I’m a sucker for anything and everything related to leadership, personal development and human behavior.  Articles, white papers, quotes, videos – you name it, I’m there.  The great part is that most concepts related to these fields can be applied to any situation. I know, I know…nerd alert!

Well, you can imagine my excitement when I received an email from a colleague with “Leadership  – very interesting” in the subject line.  The article she sent me was called The R Factor – Maximize the one thing you control.  The concept was developed by a man named Timothy Kight, and it’s a framework and process used to focus the way you think, make decisions, and take action.

Although this falls under the guise of leadership, it’s a practical idea that can be applied to absolutely any life event.  And that’s why I’m going to share more!

The R Factor is based on a simple equation:

E + R = O
Event + Response = Outcome

Mr. Kight suggests that success is not based on the things that happen to us but rather how we choose to respond.  We don’t control the E or the O, we only control the R.  And people who achieve success choose the better R’s. 

When I first read the article, I thought about how this is easy to say but hard to do.  In a perfect world, we would all be able to respond to the things life throws at us with patience, a sense of calm, and a reasonable attitude.  But we don’t live in a perfect world!  That’s where the following seven tips come into play.  And because each one ties back to the “simple” equation above, I found it all very easy to grasp…in theory at least!

1. Pause between the E and the O.  Essentially, always stop to think about what response will give you the O you want.
2. The R is most important when the E is most difficult.  Rise up to the challenge of a big E with a big R.  That’s the only way to get through it.
3. When your R isn’t working, don’t blame the E.  If your R isn’t giving you the O you want, be agile and change your R.
4. Don’t let the rate of change in the E exceed the rate of change in your R.  Things are constantly changing.  People change, situations change.  And if you aren’t able to keep up with the rate of change happening around you, you’re in trouble.  Don’t waste precious time and energy resisting the inevitable.  Just make sure your R will carry you forward as quickly as needed.
5. Understand that your R has a cumulative impact.  The more you engage in a particular R, the greater it’s impact over time (for better or for worse).  Know that in many cases your R is going to have a long term impact.  Success is not an overnight sensation – it’s a process.
6. Your R is an E for other people.  Your response (attitude and behavior) has a profound impact on the people around you.  Essentially, your R becomes everyone else’s E.  Try to create great E’s for others, and they will do the same for you.
7. Manage your Focus Frame.  In order to maximize your R factor, be sure to adjust the lens through which you see the world.  Successful people are able to re-focus and re-frame based on the given situation, which then enables them to chose the best R possible.

Pretty cool, huh?  I especially love # 5 and 6.  I know my R’s have a long lasting and widespread impact (again, for better or for worse), but I seldom think about it all in this way.  Sometimes the simplest way of thinking things through is the best!

Thoughts?  Any tips for how you control your R’s (especially when it isn’t easy to do so in a calm, cool and collected way)?