team Name: Circle of Influence Aim: To think more positively about what we can influence in periods of change Outcomes: To recognise what we can influence and what we can’t To understand how we can refocus our energy onto things we can do something about For individuals to identify personal actions to go away with For individuals to identify what support they might need Duration: 60minutes Resources: Post it notes and pens, paper Flip chart paper & Pens Flipchart with Circle of Influence on or slides (available under other resources) What to say: If using powerpoint slides show slide 1 as the team come in. If using a flipchart have the circle displayed as the team come in. All of us have a wide range of concerns in our lives – our housing, our health, our friends and family, the environment, problems at work, the price of a pint of beer, how to lose weight, animal rights, how to put on weight, sex and drugs and rock and roll, the list goes on ……………….Within this whole universe of our concerns, there are some things we can influence and some things we can only stay concerned about. We have a choice about where we focus our attention and energy. We can choose to focus all our attention on the area that is outside our influence. We can get annoyed about the shortcomings of other people; we can blame the government, global capitalism, the weather, a rotten childhood, bad luck, or fluoride in toothpaste. This focus leads to more and more blaming and accusing, to feelings of victimisation, ‘poor me’. This negative way of thinking, accompanied by inaction to change things, results in the circle of influence shrinking show slide 2 or add inward arrows to the flipchart. Explain that there are things we can influence and some we can’t. We allow ourselves to be overtaken by things of concern but don’t influence. Stress the importance in change situations of refocusing our energy/attention onto those things we can do something about – however little. If we focus our attention on things we can influence then this expands and leaves time and opportunity to worry over things we can’t influence – slide 3 or add outward arrows to flipchart.

team What to do: 1.Ask individuals to list out all the issues/concerns they have at the moment on individual post it notes with the current (or equally live) changes 2.Encourage them to go for volume, if they only come up with a few items encourage them to split these down. 3.Post them up on a flipchart with a drawn version of the circles identifying which can be influenced and those they feel are outside their control – put these in the outer ring Individuals pair up for discussion: 1.Ask pairs to share their list of issues/concerns they feel are outside their control (5 mins each way). And discuss ways to move them from - outside their influence to being able to influence them. 2.Give the example of a colleague who was facing redundancy then heard her husband was also facing the same. All she could think about was how they were going to pay the bills. She was unable to change the redundancy situation but a conversation with a colleagues about way she might organise her finances was something practical she could do right away – she felt she was doing something! Ask them….. 1.What could you do to move this forward? (i.e. at least one action step) 2.What support might you need to do this ? (i.e. resources they may need to draw on) Whole group: 1.Ask what they noticed about being helped to think things through in this way. 2.Sum up impact of taking more choice in change – link back to idea of chosen change vs imposed change 3.Prompt to use process in future, self or in pairs