Training Circles & Master’s Wheel

Back in the 1990’s I became a huge fan of el Zorro especially after watching the ABC Family Channel series. I would look forward every week towards watching the new episodes or even a rerun.

I think that the fact that El Zorro was a symbol of faith to the people in need, this made it even more interesting for me. I still see him as a super hero and at my PapaHeroes profile I included him as my favorite super hero.

In 1998 when the Mask of El Zorro was released I remember that one of the parts of the movie which has stuck with me to this day especially when it appears in places which are part of my daily life Kitchen Table Companies (Affiliate Link) as an example for business and life lessons.

With the launch of Google + I have really thought about how I could relate Zorro’s Circles to what is currently happening online and in social media. For many os us Social Media is the real world. I don’t mean you have to live and breath twitter, facebook, youtube, or Google + but the reality is it enters our real world and can be a bit difficult to handle if you don’t accept this.

Going into Social Media Not Knowing Much

Many people want to jump into social media without really knowing what they want out of it. I did the same and I can say I have learned step by step reading awesome blogs and books by great guys like @garyvee, @chrisbrogan and @thebrandbuilder. I have learned as much from the many interactions I usually have around me like individuals who I can relate with like @margieclayman, @suzannevara, @raffel, @bobburg @joesorge, @michaeldcc, and @julito77 and the list can go on for pages and pages (sorry I could not include you all).

Others going into social media with an objective to make quick money or just try to win a popularity contest. The only reason they go in is to get as many twitter followers, Facebook likes, Youtube Subscribers, and People subscribed to their sites. Some of them don’t even have a way to clearly measure the progress towards making that goal happening.

Mastering the things within your circle

I came into Social Media trying to understand how it worked and till this day I am still trying to understand it. I took the Zorro approach I started understanding how to use twitter and what were recommendations on how to use it for business etc. I followed the lead of people who I saw where getting the objectives I wanted and tweaked my plan around my personality. I later moved on to understanding blogging a bit better and little by little some things where easier to relate. I did not try to jump into every thing that I thought was a great idea; I took it by small pieces much like Juanga when he tackles a large bone.

Skill Improves World Contracts

Many individuals ask me how am I able to interact on various accounts on twitter, write for various blogs, and maintain my business. I still think other people are more succesful at doing this than me like @joesorge. I try to focus on a few things and try to understand them from every aspect. Once I am comfortable with it I move to the next thing or goal. I mix my short term learning goals with my long term learning goals and in between the fuse together and help me grow. After using twitter and facebook for so long, going into Google+ I can bring some of the things I learned elsewhere without having to re-learn them.

The Larger the Circle Less Control

Many people especially online try to control too many things outside their circles and this can be overwhelming and even detrimental for your efforts. Companies and individuals go into social media and many want to control what people say about them. So they decide to harass and spam people via email. Many of these actions are an example on how people go outside their circles without the adequate skills.

When Skill Increases so does your Ability to Focus

When you have a better understanding of many things it can help you make better decisions and help you stay within your circle of control. I struggle every day with keeping enough initiative to move into new things but keeping in mind that I need to stay inside my circle of things I have an advantage over.

Keeping In Mind what you can control

I can’t control what people comment online or what comments people leave on my blog or what they say on twitter. On the other side I can control what allows me to get upset (something I try to get better at every day, exercising patience). You can control what you allow into your circle. You can do it with what happens inside your social profiles, you can see who you allow as a facebook friend, who you follow on twitter, and now who you include in each Google + Circle.

Taking the Master’s Wheel approach and taking it one Circle at a time like Zorro did helps me accomplish many things. I like taking risks but this approach also helps me measure the risks I take.

How do you approach new things? Do you go all out or is it a step by step process?

photo credit by tuckz_258