16 Things You Can Control Right Now

Are you overwhelmed? Stressing about things you can’t control?

The truth is we can’t always control what happens to us in life. But we CAN control how we respond.

Or, as Maya Angelou put it:

“You may not control all the events that happen to you, but you can decide not to be reduced by them.” -Maya Angelou

Whether you’re in the middle of a breakup, being laid off, overwhelmed with assignments, or are just having a bad day, when hard things happen in life that are out of our control, we can feel helpless, hopeless and so very discouraged. It can be tempting to want to control people and outcomes. However, this only leads to frustration and more stress.

Rather than focusing on people and situations we can’t control, it can be most helpful to identify and focus on what you CAN control. This will give you a sense of power in a difficult situation.

Here’s 16 things you have the power to change and can control right now:

Your words

You have the power to choose your words. Choose carefully. 

Your values

You alone have the power to choose what character qualities and characteristics you value most. And you can choose actions that express those values, so your life reflects those values.

Your beliefs

You have the power to choose what you believe about God, about yourself, and about the world around you. You do what you believe, so choose wisely.

Your actions

You have the ability to choose your actions. You have control over your behaviors and how you act… Your actions do not control you.

Your responses

You can make the choice to respond, rather than react, to an individual or situation. Take a quick time out if needed to calm down and regroup first, so you can choose your actions and avoid reacting impulsively. 

The goals you set

You are able to decide your own goals for your life…or your day. Others can offer suggestions, but ultimately you get to choose for yourself what’s most important to you and what you will work toward.

What you focus on

You have the power to choose your thoughts, what you focus your attention on. You can change the channel in your brain if your current thoughts are not helpful.

How you treat yourself

You have the power to choose how you treat yourself. Take good care of you! Talk to yourself and take care of yourself like you would speak to and treat a good friend.

How you speak to yourself

Your words are powerful…even your internal dialogue. You can choose how you talk to yourself. If you wouldn’t say it to a good friend, don’t say it to yourself.

How you handle challenges

You have a choice in how you tackle challenges. You choose how you respond. The good news is, you can always start where you are and choose a different response.

What you do with your pain

You have the power to choose how you want to handle your pain. Some people choose to run from it, some face it and feel it and resolve it, some run to people or things to distract from the pain, some try to drink it away, some stuff it. Choose wisely.

How you spend your energy

You have the power to choose how you spend your free time and energy. Will you choose life-giving, recharging options? Or life-draining ones?

How you express your emotions

You are capable of choosing healthy ways to express emotions…even big ones. Emotions do not have to rule you. This takes practice.

How to communicate your needs

You have the power to choose how to let others know what you need. Sometimes we use our behaviors to communicate needs (ex. yelling, avoiding, silent treatment, passive aggressive comments, etc), however, other people cannot read our minds. Choose to use your words, rather than your behaviors, to communicate what you need.  

Taking responsibility for your mistakes and actions

You have the power to apologize and/or own your mistakes when applicable. Sometimes we get so caught up in rehearsing the other person’s faults, we overlook our own contribution to the problem.

The boundaries you set (with certain people, places, things, or technology)

You have control over your boundaries. You may need to set healthy boundaries with people, or avoid certain places for a time, or steer clear of certain objects, or reduce/avoid scrolling social media. You choose how much influence they have on you.

There you have it. 16 things you can control right now. Hopefully you’ve identified a few you can take control of today! 

I’m curious, what would you add to the list? Let me know!