The Power of Letting Go: Thoughts From Red Sunflower Farm

Curious Questions from Observing the Everyday     

My brave and infinitely curious granddaughter recently spent an afternoon at the farm exploring slugs, frogs, and other small creatures.  

Those who have the pleasure of spending time with small children will often attain a wealth of trivia about the world around them. For example, here are some “fun facts” about slugs:  

• 95% of slugs live underground.  

• Slugs can bite. And many have upwards of 27,000 teeth.  

• Most slug species are nocturnal.  

• The black sea hare slug can weigh as much as 30 pounds.  

But one fact really stood out to me:  

Some slugs lose their tails when escaping predators as a form of self-defense.  

 Pretty neat, huh?  

 The fact reminded me of an article I recently wrote about how businesses should prepare for economic seasons of contraction. Isn’t it marvelous how Mother Nature makes her way into so many of our lived experiences?  

 Many of the strategies I discuss in the article center around the idea of letting go: letting go of inefficient systems and processes, letting go of unnecessary spending, and even letting go of staff or clients. It’s not always easy, but sometimes — as is the case for the slug — it comes down to survival.  

 Letting go shouldn’t be underestimated. If inflation and murmurs of a recession are causing you duress, step back and take some time to analyze your systems and processes. What’s working? What should be cut completely? What can be put on hold? What can you automate? Where are your processes overly complex? Are certain clients or types of projects no longer profitable?  

 Explore these opportunities and develop a plan. That way, should you need to go into survival mode, you’re prepared.  

I’ll leave you with these curious questions: 

 Is my business currently functioning at optimum efficiency? 

Are there things I’m carrying that I don’t need? 

How can I lighten my load? 

Where should I scale back (or reorganize) to improve my systems and processes without sacrificing what makes my business uniquely valuable?