As a leader, it is imperative that you make solid decisions. Finding the best solutions is never easy especially when you become your worst enemy because you overthink.
Inc. shared seven tips to help you deal with overthinking. It is only by conquering these negativity, doubts and insecurities that you will be able to make solid decisions to achieve your goals.
1. Be aware of your thoughts. Don't just allow them to pass as this will lead you to be caught up in them when they become out of control.
"If you just sit and observe, you will see how restless your mind is," Steve Jobs told his biographer Walter Isaacson. "If you try to calm it, it only makes things worse, but over time it does calm, and when it does, there's room to hear more subtle things."
2. Write your ideas or problems down. This is one way to stop them from staying in your head and constantly distracting you from the tasks that you need to do. Writing things down is a common practice for leaders as it allows better organization of thoughts.
3. Schedule your worries. Social worker and author Amy Morin suggested in a Psychology Today column that you should schedule about 20 minutes for reflection.
4. Welcome distraction. When you find yourself about to fall into the overthinking abyss, distract yourself by exercising or playing a game. Find an absorbing activity that completely takes your mind away from negative thoughts.
5. Replace thinking with doing. Focus on what you need to do right now. Don't get worked up by things that you haven't done or should have done.
6. Believe in yourself. This may be a cliché but it does help overcome overthinking. Respect your own opinion by believing that you are able to make the right choices.
7. Know that you can correct your mistakes. Rather than getting worked up with overthinking that you may be making the wrong decision, think of it as an opportunity for growth. Journalist Kathryn Schulz said in her TED Talk that realizing your mistake and then reframing your view can help boost your creativity and innovation.
