Sometimes work can get into your head making thinking errors easier to fall into. Whether it’s a misinterpreted email, a blown deadline, or the classic "Am I even good at this?" spiral, thinking errors creep in and impact your mental health.
What Are Thinking Errors?
To recap on thinking errors from our last article - Thinking errors (also called cognitive distortions) are like mental shortcuts gone rogue. They’re quick judgments your brain makes, but instead of helping, they often lead you to inaccurate or overly negative conclusions.
For example:
Black-and-white thinking: "I missed this deadline. I’m terrible at my job."
Mind reading: "My boss didn’t say good morning. She must hate me now."
Catastrophising: "This one mistake is going to ruin my career."
The below steps can help you take back control:
Catch the Thought
Before you can challenge a thinking error, you have to spot it. Pay attention to your inner dialogue and the negative thoughts popping up in stressful situations. Writing down your thoughts in a journal can help.
Ask yourself: “What am I thinking right now?”, “Is this a fact, or just my interpretation?”, “Which thinking error might this be?”
Recognising the patterns is half the battle. Start by paying attention to your inner dialogue. Are there patterns that keep showing up? Writing down your thoughts in a journal can help.
Talk Back to Yourself
When a thought feels overwhelming, pause and ask:
"Is this thought 100% true?"
"What’s another way to look at this?"
To help you challenge the thought. Imagine you’re a lawyer presenting evidence. What facts support this thought? What facts contradict it?
For example, you might think "I’ll never be able to handle this project.".
Now be curious about this thought and ask yourself whether there’s any evidence against this thought. For example "I’ve handled tough projects before. I have a team to help me. I can ask for support if I need it."
It’s about shifting from “I’m doomed” to “I’ve got options.”
Reframe
Once you’ve looked at the evidence for and against your thinking error, rewrite the thought into something more balanced.
For example your usual pattern might be "This meeting went horribly. I’m so bad at presenting."
A more balanced reframe could be "The meeting didn’t go as planned, but I got through it. I’ll prep differently next time."
The goal isn’t positive thinking, it’s balanced, realistic, more accurate thinking.
Practice and Repeat
Like any skill, challenging thinking errors takes practice. The more you do it, the easier it gets. Eventually, you'll catch yourself mid-thought and redirect before the negativity takes over.
Seek Support
Talking to a therapist or a trusted friend can help you see things from a different perspective.
Tips for Busy Professionals
Set a "thought-check" reminder, block five minutes on your calendar to reflect on your recent thoughts.
Share your challenges with a trusted coworker or mentor. They might help you see things more clearly. You might find you support each other as thinking errors affect all of us to different degrees.
Know your triggers, identify the situations that spark thinking errors. This might be big presentations or client feedback, then prepare in advance.
Why Bother?
Because your mental well-being is worth it.
By challenging thinking errors, you reduce stress, boost confidence, and make clearer decisions. It will enable you to spend less time spiraling and more time thriving at work?
So, the next time your brain takes a quick leap into a thinking error - pause, challenge it, and reframe the story.
If you want to explore your thinking and bring your mind back on side, you can book in for an initial consultation to see how I can help you thrive again.
