If the following story offends you, I hope you’ll pardon me. But I’m gonna tell it anyway…

It’s pretty common knowledge that Starbucks serves as my “office” on most mornings. And today, a recurring, annoying event, uh, recurred again.

Now. the restrooms at the ‘bucks commonly serve one customer at a time.

So if you try to turn the door handle to enter, and it doesn’t turn, that means it’s locked and somebody’s in there.

Duh.

Well, this morning, I had barely gotten into the men’s room to do my thing, and the handle rattled.

In less than four or five seconds, it rattled again.

Seven seconds later, it rattled a third time.

You getting the picture?

I could tell by the rattle that it was the same guy. He’d posted himself at the restroom door and kept jiggling the handle.

Maybe he thought I’d somehow snuck out the back, in which case he was a bigger moron than I already suspected.

But more likely, he thought that rattling the door would make me hurry up.

Boy, was he wrong.

It actually persuaded me to bide my time.

It was all I could do to stop myself from yelling something sarcastic like, “Hey, Bub, there are people trying to sleep in here!”

I didn’t, but I did wash my hands real sloooooooow. And when I finally emerged, the idjit wouldn’t even look me in the eye.

Imagine.

Believe it or not, there’s a reason I’m telling you this story. It contains two lessons for business and for life in general.

Here’s the first lesson:

Persistence is a good thing. But mindless persistence just makes other people cranky.

And here’s the second:

Persistence can activate a law of attraction that will draw your goal closer to you. But mindless persistence fueled by anxiousness, desperation, and even anger will activate the opposite force, pushing your goal further and further away.

So the next time you think about leaning on your horn at a stop light, or shouting from the back of a line at the ATM, or ratting the door handle, ask yourself, “Will this action prompt the reaction I really desire?”

I’m betting you’ll decide to let it go.

P.S. Persistence, success, and the ability to “let go” are all keyed to self-esteem and a good mindset. Some terrific self-improvement training materials can be accessed here:

 http://www.wallyconger.com/ZeroLimitsLive

I hope you don’t mind, but if you click on the link and buy the product described, I will receive a referral commission. And you’ll have my undying gratitude!