In the face or world disasters, personal hardship and events over which we have no control it is easy to feel overwhelmed and powerless.

Despair is destructive and leads to inaction but when we start to make small gains in our influence, even if its only power over own emotions, we are in a better position to help others.

In this situation I recommend Stephen Covey’s The 7 Habits of Highly Effective People.

In Habit 1: Be Proactive,  Covey recommends that instead of submitting to a general malaise we divide things up into those things over which we have no real control and those things about which we can do something.

Covey suggests that we first note all our concerns (illustrated by the big circle), then pick out the things we can influence (the smaller circle in the middle)

Focusing on how impotent we are to change things is disempowering. Focusing on what we CAN do is empowering and allows us to change more than we ever thought possible.

Whenever you feel overwhelmed make three lists:
1. The things you can’t change
2. The things you CAN change
3. The things you can change NOW

Then do some of the things on the third list and you’ll immediately feel better.
As we take action on the things we CAN influence we feel more empowered and in control. The more action we take the more empowered we feel and this has the effect of enlarging the inner circle and reducing the effect of the bigger one.

If you’d like to talk about how to extend your circle of control and influence, please  get in touch  I’m blessed to be surrounded by people who are skilled in so many ways and who are happy to help anyone who is feeling powerless.