by Tim Rosanelli

Created on: April 10, 2009

Eight ways to expand your circle of influence

When I was growing up in my parent's bathroom hung a framed cross stitch pattern that my mom had made with the famous saying "God, grant me the serenity to accept the things I cannot change, the courage to change the things I can, and the wisdom to know the difference."

Through the years, I've studied and stared at this quote famous quote by Reinhold Niebuhr (1892 1971). Hidden within this prayer lies an important secret. The secret That we can control our destiny by focusing on our circle of influence.

In life, it is so easy to focus on our circle of concern things that we cannot control. For example, it's easy to blame all our problems on events and situations outside our control; our business or job problems on the economy, our financial problems on the weak financial market, and our relationship problems on our spouse.

By focusing on this circle of concern, we give away our power and joy. It is impossible to handle and grow from the situations of our lives because our circle of concern is where all our excuses reside.

Proactive people, the other hand, keep their thoughts and actions within their circle of influence or the things they can control. Instead of blaming the economy for a lack of customers in our business, a proactive person will fine tune their business to better service the customers, develop stronger relationships, and increase their marketing to find new customers. In a relationship, instead of blaming their spouse for a failing relationship, they take responsibility and find ways to improve the relationship.

The interesting thing about working on your circle influence over your circle of concern is that over time your circle of influence actually grows. The greatest people in history, for example, Abraham Lincoln, Thomas Jefferson, Gandhi, Jesus Christ, Martin Luther King, all focused on a cause until it expanded their circle of influence creating tipping point in history.

Eight Ways to Expand Your Circle of Influence

Don't ask why, ask how ask yourself the right questions in order to expand your circle of influence. How can I turn this situation around? How can I improve my relationships? How can I help and inspire the people around me?Believe, Achieve, Succeed - Believe in yourself even in the face of naysayers. In order to expand your circle the influence, you'll have to be bulletproof to criticism. Most criticism is intended to hold you back - to maintain status quo. Don't let negative criticism

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