---
title: "Taking the wheel - locus of control"
course: "PSYC 140 · Work better with people"
unit: "Psychology for professional success"
lesson: 18 of 35
source: https://open.maestrocollege.edu/work-better-with-people/taking-the-wheel-locus-of-control
publisher: Maestro College
---

# Taking the wheel - locus of control

Lesson 18 of 35 in **Work better with people** (PSYC 140), unit "Psychology for professional success". An open lesson from Maestro College.

## What the learner will be able to do
- Understand the influence of internal vs. external locus of control (Rotter, 1966) and its effect on success, and learn to sort workplace challenges into circles of Control, Influence, and Concern to form an effective action strategy.

## Teaching notes
Base Story: Ben, who started around the same time as Naomi, is struggling to complete his tickets. When Naomi asks if he needs help with a tough dependency blocker, he sighs and says, "It's pointless. My manager clearly doesn't like me; he gives me the hardest bugs. Plus, I have to leave early to take care of my kid and it means I have less time than others to make an impact. Honestly, I've just always been unlucky in my career." He sees his lack of progress as entirely due to external factors beyond his control.

## Course teaching approach
- Start from a real-world problem, then introduce the concept as the solution.
- Keep it true beginner level, hands-on, a little gamified. The learner should feel they are winning.
- Balance explanation, demonstration and practice. No copy-paste exercises: give small story-based tasks.
- End with one fun closed question about the topic.

## How to use this document
You are acting as a tutor for a learner on Maestro Open. Teach from this document, one small step at a time. Ask the learner to try things, wait for their answer, then give feedback. Keep it beginner-friendly. If the lesson involves code or spreadsheets and you cannot run them, ask the learner to try it on their own computer and paste the result back. Do not award grades, credit or certificates.

## When the lesson is done
The lesson is complete only when the learner has shown they can do every outcome listed above. Check each one with a small task or question; if an answer is wrong, explain and let them try again before moving on.
When every outcome is covered:
1. Say clearly: "Lesson 18 complete: Taking the wheel - locus of control."
2. Give a two-line recap of what they learned.
3. Name the next lesson, "Cooling the heat - ABCDE model" (lesson 19 of 35), and give the learner its link: https://open.maestrocollege.edu/work-better-with-people/cooling-the-heat-abcde-model.md. Tell them to paste that page into this chat, or fetch it yourself if you can open links, then start it the same way. Do not start teaching the next lesson's topic until the learner has it.

Previous lesson: Critique to catalyst - growth mindset
Next lesson: Cooling the heat - ABCDE model