It’s Time to Clean Out the Closet of Your Business!

I love spring cleaning! 

I enjoy taking everything out of my closets and sorting things to store for winter, things to get rid of. 

I especially enjoy finding hidden treasures. Items that I haven’t seen in ages, that got pushed to the back of the closet or remained hidden behind my favorite boots. 

Many years ago, I found this exact same spring cleaning habit was just as useful and fun for my business as cleaning out the closets in my home. 

I write about it in my book, Evolve Your Coaching Business, and how this one habit led to a great big success for me, growing my business in ways I never would have imagined. 

Click here to get the free PDF and find the story on page 214. I also read the story on my podcast this week! Click here to listen or watch on YouTube. 

In today’s message, I am looking at this habit in a new way. The magic I have discovered in the decade or so since I first started happens when I am at a place where I don’t know what to do next. 

Usually, the inclination at this point is to create an action plan to get me moving. I am tempted to come up with activities that seem like they will move me forward and make something happen. 

I am so uncomfortable in that in-between place! Have you ever had that experience? 

This, I have found, is the exact wrong thing to do. Instead, it signals to me that it is time to clean out the closet of my business. 

Here is one way to go about doing that. 

1. Set aside a whole day or even two where you can focus on this as a project. 
   
   
2. Have index cards or another way to write things down, and be able to see them and move them around. Write things on them to find an order. Then start by sorting just as you would a real closet. Look at the cards that have the elements of your business, such as Marketing, Sales, Admin, Social Media, Consultations, Software, Website, and Support. 
   
   
3. Choose the areas where things are going well. This is where cards are helpful. You can break down a category like Marketing and find just one or two things going well even if the rest feels like crap. Pull out ALL the things going well, no matter how small. Include the way you think or feel, as well as results and outcomes. 
   
   
4. Make categories for the rest. Such as not working, hate doing it, procrastinating, and in progress. Just sort away without caring about getting it right.

You are simply looking for information as to what in your closet is working that you could do more of, what is not working, and what you want to simply dump, like that awful orange sweater you got for Christmas. 

There are the in-between things. Like the pants you like but haven’t worn in a while. Maybe you have put on weight over the winter, or maybe you just need to find a nice shirt that matches.

In your business closet, there will be those in-between things that you can spend time considering what you want to do with them. 

I have given you some steps and ideas here, but this is an organic process at its best and most effective. Allow yourself to follow the threads of information and inspiration. 

What sparks Joy?

At the end of the sorting, it’s time to put everything away. This is where you will want to take time to identify what you are keeping and the action steps. What are you letting go of? Then, really do it. What is in process, and where do you put that in your schedule to loop back to? 

I encourage you to clean out the closet of your business this spring! 

I would love to know how it goes. If you need any guidance, feel free to reach out with questions. I always enjoy hearing from you!