Avoiding Common Thinking Errors

The way we think about things is a strong influence over our emotions.  Consider the common thinking errors described below.

1.  All are none thinking.  Are you seeing the problem in black and white terms?  (Example: My chair wants revisions to my dissertation, I'm a terrible writer).

2.  Are you looking at it in a too narrow way, for example focusing on only the negative comments made by your committee and ignoring other important aspects?

3.  Are you jumping to conclusions, assuming you know?  Do you have all the facts?  Do you have any facts?

4.  Are you exaggerating or minimizing the real picture?  How does it compare to others?  Have you checked?  Are you keeping things in perspective, taking a balanced view?

5.  Are your emotions/ fears holding sway over your reasoning?  Are you reacting emotionally? What are the facts?  Is the language you are using mostly emotional rather than factual?

6.  Are you boxing yourself into a corner, where you see only one option?  (Example: if my chair did not respond to my e-mail than I'm certainly not going to write to her).

7.  Are you labeling people are things in more extreme terms than they deserved or stereotyping them? (Examples: I'm a disaster.  They are lazy.).

8.  Are you blaming yourself for things that are outside your control?  (Example: I should have known better than to pick this committee).

Recognizing the thinking errors is the first step to avoiding them.  Over time it is possible to learn helpful alternative thoughts that avoid these errors and let you stay on a more positive and realistic track.

Next time, we'll consider using reflection. Do you have an issue or a question that you would like me to discuss in a future post? Send me an email with your ideas. leann.stadtlander@waldenu.edu