The Sphere of Influence Explained

Sometimes when we’re busy, we look at what we can stop doing. But we don’t always appreciate that thinking is a form of doing—it eats up energy and effort, just like physical actions.

Because our pre-frontal cortex (the clever, conscious bit of our brain that makes decisions and works through problems) can only effectively focus on one thing at a time, if we’re overthinking something that isn’t worth our time, we are literally wasting an opportunity to focus on something that does matter.

So taking a moment to think about your thinking is a great tip for busy people. It takes seconds, but it can save you hours.

Here’s how:

If you can, grab some sticky notes and a pen, and let’s work through this together.

Step 1: Draw Three Circles

On a blank sheet of paper, draw:

•    A small circle in the center

•    A middle ring around it

•    A larger outer ring

Think of it like a target with three layers.

Step 2: Label the Circles

•    The inner circle is your Sphere of Control—things you can directly impact, like your actions, choices, and responses.

•    The middle circle is your Sphere of Influence—things you don’t control outright but where your actions can still have an effect.

•     The outer circle is your Sphere of Concern—things you care about but can’t directly change.

Step 3: Populate the Circles

Take your sticky notes and jot down various concerns or issues you have—one per note. As you write each one, place it in the appropriate circle.

•     Inner Circle (Control) – “Do It Now”

•     Actions you can take immediately without waiting for permission.

•     Tasks you might be putting off because you don’t like them—but they’re still fully in your control.

•     How you respond to challenges.

•     The effort you put into your work.

•     Middle Circle (Influence) – “Do the Maths”

•     Team morale (you can’t force people to be happy, but your energy and leadership can help).

•     Company-wide policies (you may not set them, but you can provide input or suggest improvements).

•     Customer satisfaction (you don’t control customer opinions, but you can influence their experience).

•     The key question here: Is the effort you’re putting in proportionate to the level of impact you can have?

•     Outer Circle (Concern) – “Do a Distraction”

•     Global events.

•     Other people’s opinions.

•     Industry trends you can’t shift alone.

The goal here isn’t to ignore what you can’t control, but you notice you are over-thinking about things in this space, learning to live with it as quickly as you can is key. Easier said than done, but like anything, it gets easier with practice. The distraction can provide a great circuit break. If you buy me a cup of tea sometime I’ll explain how this is directly related to me learning to play the guitar!

Hopefully just drawing that up has helped? But for an extra boost of learning try this bolt on!

Step 4: Break the Overthinking Cycle

1️⃣ Set a timer – choose any point today where you will have a 15 minute gap to reflect  – When it goes off, do a quick brain dump.

2️⃣ Grab some post-its – Write each thing you’ve been thinking about on a separate post-it.

3️⃣ Be honest – Don’t sanitise your thoughts! Write them all down—yes, even the ugly, embarrassing, or irrational ones.

4️⃣ Use the Sphere – Now, take your post-its and stick them into one of your three circles. Review where you’re post-its are sitting and ask yourself these questions:

•    What are you spending time thinking about that’s sitting in your Sphere of Concern—things you can’t control?

•    What’s sitting in your Sphere of Influence, where your actions might actually make a difference?

•    And most importantly—what’s in your Sphere of Control that you’re neglecting because your energy is being pulled into the wrong places?

This is a powerful reality check—because often, we don’t realise just how much brain fuel we’re burning on things that we can’t change, at the expense of things we can.