As a result of the way our world is organized, in the market as well as in other areas there are always going to be things that escape our control, even if we work hard trying to get them right.
Living in society brings many challenges but also possibilities. We’ve learned to live with others and to work with others and we cannot, for one moment, forget about that. That scheme has built our culture and our world the way we know it today, which is why I think it’s very important to talk about this topic.
The circle of influence and the circle of concern.
I first learned about this in Stephen Covey’s book “The Seven Habits of Highly Effective People”, and the whole idea of this is learning to locate those areas where you do have control over situations and those where you don’t.
For instance, in a business, you have control over how many calls you make or arriving at appointments on time. However, you have no influence on the success of your competitors or the availability of certain products, to mention a few.
This may sound very obvious, and it might be. But there are some problems that begin to make themselves visible when you try to push things from one circle to the other. Trust me, I’ve been through that.
At one point in my career, I had a bit of an issue when a brand I was representing changed their clothing range completely for the following year, even when the range they had at the time was selling like hotcakes. I knew that was a bad decision, but that’s not the point.
After they eventually found out they made a big mistake I couldn’t get my mind over it. Even worse, I couldn’t stop pointing fingers and complaining all the time.
I was indeed right when I predicted its failure, but that incredible sense of righteousness that I had wasn’t taking me anywhere. It literally meant that I was staying stuck in the situation.
That’s why I think it’s important to talk about this in today’s episode so that you don’t make the same mistake I did.
I was completely immersed in that circle of concern which kept me from seeing other possibilities where I did have control over. Being bent on revolving those thoughts and blames constantly in my head was using time and energy that could be better spent elsewhere.
I know that at the moment we don’t really have much control over what’s going on in the economy and in the world, but we do have control over how we respond and how we decide that we play our cards.
So, if you are interested in learning more about your circle of concern and your circle of influence and how to shift your way of thinking so that you actually start to see new opportunities, I encourage you to listen to this week’s podcast.
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