Think back on the last time you completed a task may it be successful or not. Do you think the outcome of that task has more to do with you, your capabilities and skills or did the outcome happen due to other people, the timing, scenario, or only plain luck/bad luck? Well, your answer to that question my friend is your Locust of Control.
The Locust of Control is a concept in psychology that tries to define an individual’s belief on which causes his or her life experiences. This is what factors which they may believe contributed to their success or failure. The concept is divided into two parts:
- INTERNAL LOCUST OF CONTROL
If your Locust of control is Internal, you most likely attribute your success or failure to your own efforts and abilities. People in this area, if striving to attain something will be more motivated to improve their skills and themselves to succeed.
2. EXTERNAL LOCUST OF CONTROL
On the other hand, if your Locust of control is External, you most likely attribute your success or failure to outside forces like fate or luck. Anxiety will be more prone for people in this area since they feel that they are not in control. Sometimes people in this area relay solely on faith for the betterment of their lives but does nothing to achieve it. This is wrong since God will also require us to do our part. It reminds me of an old Filipino proverb that says “Nasa Diyos and awa, nasa tao ang gawa” (Mercy is received from God but actions are required in Man).
Study show that people with Internal Locust of control tends to be better, more achievement oriented and get better salaries in jobs. This does not mean that we should forget outside forces and the benefit of faith. You do what you can and then let God handle what you cannot control.
How to develop a more Internal Locust of Control Mindset
Since it is said that a more Internal Locust of Control is more beneficial, people tends to develop their thinking pattern more to this mindset. Here is the number one tip to practice this way of thinking:
Remember that YOU have a CHOICE – We always have a choice. We are more in control than you think my friend. When we realize that we can do something and that we have our own free will we feel more empowered and thus more motivated to take action to achieve what we want.
Most of the time we have multiple options, and some are better than the others. Please see below suggested steps in choosing you best option.
Option Choosing / Problem Solving Steps:
- Determine your goal.
- List down your options in achieving goal.
- Write down the pros and cons of each options.
- Choose the best option
- Create action steps and timeline for achieving goal
- Reassess effectiveness of the chooses option and go back to 2. if needed.
REFFERENCES:
Kain Ramsey. 2019. Life Coaching Course. Retrieve from the URL: https://achology.com/
Ricard B. Joelson DSW, LCSW. August 2017. Locus of Control. Retrieve from the URL: https://www.psychologytoday.com/us/blog/moments-matter/201708/locus-control
Elizabeth Scott, MS. September 17, 2020. How to Develop an Internal Locust of Control. Retrieve from the URL: https://www.verywellmind.com/develop-an-internal-locus-of-control-3144943