Locus of control is a personality theory developed by Julian Rotter in the 1950s, which describes an individual's expectation of outcomes and how much control they believe they have over those outcomes. It's a characteristic shaped by life experiences that affects happiness and gratification, which is why it's also a characteristic that can be cultivated by a change in thinking. By having an understanding of your own locus of control and knowing how to cultivate a high (internal) locus in more situations, you could lower stress, reduce risk of depression, increase satisfaction and, ultimately, achieve more.

... the perception that you can influence outcomes in your life is more empowering than believing no matter what you do, nothing will change ...

In his seminal paper, Rotter described a belief in chance, fate, luck or the control of ‘powerful others' as an external control. While individuals who believe their actions strongly influence outcomes have an internal locus of control. Naturally, the perception that you can influence outcomes in your life is more empowering than believing no matter what you do, nothing will change.

Compared to externals, studies unsurprisingly show internals are happier, confident, successful, display high levels of achievement motivation, modify expectations and goals based on their efforts, perform better academically, have higher job satisfaction, have little to no social anxiety, experience more positive emotions, and do better overall in all psychological wellness measures. Internals are also better equipped to handle negative outcomes by taking responsibility for things that could have been done differently.

In everyday life, locus of control can impact health, education, self-improvement, self-esteem, self-efficacy and overall satisfaction. If we look at health as an external, we may not believe eating well and frequent exercise improves health nor assists in weight loss because our parents are overweight or a gym membership is too expensive. On the other hand, an internal eats healthful foods in moderation and runs outdoors. If the internal eats two cheat meals in one day and gains weight the next, they know where they went wrong and might workout an extra 30 minutes or push their weight loss target forward a few days. With the exception of some health issues, we know the internal is more likely to be in better shape and reaping the benefits of better mental health as a result of physical wellness and activity.

Because past experiences shape our locus of control, changing our ways can be challenging due to repeated outcome reinforcement, so we continue to do or not do things that we think we have no control over. We tell ourselves studying each night won't change our GPA, so our GPA doesn't change. We prematurely give up job hunting because the competition seems fierce, so we continue to work for a boss we despise. By believing in a strong causal link between our actions and outcomes, realistically identifying what we have control over and what we don't, making an effort and adapting to different, challenging or changing environments, positive outcomes are more likely to occur. Repeated positive outcomes, or at least outcomes closer to what we had envisaged, then help develop an internal locus and reduce the helplessness we might otherwise feel, leading to increased motivation, initiative and perseverance.

There's no clear cut method for transforming into an internal, but it's not impossible to develop their habits and attitude. If you think you have an external locus of control, try setting clearly defined, but achievable, goals at first. Identify small milestones and celebrate each one by rewarding yourself. Do something each day that gets you closer to these goals and acknowledge what you've accomplished. Reflect on why something hasn't been accomplished or why a milestone hasn't yet been reached. Both external and internal factors can be causal, but when you haven't put in the effort, recognize that and aim to fix it right away or do better next time.

A shift in how accountable we are for our studies, work, fitness, personal relationships, self-fulfillment and personal interests can make a huge impact on future outcomes and how we deal with them. When we feel in control of our destiny, we open ourselves up to opportunities and make things happen.