Closing Your Loops

We all have those things with our businesses and in our lives that drive us nuts. You know, those things you wish would go away, you dread dealing with but ultimately need to do so.

I used to have this winter coat with a broken zipper handle on the side pocket. I would try to pull the zipper closed by grasping the mechanism itself and trying to keep everything aligned as I pulled. What should have taken a second took minutes. Arghhhh! So much frustration from something so seemingly insignificant. Then I got smart, or so I thought. I took a paper clip and fed it through the small hole where the zipper handle was meant to go (kind of like in this picture). It worked! Brilliant, except for the fact that I had a bright yellow paper clip hanging from my pocket. Now that’s high fashion. Unfortunately it did not work as well as I hoped and the frustration came back as high as ever.

 One day I was going to the coffee shop when I noticed a clothing alterations place next door. I walked in and showed them my pocket, explained my dilemma and asked what could be done. “No problem, we can fix it to look like brand new.” How much? “8 bucks.” That’s it!!! It was the middle of winter and -25 degrees. I took my coat off gave it to the person and left. 

Got the coat back the next day and it was like brand new. One small action to “close the loop” led to the dissolution of so much wasted time and negative energy. Once done an immediate sense of relief enveloped by body, my being. Why didn’t I do that long ago? Two and a half winters later, I closed this loop. 

As I embraced this philosophy I began to see all the open loops in my business and my life that were not aligned with my ideal life vision, my passions, my talents, and my goals. As I closed or altered these loops a big shift occurred. My energy began to rise. A renewed sense of focus and passion appeared. My productivity increased several fold.

Some loops just need closing, such as the coat pocket. Some are that simple while some are significantly bigger.

Some loops need reframing. In one of my businesses that meant redefining roles so that I could completely let go of roles, tasks, and responsibilities that were not the highest and best use of my time, skills, and energy. Oh that felt good to do so and meant redirected positive energy and focus to where it mattered most.

Some loops are in other areas of your life but when closed or effectively altered have a huge positive impact on your business.

They all have one key thing in common. Once closed or altered effectively the free up your energy and create time and space for you to focus on what matters most in your business and your life.

What loops do you need to close?

Cheers, 

Brent

“Remember, life is meant to be embraced, enjoyed, and fully lived, not merely endured!”