught that everything has a beginning, a middle, and an end. Transitions run the other way. They have an end, a middle, and a beginning.

In other words, you can’t begin until you end. 

Shannon’s building on the work of William Bridges, who studied this for decades. Bridges drew a line between change and transition. Change is external. It’s a new title or a new home. On the outside, those feel instantaneous. Congrats on the promotion! Can’t wait to see your new place! Transition is internal. It’s your identity catching up. And that can feel downright glacial. 

It starts with an ending. When we finally let go. 

We take the new role and keep the old habits. We start the business and still introduce ourselves by the job we left. As Shannon says, we hang onto the first trapeze bar with one hand while reaching for the second. 

Then comes the messy middle. The old is gone. The new isn’t real yet.

High performers hate this part. We plow through it. The plowing part is where we’re still clinging to the old identity. The exact thing we need to let go of.

In The ONE Thing, we wrote that a new answer usually requires new behavior, so don’t be surprised if you change along the way. 

You don’t grow into the new thing and then release the old one. You let go first. You’re uncomfortable for a while. Then you arrive.

Here’s a challenge straight from Shannon. It’s small and a little scary. Next time someone asks what you’re up to, name the thing you’re becoming. 

I’m a coach. I’m writing a book. I’m starting a company. Soften it with I’m in the process of if you need to.

Then check in with your body. Notice what happens.

Saying it is the doorway to believing it. Pair it with the smallest action you can take this week to back it up. Action becomes evidence. Evidence becomes belief.

Say it, then do one thing that makes it truer. 

One question to ponder in your thinking time: What are you still holding onto that you need to let go of to become the next version of you?

Make an Impact!
Jay Papasan
Author | CEO | Coach