Close ShopĀ 

aligned entrepreneurship Oct 22, 2024
A serene workspace with a laptop, coffee, and fresh flowers elegantly displayed on a white table.
If I don’t close shop, my work spills into every corner of my life. Tiny, consistent steps lead to desired outcomes. Just do the best you can and allow yourself to be human, full of grace.

 

Main Key Takeaways:

  • The Importance of a "Close Shop" Routine
  • Celebrate Small Wins
  • Prepare for Tomorrow

Last week I wrote about a starting ritual for work. But for me, a good day’s work begins the night before. By bookending my day with a formal starting ritual and then a formal closing routine, I can have a sense of satisfaction that I did work. My work, though never done, is done for the day and I’m free to relax. It’s like the school bell ringing and I can run out the door and go play. Not that my work isn’t oftentimes enjoyable, but if I don’t close shop, my work spills into every corner of my life.

I first learned about the details of closing shop from Darren Hardy. He’s great at creating systems for productivity and I’ve benefited from his work. This Close Shop ritual is one of my favorites. I’ve tailored it to suit my style and unique work life. As with all tools, it’s so important that we make it our own. It’s got to feel good and spark joy or we won’t stick to it.

At a brick-and-mortar store, there are concrete steps to close the business at the end of each day. The money in the till is counted, shelves are straightened, maybe a quick inventory and a checklist for what needs to be done or ordered the next day, and then the actual closing of the shop by turning the lights out, locking the door and flipping the sign from “Open” to “Closed.” Though my business is mainly done online, I have a similar close shop routine before I leave my office and head downstairs into the kitchen or to the sunroom to read. I’ll share my close shop process to inspire yours.

I’ve created a checklist for easy reference so this process is simple and systematized. I’m a checklist gal, fully addicted to the dopamine hit of making a left-handed checkmark in a tiny box. I even draw boxes on my handwritten to-do lists so I can check them off.

At the end of my work day, I open up the event on my calendar that repeats daily Monday through Thursday titled “Close Shop” and follow the checklist.

 

My close shop checklist includes:

  • Put on Get it Done Playlist
  • Clear out email inbox (as much as possible from today) - respond, delete, snooze, file
  • Clear out other communication - Messenger, Text, VM
  • Review essential actions - check off DONE - celebrate wins. Quick DONE journal to summarize
  • Checklist for next day - Top 3 To Dos and WHY - check calendar - confirm appts, etc
  • Set up any projects
  • Close tabs
  • Clear off desk
  • Happy Dance!
  • Text Sarah - DONE 
  • Warm lemon water in upstairs bathroom
  • Fill diffusers
  • Pick out clothes for tomorrow

I begin by turning on upbeat music. It could be some old, easy funk like “The Sweetest Meditation” by Lord Echo, or something goofy like “Can’t Stop The Feeling” from The Trolls soundtrack. I know you won’t judge. I created a playlist so I don’t fall down the rabbit hole of music selection.

I used to have “clean out and respond to emails” on the list but that consistently left me in the swamps. I didn’t get to the other tasks and ended up feeling overwhelmed and out of focus. So I got rid of it. Now it’s just the best I can do. This is the reality. This way, I can experience success in completing this close shop ritual and end my day - even if it’s only been two hours of work - with a sense of satisfaction.

I also need to remind myself to sweep communication channels. So many! I tend to glance at a text and then not respond and forget which channel it came in from and end up not responding for days. I want to do better. So a quick sweep at the end of the day usually takes care of that.

There are specific actions that when taken on a regular basis, support a sustainable business. I’m clear about what they are and I check in with myself each day to see that I’m doing what I say I want to do for myself. This is at the heart of the coaching I do.

 

"Tiny, consistent steps lead to desired outcomes."

 

There are two key components here. One is to give energy to the win. Checking it off and letting myself feel it will make it easier for me to do it again the next day. The brain is wired to find berries. You find a berry and the brain says, “Yeasss!” and gives you the energy to go find berries again. Work tasks function the same way in the brain. The second component is to write out what I’ve done AND how I feel about it. This naturally lends itself to an essential action list for the next day. Top 3 things and why they’re important. Not 10, not 35. Just 3 things. If I can do more, they’re extra credit.

If I’m going to be working on a project the next day, I’ll open up the folder, open the document, and maybe even write a sentence. I’m often amazed at how incredibly lost I can get on the way to opening a document on my computer. So many flashing lights and squirrels in that digital world. If the project I want to work on is the first thing I see when I open my computer the next day, it’s much easier to jump in and get started.

This is why I close tabs as part of my close shop ritual. Do you, like me, find yourself with 30+ open tabs? This was how I reminded myself of resources and unfinished research. Now, I use bookmarks. I close apps too. This is the part where I clean up my digital desktop.

Then, I clear off my physical desktop. It may simply be closing my laptop and putting it away, or it may be stacking papers I’ve been using and putting them back into a folder, or into my desk drawer.

It’s typical for an HSP brain to be strongly affected by the environment. My chances of following through on my commitments to myself skyrocket when I walk into a clean and organized workspace. Spending 10 to 15 minutes going through this close shop ritual can save me hours of distracted monkey-mind madness the next day.

Then, I give my brain some more berries and evoke the power of accountability by texting Sarah, “DONE.” We’ve been accountability partners every Friday morning for many years. We met in a Darren Hardy program so she knows the system too.

When I’m really on the ball, I’ll also clean and refill my diffuser, pick out clothes to wear and set out warm water to drink when I get up.

To be honest, I’m lucky if I get this entire list done once or twice a week. I count this as a win. Doing even bits and pieces of it helps the next day run more smoothly. Which increases the chances I’ll get it done the next day and then…the weekend. I fall off the routine and it can take a couple of days to get back on to it. But I’m not a machine. I have seasons and moods and it’s okay if it ebbs and flows. There’s a big myth out there in the productivity world that if you just master the right system, you’ll get it all done. I call B.S.

 

"Just do the best you can and allow yourself to be human, full of grace."

 

A good time to revise routine (or get back to it) is at the end of each week, during the new moon and at each seasonal change.

Some people thrive in high structure, while others do well with spontaneity and fluctuating routines. I’ve been working for myself from my own home office for 30 years and these starting and ending rituals are constantly being renewed and revised, just like the renewal found in nature.

We’re all in this together. I’d love to read how you wrap up your day in the comments below.

Highly sensitive person (HSP) is a personality trait that 20% of the world's population has. Do you? Take this quiz to find out.

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