Standard and Technical Finish do massive damage, that's one mistake people make, they treat it just as a buff, but it contributes strongly towards your personal DPS too. So always worth making sure you are in range of the enemy you are attacking and not to use it when there is no enemy to target.

As for the AoEs, this is one place where DNC can be rthymic, I usually en avant to jump in to do my 2 AoEs and jump out. The damage from the AoE is strong enough to be worth while on single target when you Flourish.

And to add on this, during the flourish phase it can be better to use the phase to build your fan dances instead of using them as soon as you get them.