are you closing your loops?
Lately, I've been more mentally fatigued than usual. I wondered if I was stretching myself thin with my current workload (job applications, side hustles, habits), but I learned how the source of my drain was a low-grade background noise in my head. I was overwhelmed with mental clutter of unfinished business I'd been putting off for too long.
Recently, I came across the concept of "closing your loops."1 Briefly, you may be struggling with your present tasks because you're subconsciously fixating on unresolved tasks. Every avoided decision, unanswered message, and half-finished errand is considered an open loop that's nagging at you, often without your full awareness.2 Analogically, it's akin to having 50 miscellaneous browser tabs you forgot to close, except they're buzzing haywire in your brain.
This kind of subconscious, low-level anxiety can drain your battery faster than a physical task might. Even as I write this, my mind is nudging me Remember that text you never replied to three weeks ago? You have five emails to tend to! Till when will you avoid making that decision? I was waking up foggy and going to bed agitated, unable to understand why, until I understood just how many unattended loops I've left open.
For April, I did a full brain dump, listing every single task, obligation, and nagging decision I'd been avoiding for months. I've broken the Big, Scary, Emotionally Draining Tasks into small, manageable steps so I feel less overwhelmed. My goal is alleviating the mental clutter before May.
Identify what's running in your own background and close your loops!
Check the Zeigarnik Effect. Did you know our brains retain uncompleted tasks better than completed ones?↩