What Stephen calls the "Circle of Influence"

It's no secret that I am something of a worrier, and tend to get overloaded when I take on more projects/responsibilities than I can handle. (I told Stephen the other night that I should look at how many different projects I think I can handle, then subtract three to four from that number to find my ideal "project load"). One thing that has helped me, since marrying Stephen, is the concept of "The Circle of Influence" and "The Circle of Concern."

Imagine a diagram with two circles--one very large, the other small and located within the larger circle. The Larger circle is the "Circle of Concern," or the things that we tend to worry about and stew over. The smaller, inner circle is the "Circle of Influence," or the things that we actually have control or influence over--the things we can actually do something about.

So, whenever I start worrying and "What-if" -ing, Stephen looks at me and says, "Little circle. Stay in the little circle." Focus on the things that you can actually do something about, and move on from there. There's no use worrying about things that you have absolutely no control over.

The great thing is, as we focus on our inner circle of influence, it gradually becomes bigger because we are spending time on what we can do rather than spending our time worrying about a host of other things. On the other hand, if we focus too much on the larger circle of concern, our circle of influence becomes even smaller because we are spending all of our time worrying instead of acting.

I wish I knew where this concept came from--I think it's from some kind of management book that Stephen's had to read as he has begun working in managerial positions. We live in such a busy, crazy world, and the only way to navigate it successfully and keep up with our responsibilities is by focusing on the "little circle," the things we can actually do something about.

Now, I need to go apply this. I have three more days of Graduate school, and all of my final projects are awaiting my attention. I've gotta focus on what I can do instead of worrying about what I can't. :-)

Stephen doesn't know about this yet . . .

Funny that I have never had a blog before, considering that I'm an English teacher and all. I'm going to be having my students use a blog as part of my curriculum this next school year, so I guess this is a good place to start and get familiar with the program.

Stephen is going to roll his eyes (possibly) when he finds out I set up a blog for us. But here's my justification: mostly the blog is for our personal "history" benefit--I tend to have a hard time keeping up on my journal and our everyday "ah-hah" moments, and this will be one step towards recording that information.

An update with what is going on in our lives right now: We are currently living in Duchesne, Utah. I am in my final week of graduate school, (in fact, I am in class right now--guilty), and will earn my M.Ed within the week. I'll be more than relieved to be done, and Stephen will be even happier because he'll get to see me for more than a few minutes each day :-) It seems like I am finally reaching burnout, and it's time to move on from school. I've loved my learning experiences, and am excited to continue to learn through life, but I'm ready to be done with homework, at least for the time being.

Stephen is currently working at Wells Fargo as a service manager. He's been looking for managerial positions, which could mean a move within the next few years. It's hard to think about the possibility of moving because we've gotten quite comfortable with where we're at, but we can't afford a house in Duchesne. I'm a little bit bitter about this . . . we could afford one in St. George, Cedar City, Provo, Logan, Idaho, Arizona, Salt Lake City . . . but not in Duchesne. Prices are still inflated here, and we could get a new house for HALF the asking price of a home in Duchesne if we lived in a different town. (I've been doing lots of price comparisons on RE/Max.) We'd love to stay in Duchesne, but if there's a position somewhere where we can actually afford a quality home, we're going to take it.

There's my little rant about the economy and the housing market. Interesting how writing can take you in directions you're not expecting.