This model is reflected by a famous quote by Reinhold Niebuhr: "God, grant me the serenity to accept the things I cannot change, ... Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit. Tria genera cupiditatum, naturales et necessariae, naturales et non necessariae, nec naturales nec necessariae. Nummus in Croesi divitiis obscuratur, pars est tamen divitiarum. Qua ex cognitione facilior facta est investigatio rerum occultissimarum. Ad eos igitur converte te, quaeso. Nemo nostrum istius generis asotos iucunde putat vivere. Duo Reges: constructio interrete. Conferam tecum, quam cuique verso rem subicias; An ea, quae per vinitorem antea consequebatur, per se ipsa curabit? Quod eo liquidius faciet, si perspexerit rerum inter eas verborumne sit controversia. At hoc in eo M. Haec igitur Epicuri non probo, inquam. Quid ergo aliud intellegetur nisi uti ne quae pars naturae neglegatur? Neutrum vero, inquit ille. Videamus animi partes, quarum est conspectus illustrior; Te ipsum, dignissimum maioribus tuis, voluptasne induxit, ut adolescentulus eriperes P. Vides igitur te aut ea sumere, quae non concedantur, aut ea, quae etiam concessa te nihil iuvent. Si enim non fuit eorum iudicii, nihilo magis hoc non addito illud est iudicatum-.
- Audit your focus.
Spend a week tracking how much you focus on factors that are out of your control ...
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit. Ergo adhuc, quantum equidem intellego, causa non videtur fuisse mutandi nominis. Uterque enim summo bono fruitur, id est voluptate. Cur igitur, cum de re conveniat, non malumus usitate loqui? Duo Reges: constructio interrete. Bork Facillimum id quidem est, inquam.
Quo plebiscito decreta a senatu est consuli quaestio Cn. Bork Quia, si mala sunt, is, qui erit in iis, beatus non erit. Eiuro, inquit adridens, iniquum, hac quidem de re; An potest cupiditas finiri? Scio enim esse quosdam, qui quavis lingua philosophari possint;
Nec tamen ille erat sapiens quis enim hoc aut quando aut ubi aut unde? Quamvis enim depravatae non sint, pravae tamen esse possunt. Quod ea non occurrentia fingunt, vincunt Aristonem; Nam illud vehementer repugnat, eundem beatum esse et multis malis oppressum. Audio equidem philosophi vocem, Epicure, sed quid tibi dicendum sit oblitus es. Cum autem in quo sapienter dicimus, id a primo rectissime dicitur. Verba tu fingas et ea dicas, quae non sentias? Haec et tu ita posuisti, et verba vestra sunt.
It can be difficult to determine what’s in your Circle of Concern versus your Circle of Influence. For example, as a senior manager, a member of your team might be influenced by you yet will ultimately make their own decisions. One strategy to mitigate this is to consider an additional element called the 'Circle of Control', which relates directly to your behaviour at the centre of the two circles.
Another potential challenge lies when taking this model to its extreme, as it can be used to justify 'narcissistic tendencies' by focusing on yourself rather than using it as a means to engage or impact the external world.
Victor Frankl and the holocaust
Covey’s example of applying this model puts a lot in perspective. He cites the story of Austrian psychiatrist Victor Frankl and his experience in the Nazi holocaust.
Frankl saw most of his family killed and everything stripped away from him, yet he endured. Frankl said: “Everything can be taken from a man but one thing: the last of human freedoms - to choose one's attitude in any given set of circumstances, to choose one's own way.”
Hopefully, you’ll use this heroic example of proactivity as inspiration rather than intimidation.
This model particularly aligns with productivity models that encourage high value activity.
Use the following examples of connected and complementary models to weave the circle of concern and influence into your broader latticework of mental models. Alternatively, discover your own connections by exploring the category list above.
Connected models:
- Psychological Safety: this model can support the development of psychological safety by shifting from a blame culture.
Complementary models:
- Growth mindset: combining this mental model with a growth mindset allows you to consider how to increase your circle of influence.
- Habit formation and habit stacking: developing these practices as daily habits and processes to use in meetings becomes a powerful life approach.
- Cialidini’s Six Principles of Influence: Cialdini's model aims to extend your influence over people and can be used to challenge the defined limits of the circle of concern and influence as a result.
- Jealousy as a Map: to help establish your priority goals.
This model was created by Stephen Covey, author and speaker and was first featured in his book 'The 7 Habits of Highly Effective People'. Find out more by visiting the Franklin Covey Institute here.
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Arun,
A proactivity tool is mentioned in Actionable takeaways, how or where can we get access to this?
Thanks
Dimiter