New and early users of E+R=O get sucked into the gravitational pull of event fixation. Because the equation is EVENT + RESPONSE = OUTCOME, most people naturally think from left to right, beginning with the event.
"When I experience [ABC or XYX] event, I will try to respond better."
While better than nothing, it is not the ideal way to think through E+R=O or the strongest way to use it. The thought process and response are overly fixated on the event and not aimed at pursuing an outcome. This might sound like a subtle difference, but it is one of the biggest difference-makers in the skilled use of E+R=O.
The purpose of your response is to create a good outcome, not just respond better to an event. To earn good outcomes, you must respond well to events, but the result you are trying to create is the lens that must guide your response.
Just because you respond well to an event does not mean you will create an outcome of value that advances your purpose or mission. Think about that carefully. Investigate it. Then, investigate your thinking, actions, and outcomes.
I shared a handful of observations at the end of last week. Here's another one: more people are living reactionary lives dictated by their daily events than mission-driven lives directed by the outcomes they've chosen to chase. That is no judgment—just my honest observation.
When you pursue outcomes with intention and purpose, you see events differently than other people. Events are not what is important. They don't bother you as much. You don't give them as much attention, time, and energy. They don't derail you. They don't linger in your mind after they are gone.
People caught up in the gravitational pull of event fixation get so busy responding to events that they don't pursue meaningful outcomes. They tread water responding to events instead of swimming strong and hard toward an outcome.
It's more reactive than responsive. Constantly reacting to events rather than responding to the call of bigger goals. When people get event-fixated, they rarely produce significant outcomes because they rarely pursue them.
The targets you choose matter. E+R=O helps you clarify that.
Instead of reacting to an event, respond in pursuit of an intentionally chosen outcome.
Event + Response = Outcome. Do the work.
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