Can you control events more than you realise?

I often hear people say "It is what it is" or feel they are unable to influence things around them.

My university motto was "Do different", and as a result I always try to think differently, and to consider doing things differently.

Paul McGee - The SUMO guy

To recognise that we can influence things more than we realise, and that we don't have to accept that "it is what is is", I am often inspired by a formula shared with my my the excellent speaker and author Paul McGee. As he says - events happen all the time. Thousands of events happen around you every day. Receiving emails, text messages, hearing comments by colleagues, family. Not to mention watching and hearing news on the TV, social media, or just walking or driving somewhere. You are not in control of most events around you. What we can control is our response.

Paul introduced me to a formula that I use virtually all of the time - to focus and prioritise, to cope with all the "noise" of the modern world, and also to cope with major incidents, problems and opportunities. The formula is:

We can't control most of the Events that happen around us. However you can control your response, and therefore even though you can't control the events, you can influence the outcome, through choosing your response.

Paul explains it really well in 3 minutes, so if you're interested, I encourage you to watch Paul's YouTube video that explains it really well (this link seems to have recently stopped working).

Paul also explains in a little more depth how to manage your response in this video here.