In some ways, it might sound obvious to say that winning happens at the end because until something is finished the outcome could still be in doubt. Too many times I see people give up, take short cuts, give less than what it needs, or not respect the process before reaching the end and wonder why the outcome didn't match their desire.
The outcome at the end not only lets you know if you've won/reached your goal, but it can also show you where you failed in the journey. When we don't get the result we desired it's often because we failed a part of the journey. We may not be able to avoid all the failures, but we can stop the self-sabatoging behaviors.