A Seinfeld episode
What's the deal with this loop?
I have some questions. Specifically about this loop that everyone needs to be kept in. Even more specifically, how big is it? And why does everyone need to be in it? And what happens if you’re not?
It’s the corporate equivalent of holding court in a high school gossip squad; a perch of prestige and power.
Loop politics takes up far too much of my time, probably yours, too. Between looping in this person, making sure such-and-such is in the loop, and asking if we’ve looped in the right people, I start to feel light-headed.
Loopy, even.
But it’s the business.
Emailing a client? “Can you loop me in? thanks!”
Discussing strategy? “Make sure you loop in Carol from accounting.”
Deciding whether you should have a third margarita or wait til your video calls are done at 4 pm? “Can you keep me in the loop on that one?”
Sure. Because heaven forbid a decision is made without the consensus of a dozen adults.
But doing the looping is not nearly as stressful as when you’re the one who’s left out of the loop. That’s corporate despair. At least, that’s what it made out to be.
And hey, I get it. I really do.
Getting left out of the loop delivers the same crippling blow to your ego as a whirling dervish does to your nether regions. Beyond the crushing pain of exclusion, there’s also the anxiety and deep sense of panic attributed to not knowing absolutely everything that’s happening at any given moment—a suit’s worst nightmare.
That’s why it’s paramount to get back in the loop at the earliest convenience. EOW at the latest. But that’s no waltz to the water cooler, either. If you’re out of the loop, the only way to get back in is to be looped in by someone who’s still in the loop. And even then you need to hope that those in the loop are not so swept up in the loop’s amenities—meandering email threads, pointless Zoom calls, group brainstorms with no agenda—that they actually remember to loop you in.
Then there’s all the talk about closing the loop, which is equally perplexing because we never speak the same way about opening it. The focus is always on closing it. Why? And how do you close a loop that’s never been opened? It reminds me of those existential questions about trees falling in the woods. Can you ever really close a loop that’s never been opened?
We do open dialogues, though. Those are fun. And suggesting an open dialogue, also known as a conversation, is a great way to get back in the loop. Especially after a long stint outside of the loop. You don’t even need to say anything, just sit there while the other 17 peacocks jostle for position. Before you know it, you’ll be CC’d on every email, added to every Slack channel, and seated proudly in your little box at the bottom right of every Zoom call, asking if the others can see your screen and joking about the time you started speaking with the mute button on again.
Speaking of which, I have to hop. I have another call. But it’s okay, I’ll keep you in the loop.
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*chef’s kiss*
Allan