Challenge negative thoughts with evidence You might be able to overcome negative thinking using conflicting evidence. For example, does an unanswered phone call really mean your friend doesn’t care about you? Instead, consider how often they’re there for you. It’s a better way to rationalize...
Cognitive behavioral therapy (CBT) is also an effective strategy for battling phobias because it helps to identify and challenge unusual thinking patterns. Think of this strategy as bringing a flashlight into the dark, scary forest to realize that the noises you heard were caused by wind in some...
of mind reading; assuming that you know what others are thinking. Any thought is not in keeping with reality and is beyond what is typically experienced given the situation could be described as an “irrational thought.” The challenge comes from how the thoughts may seem rational at the time...
Finally, I started to challenge my irrational thoughts. Whenever I felt like I was obsessing about the past, I would ask myself why I was overthinking it. Then, I would focus on the facts and try to come up with a logical explanation that allowed me to move forward with my life. Min...
If you do need to express negative emotions, work on tapering your expression. For example, don't say, "My mom really made me mad today." Instead, say something like, "I'm a little annoyed with my mom right now." 5Challenge irrational thoughts.Negative thoughts are often irrational, and...
recommendation to exercise the power of thought to establish clarity. Ambiguity is often a symptom of sloppy, incomplete, or irrational thinking. When you experience such a state, it is time carefully to examine your premises, your principles, your knowledge, and the efficacy of your thinking ...
“The biggest challenge in working on a task you consider to be boring, difficult, or unappealing, is starting on it,” writes Damon Zahariades. “But a strange thing happens once you start: the anxiety and dread associated with it rapidly declines.” ...
Thinking you can’t switch college majors because you’ve already invested money for tuition Continuing to write a book on a topic that no longer interests you because you’ve already done the research Personal commitments, such as relationships, can also fall victim to this irrational thought pa...
from relationships to how you perform at work and how you view the future. Low self-esteem can seem overwhelming at times, but you can take steps to boost it, such as paying attention to your self-talk, challenging negative thoughts, and incorporating positive thinking. Consider connecting with...
How To Challenge What If Questions In Your Mind The key point is that “feelings are not facts”. Sometimes, they come from rational thinking; and sometimes, they come from very distorted and irrational thinking. You always have to evaluate your feelings with the cognitive or thinking part of...