Is your “Bear” controlling your ability to take ownership?

In this blog, I’d like to talk about your Locus of Control and how your “Bear” can work in different ways for and against you!

The Background

Locus of control is one of the four dimensions of core self-evaluations. The concept of self-evaluations was first examined by Judge, Locke, and Durham (1997), and involved locus of control, neuroticism, generalized self-efficacy, and self-esteem, and since has proven to have the ability to predict several work outcomes, specifically towards job satisfaction and performance.

So, for the purpose of this article we have solely focused on the locus of control of your Bear.

The concept/principle is believed to have come from the late Julian Rotter in 1954 who was an American psychologist. Known for developing influential theories which included social learning theory and of course locus of control.

In 1966, Rotter published the famous I-E (Internal – External) scale in the journal Psychological
Monographs. Used by many psychologists to ascertain the psychology of an individual’s personality, the purpose of the Locus of Control is to support an understanding on how an individual’s thoughts regarding the outcome of any one given event/challenge/task have been influenced.

There is no point trying to work with your mindset until you understand this aspect of your mind. You’ll just be making it hard for yourself if not!

Julian Rotter felt it had two concepts, Achievement Motivation (which he took to be linked with internal locus of control). This is where an individual’s mindset can strive with the belief the ultimate outcome of any one given event is purely down to their own ability to manage the specific task. Depending on how internal a locus of control they are, ultimately dependents on their thoughts around how responsible they feel regarding the outcome.

So how does this apply to ourselves?

People with an Internal Locus of Control

People with a high internal locus of control believe in their own ability to control themselves and influence the world around them. They see their future as being in their own hands and that their own choices lead to success or failure. Whic if harnessed, can be very powerful.
However, we truly feel having too strong an internal locus of control can have potentially stress damaging effects and more so on the individuals behaviours and what they feel responsible for in life if you don’t know how to work with a high level internal locus of control.
You see, your “Bear” may be driving you into the ground and pushing you so hard to take on everything, making you feel responsible for everything which in turn can also cause burnout!

People with an External Locus of Control

Someone with an external locus of control, can be where an individual perceives what caused the ultimate outcome/experience of an event and how it was influenced is predominantly by other people and events which they feel they couldn’t influence. On reflection, this can often be far from the truth.

Yes there are times when we cannot influence outcomes, but more often than not, we can also influence outcomes and performance.

For example, a person may be trying to stop smoking, but doesn’t achieve a successful outcome. The mind of an individual may blame the outcome on their current circumstances, maybe blame a significant other who could be experiencing challenging situations, or basically something or someone else. Alternatively, the individual may have taken on a work-related task and didn’t achieve a successful outcome and subsequently places all the blame on external influences.
You see, people can make it very difficult for themselves if they don’t start with some basic understanding on how their mind’s programming takes ownership for their experiences and outcomes.

We encourage you to learn how your “Bear” has been influenced. Be kind to yourself and don’t be scared of asking for help.

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Warmest wishes
Walking WIth My Bear