Circle of Control

Join Pete Reece on an appreciative wellbeing wander on the theme of control.

Circle of Control

"What's a circle of control?" you may be wondering before setting off on this wellbeing wander.

A fair question. Basically, it's a visual image for a term in psychology which has been linked with positive outcomes for physical and mental health, education and performance at work. In psychology it's known as locus of control and in simple terms is

to what extent we believe we can control outcomes in our lives and respond favourably to events once they've happened.

There is a difference however, between the circle of control (our internal locus of control) and the circle of concern (our external locus of control). In our circle of concern, we find all our worries about the major issues e.g. pandemics, war and global warming. We also find our thoughts and attitudes towards other people's actions e.g. blaming and complaining. We find intangibles such as luck and misfortune but also our own behaviours and emotions when things don't go according to plan such as self-pity, frustration and anger.

In our circle of control, we find our capacity to empower ourselves and influence outcomes through our thoughts, words and actions. Here we can adopt helpful beliefs and attitudes about events and take positive action in pursuit of a worthwhile goal. Often we can operate within our circle of control simply by asking ourselves, "What can I do about it?" Our experience is that taking back some control over a situation can improve your mental wellbeing very quickly.

So what are you waiting for? Use the video for some inspiration and download the podcast if you want a guide to help you.

You only need 15 minutes to:

  • Break away from your screens
  • Do something for your wellbeing and
  • Give yourself some time to think outside the door

Links & references

Here is some further reading and viewing about the locus of control and the benefits of operating internally.

Enjoy your wandering and let us know how you get on.