Thinking Errors
Looking at how we think and making changes to be
successful
1. All-or-Nothing Thinking
Sometimes we see things as being black or white.
Instead of recognizing shades of grey, we can be guilty of thinking in terms of
things being all good for all bad.
2. Overgeneralizing
It’s easy to take one particular event and
overgeneralize how it applies to other situations. If one thing in the week
goes wrong, you may think that the whole week is bad.
3. Filtering Out the Positive
If nine good things happen, and one bad thing,
sometimes we filter out the good and hone in on the bad. Maybe we declare we
had a bad day, despite the positive events that occurred or we look back at our
performance and declare it was terrible because we made a single mistake.
Filtering out the positive can prevent you from establishing a realistic
outlook on a situation. Developing a balanced outlook requires you to notice
both the positive and the negative.
4. Mind-Reading
Although deep down we understand that we don’t really
know what other people are thinking, it doesn’t prevent us from occasionally
assuming we know what must be going on in someone else’s mind. When we think
things like, “He must have thought I was stupid,” we’re making inferences that
aren’t necessarily based on reality.
5. Catastrophizing
Sometimes we think things are much worse than
they actually are. If you fall short on meeting your goals one week you may
think, “I’m never going to achieve my goals,” even though there’s no evidence
that the situation is nearly that dire. It is easy to fall into catastrophizing
the situation when your thoughts are negative.
6. Emotional Reasoning
Our emotions aren’t always based on reality but,
we often assume those feelings are rational.
It’s essential to recognize that
emotions, just like our thoughts, aren’t always based on the facts. We must create a balance between our
emotional mind and our rational mind.
This is often referred to as a wise mind or balanced mind.
7.
Labeling
Labeling involves putting a name to
something or someone. Instead of thinking, “He made a mistake,” you might label
him as the mistake, calling him “an idiot.” Often, these labels are based on
isolated incidents and are not accurate.
8.
Fortune-telling
Although none of us know what will happen
in the future, we sometimes try to predict what will happen. We think things
like, “I’m going to be embarrassed if I talk to him/her,” or “If I do my
homework, it won’t be good enough anyway.” These types of thoughts can become
self-fulfilling prophecies and are not correct.
9.
Personalization
It’s often easy to personalize things. If
someone doesn’t call back, you might think, “He doesn’t care about me,” or if a
friend is upset, you might assume, “He is upset with me.”
10.
Unreal Ideal – Shoulds/Oughts
Comparing ourselves with others can ruin
our motivation and successfulness. Looking at someone who has achieved much
success and thinking, “I should have been able to do that,” isn’t helpful,
especially if that person had some lucky breaks or competitive advantages along
the way.
So
what do we do??? Once you begin
recognizing thinking errors, you can begin working on challenging those
thoughts. Look for exceptions to the
rule and gather evidence that your thoughts aren’t 100% true. Then, you can
begin replacing those thoughts with more realistic thoughts.
It is important to recognize if you have
thinking errors and continually challenge them as you go throughout your
life. Thinking errors are common and if
we are unable to recognize the ones that we have, they will hold us back in the
areas that we are working to accomplish in our lives.
Jeff Openshaw LMFT
