Many of don’t think about who we influence, but we all spend time doing stuff that we think, well, that we are influencing people.
At the recent Leadership Masterclass, our DCMI Leadership Coach, Jacqui Perkins, explored a Stephen Covey tool from his bestseller ‘The 7 Habits of Highly Effective People’.
Jacqui explained the ‘Circle of Influence’. This tool is a simple concept which helps define and direct our efforts and energies into the areas that are important to us and where we can achieve optimum influence.
Circle of Concern: Areas that concern us but in which we generally have little or no control, such as the weather. While we might like to make the sun shine we can’t actually make it happen.
Circle of Influence: Things we have indirect control over, such as other peoples’ reactions, their thoughts. But, unlike the Circle of Concern, you can still influence action or change. For example, you may influence how an employee or team member works or acts, but you can’t directly control them.
Circle of Control: Are things we have direct control over, such as our own actions and responses to opportunities and challenges.
Jacqui explained successful leaders focus in on ‘the what’ they can influence.
The Circle of Influence is proactive…I proactively try to influence the situation.
The Circle of Concern is reactive…I’m just a passive recipient of what comes my way and react instead of thinking ahead and trying to proactively influence a different outcome.
So how can you determine if you are proactive or reactive?
Draw the three circles and identify a couple of points in each circle such as those below:
- ‘Concern’: no direct influence on global warming, COVID-19, weather or the price of milk.
- ‘Control’: we have control of own actions, our leadership style and workplace conduct and can us them for positive influence.
- ‘Influence’: we can influence team culture, resident satisfaction and community engagement.
When we focus on our Circle of Influence, we are able to create long lasting and effective change in both ourselves, our team and our community.
And maybe take a tip and “Let it go….”