Gideon was seeing himself as a victim of circumstances. Victims always blame everything and everyone around them. This "point of view" requires us to shift blame from ourselves, since a victim cannot believe in his own choices. The principle of free will is a factor in our ability to see circumstances, and ourselves in the midst of these circumstances. (the word circumstance depicts that which "circles" us - with us in the middle)
The remedy is to see ourselves as God sees us - and not as we see ourselves - for God sees us from outside "those who circle us", and He is, in Truth, outside of that. We can "lift ourselves" out of our troubling "circle" by looking to God and choosing Him.