Is This in My Control?

I wrote about my 5 years plan and how instead of focusing on things that I can’t control I choose to focus on the things that are under my control.

Today I was going through my reading list and stumble upon an article by Ryan Holiday called 12 Questions That Will Change Your Life - in the article Ryan presents us with 12 questions that according to him asked at the right time can change the course of our lifes.

One of the questions in his list is “Is This In My Control?” - I want to share it here since it is highly related with my other post and made me remember that I should be focusing on the things I can control and how I respond to the things that I can’t.

Is This In My Control? Epictetus says that the chief task of the philosopher is to make the distinction between what is in their control and what is not—what is up to us and what is not up to us? We waste incredible amounts of time on the latter and leave so many opportunities on the table by mislabeling the former. Our actions, our thoughts, our feelings, these are up to us. Other people, the weather, external events, these are not. But here’s where it comes full circle: our responses to other people, the weather, external events are in our control. Making this distinction will make you happier, make you stronger and make you more successful if only because it concentrates your resources in the places where they matter. 12 Questions That Will Change Your Life