Sherrie Suski explores locus of control in business.

1. Locus of
Control
Do your employees
make things happen?

2. What is Locus of Control?
• Locus of control is a psychological concept
that refers to how strongly people believe
that they have control over the situations and
experiences that affect their lives. A person
with an internal locus of control believes that
he or she can influence events and their
outcomes, while someone with an external
locus of control blames outside forces for
everything.

3. Locus of
Control
Internal External
Combinati
on of both
The Basics
Your locus of
control can
influence not only
how you respond
to the events that
happen in your
life, but also your
motivation to take
action.

4. Work hard to achieve what they want
Report being happier and more independent
Achieve greater success
4
3
2
1
Internal Locus of Control
Are more likely to take responsibility for their actions

5. May need a great deal of assurance
More successful if projects are broken down into steps
Can be good collaborators
4
3
2
1
Combination Locus of Control
May have a hard time accepting responsibility

6. Don’t believe they can change their situation
Feel helpless and powerless
Credit luck or chance for success and failure
4
3
2
1
External Locus of Control
Blame outside forces for their circumstances

7. Easy evaluation technique
• Ask someone the question “So, why do
you catch a cold?” The person with the
external locus of control will answer
“because someone infected me” and
the person with the internal locus of
control will answer “ because I let
myself get too run down” or something
similar.

8. Summary
• It is easy to see why a workforce that
is primarily driven by those with an
internal locus of control would far
surpass one made up of those with an
external locus of control. We all need
to believe we have control to a great
extent, of our destiny and be willing to
take the responsibility that comes with
that assumption.