Tips and Tricks: What You Can Control

To focus on what you can control, you must first acknowledge the things you can't control, then adapt your expectations accordingly. Here's a simple exercise you might try:

1. Draw a line down the middle of a piece of paper. Label the left side "Can't Control', and the right side 'Can Control'.

2. List the things you can't control on the left side. For each of these items, match them to something that corresponds that you can control on the right side. Give yourself the space to think creatively about what you can do given your circumstances.

For example, 'lockdown rules' was first on my list of things I can't control. Across from that, under the 'Can Control' list, I wrote 'at-home holiday traditions'.

This helped me realize that even though I can't be with my sister on Christmas this year, we can still recreate our time-honored tradition of watching Love Actually while drinking Belgian ale. It'll just have to be done virtually, and while it's not the same as being on the couch in pyjamas in-person, it's not a total loss either.

I'd love to hear what you uncover with this simple exercise. Please share!