Do You Suffer from the Open-Door Syndrome?

Choosing to open or close the door when opportunity knocks, will determine the course of your life. The clearer your vision, the easier the choice.   

Written by Angel Carlton

Imagine a path without borders…it would be difficult to determine where the path lies, which direction you were heading and unidentified guidelines would certainly make reaching the destination a bit more challenging. The same goes for traveling the path of life. Setting solid boundaries is one of the most powerful behaviors those seeking a greater purpose, can embrace.

When we fail to set boundaries for ourselves, we end up with a case of what I call, the Open-Door Syndrome. When you’re not guarding the door of your destiny, then you’ll find yourself walking through the door of temptation. Once you become aware of the doors you’ve opened, and learn which ones benefit you, you can then be empowered to choose to either walk in or walk away. Only then can you begin to gently close the doors that will not take you to your highest vision. Some doors you may find yourself slamming shut, others you may want to keep cracked open if a future opportunity for growth exists. Either way, this requires some honest self-reflection, communication and humility on your part.

Perhaps you will recognize these doors in your life:

1. Revolving door – when you make the same relationship choices, allowing the same type of people in your life over and over again, one enters another on leaves, still keeping you in the middle of nowhere. Nothing changes until your choices change. This is the behavior shift that will propel you to the next phase.
2. Sliding door – only opens from one side – either they let you in or you let them in, but seldom is there mutual respect. Be very cautious with these relationships. One-sided relationships are energy vampires.
3. Swinging door – not clear on who is entering, you never know which way the door will swing, people coming and going from your life. If this is an occurrence in your life, then it’s time to set some strict boundaries and begin to control who enters next.
4. Screen door – simply keeps the bugs out, but not quite sturdy enough to keep out the thieves in the night luring to steel your dreams.
5. Locked door – where you let no one in and trust very few people, the barriers limit you to any opportunities and you stay stagnant because you’re not willing to take any risks, or you may fear any type of change.
6. Basement door – when your door opens to a downward staircase to only those people who bring you down, lowers your energy and keeps you in the dark.
7. Rooftop door – lifts you up higher, takes you to a place where there is no ceiling, feeling of limitless possibilities. Imagine you’re on the top of a skyscraper, when you open this type of door to possibility, you have great perspective of your life and clearly see where you’re heading and with whom.

Recognizing the type of doors you open throughout your life will help you to manage the “Open Door Syndrome”. It’s all about creating awareness and setting healthy boundaries so your life path is more defined. Regardless of the doors you open or shut, I found that this simple exercise will help to “clear the weeds” along the path. Reconnecting with the people who have contributed to your journey thus far will help accelerate the transformation process.

Make a conscious effort to reach out to those people who have served you in some way, believed in you and supported you. Just a simple thank you for that act of kindness, brings them back into your stream of consciousness. What this does is create an energetic support system. I truly believe, we place certain people in our lives with a higher strategic insight, knowing they will deliver the perfect experience for us to evolve at that particular time on our human journey. They have a right to know how they contributed to your personal growth and will feel empowered to know this truth.

Angel Carlton is the Author of 2 books, Staying Afloat During Tides of Change, and Dedicated to Destiny, the Founder of Power Up People!, Motivational Speaker, Transformation Coach, serves as a Director for the Institute for Corporate Productivity (i4cp.com) and is a Radio Show co-Host on Leading the Way (KLIF.com). Learn more at www.AngelCarlton.com.