When thinking becomes a vicious circle, it can become very stressful. So-called overthinking also becomes a challenge for those affected at work – a psychologist will give you methods to combat it.
Did the boss say “hello” funny this morning? Can I really call the customer on vacation if it is extremely urgent? Is the presentation good enough? If you think too much about every step, every call and every conversation at work, you may not get ahead.
Over time, employees can drive themselves and the entire team crazy. But how much rumination is normal, what is too much? And how do professionals get out of the eternal “overthinking”?
Thinking a lot doesn’t have to be a bad thing. “There’s no harm in thinking before you do something. Not even at work. That’s a personality trait,” says Florian Becker, Professor of Business Psychology from Munich.
Intensive reflection speaks for being conscientious and wanting to assess risks thoroughly. It is only important that the tendency to worry does not get out of hand. “When the brooding gets out of hand, it becomes a problem.”
But where is the line between conscientious thinking and rather pathological overthinking? “You can recognize a healthy level by the personal level of suffering and whether the behavior has a negative impact on the lives of those affected,” says careers adviser Ragnhild Struss. Some people think about things for so long that they don’t even take action and even postpone important appointments because everything hasn’t been thought through yet.
Typical features of overthinking are formulations in the subjunctive and questions in an inner dialogue that seem to never end. Like: What if I fail the exam? What if I don’t get the job? If my new project flops? It’s often about situations that could possibly occur in the future, “of which there doesn’t have to be any indication in the present”.
The consequences of constant brooding can get in the way of work: “Then negative images and fantasies in particular that are not constructive but just scary get the upper hand,” says Florian Becker. According to the business psychologist, the subconscious often cannot distinguish between reality and fantasy. “The presented horror scenario then becomes a self-fulfilling prophecy.”
But how do you get out of this negative carousel of thoughts? “The first thing we should do is make ourselves aware that we can also consciously remodel our brain,” says Becker. As with eating healthy food, one should focus on healthy thoughts for one’s mental life. For example, it can help to surround yourself with people who radiate a good mood and positive energy.
A gratitude exercise in the evening, in which you think intensely about three special things that were positive that day, can also steer the brain in a positive direction.
Ragnhild Struss appeals to pay more attention to yourself and to practice self-care. “The decisive criterion should be: What is good for me? What do I need to feel safe and good?” In the long term, self-esteem is strengthened and one is able to take action again instead of feeling at the mercy of circumstances.
An exercise from psychotherapy can also help, the “worry chair”: You sit on it every day, set the timer for a certain time (10 to 30 minutes), which you then only use to ponder. It is best to write down all your worries as well. The effect: at some point the worry chair becomes annoying. “Over time, an inner resistance to brooding and worrying can be built up,” says Struss.
According to Florian Becker, a list of pros and cons can also prevent you from constantly imagining how bad everything is: the aim is to take the problem out of the abstract and turn it into something that can be rationally understood and analyzed . “That makes it manageable.”
But what can I do in acute moments? “The most important thing is to relate, to communicate,” says Ragnhild Struss. This can mean openly telling the manager or the team that you are afraid of the presentation and asking for more time or support. “Being able to stand up for your own weaknesses with confidence is ultimately much more confident than covering up the weaknesses you have.”
Another tip: give up responsibility. If you’re pondering whether your boss said “hello” weirdly, you should be pragmatic. “The answer is: It could be, but I can’t know,” says Struss. Maybe she just slept badly or has a difficult appointment ahead. If the behavior really has something to do with you, it would be up to the boss to communicate that. “Otherwise I don’t have to worry about it anymore. Point.”
Last but not least, it can be reassuring to know that “no one thinks about you as much as you do,” says the career counselor. Everyone else has usually forgotten things much faster than we have.
