How To Stop Overthinking - 10 Steps To A Calmer Mind in 2023
Do you often find yourself overthinking situations and worrying about the outcome? Perhaps you lay in bed at night struggling to sleep because you are overthinking a relationship problem, or perhaps how the next day at work will turn out.
Maybe it's that you constantly overthink what other people will think about you, what you look like, why you don't seem to be getting anywhere, what you are going to have for dinner next week - or maybe you even overthink why you over think!
Okay, okay... so you get the point...
The things is, in this current day and age, there is so much information coming at you from every direction, it's easy to get overwhelmed because your brain just can't keep up with everything.
However, the good thing is that you realise that you are doing it - because it's impossible to fix a problem that you don't know you have.
Now that you realise you are doing it, you can get right on to fixing the problem, and it just happens to be your luck day, because I have pulled together my top ten tips for overcoming whatever it is that is troubling your mind - Let's get right into it!
1. Stop overthinking and clear your mind with Meditation
Meditation can be a great tool to help stop overthinking things by learning how to clear your mind and maintain focus.
Even just 10-15 minutes of meditation each day will have a noticeable effect on your ability to maintain a calm mind and can help you to realise that your thoughts aren't you... they are just things passing through your mind that you can choose to either engage with and think about, or ignore and let them pass by.
It does take a little practice to hold a still mind, even for just a couple of minutes, but think of it like going to the gym for your mind - start off on the light weights first then gradually build up as you get stronger
Once you get the hang of it, the next time you start overthinking a situation, you will come to realise that you actually have a choice of what you think about, and if your thoughts aren't serving you, then you should dismiss them.
If you have never meditated before, then I recommend starting off with a guided type meditation to get you used to it.
2. Practice gratitude
It is impossible to worry and feel grateful at the same time, so, practicing gratitude can be a great way to help you stop overthinking.
In fact, being grateful for what you have is linked to so many other benefits too and help you feel happier in general.
It stops you living with a mindset of poverty, lack and want, and instead creates a feeling of abundance, and if you know anything about creating a mindset for success, you know that you get what you think about, so the more you think about bad things happening, the more they will happen, because you will naturally draw them to you.
Each day, think of something you a grateful for - it could be a great relationship, your home, clothes, food, running water, electricity, clean air... imagine what life would be like if you didn't have it, and realise how lucky you actually are, rather than taking everything for granted.
Continuing to think about the thing you are grateful for throughout the day can help you to avoid overthinking negative, worrying thoughts.
Use a Gratitude Journal to keep a log of all the things you are grateful for - then you can quickly look back over it next time you find yourself overthinking and worrying for an instant burst of joy!
3. Stop overthinking and worrying about things going wrong
It will be what it will be...
Spending your life overthinking and worrying about things isn't going to change the situation, and it certainly isn't going to help - in fact, quite the opposite.
If something is going to happen, then it is going to happen - just deal with it when it does.
The fact of the matter is 90% of the things you worry about will never happen anyway, and 9.99% of the 10% that do, won't be anywhere near as bad as you thought it would be.
Our imaginations are powerful tools - we can use them for great things, but they can also work against us and dream up the worst possible situations and outcomes that would never happen in a million years!
Once you have thought about something, made a decision and taken action, then move on - don't dwell on if it was the right one or not, only time will tell you the answer, and if it wasn't the right one then change it, or do it different next time - at least you made progress, which is better than sitting on the fence worrying!
4. What's the worst that can happen anyway?
Even if the worst did happen, what is it anyway, and does it REALLY matter?
Would it have a major effect on the direction of your life? Is it a matter of life and death? Would you even remember it in 5 or 10 years time?
Chances are, the worst possible thing that could happen in a given situation, isn't really that big of a deal after all in the grand scheme of things...
We have a tendency to blow things out of proportion, sometimes it is useful to really get some perspective about the things we are worried about, and see that there really isn't anything worth losing any sleep over!
5. Stay focused on a goal
Having a clear goal to work towards and a plan to get there can help to stop overthinking and worrying by creating clarity in your mind.
Sometimes we can all feel a bit lost in life, like we don't know what direction to turn, or what to do next...
That's where setting some goals and and having an action plan come in.
By spending some time to define what it is you want to achieve and how you plan on doing it, getting it out of your head and onto paper (or into the cloud in today's world!), you get rid of one of the major causes of overthinking - uncertainty.
Try setting goals for different areas of your life, particularly the ones that you worry about and tend to overthink, and see how having a clear, defined plan of what you need to be doing can get rid of the mind clutter!
==> Watch this FREE webinar on how to set and achieve effective goals for growth and success6. Kill procrastination with action!
One of the the main reasons people overthink thinks is due to procrastination - putting things off instead of taking immediate action.
When you do this, you allow your mind time to wander and make up all kinds of imaginary scenarios - and remember, it generally thinks of the worst possible thing!
In short, the longer you procrastinate and put things off, the less likely you are to ever do it, because you give your time to overthink every possible angle and end up suffering from analysis paralysis.
The Key to overcoming procrastination is to take some sort of action on your decision right away, whether it is making a phone call, booking an appointment or even just sending a message or email - something to get the ball rolling.
It also helps to have a clear definition of what you want to achieve, as per step 5, because if you know something is in line with what you are aiming for, then you have no reason not to do it, right?
==> Download our FREE guide to End Procrastination In 5 Simple Steps7. Track your progress
Sometimes, even if you have taken action and started to do what you planned on doing, those negative thoughts come back and start telling you that you aren't making any progress anyway, you might as well give up, what's the point?
That's where tracking your progress can be a great tool.
Keeping a log of how far you have come since you started can be useful for gaining perspective and showing you that, although in the moment it may seem like you are not getting anywhere, if you look at the bigger picture, you will see that you have come a long way.
It's also important not to measure yourself against someone else - you don't know what their situation is. They may have been at it much longer than you, or their results may not be as great as they appear.
We often underestimate our own performance and ability, and over-inflate that of others.
So next time you find yourself overthinking about your lack of progress, just check your log and you will see that you are better than the you that first started - now that is progress!
Using a Progress Journal is a great way to do this.
8. Don't be afraid to fail - it's a part of the journey to success
Failure... It's something a lot of people fear and is a major source of why people overthink things.
Perhaps they are afraid of what others will say if they try something and fail, maybe they will be embarrassed, or maybe it's just their own ego that doesn't want to be bruised by not being successful first time, so they don't even try... well, that is a sure way NOT to be successful!
You see, failure is part of the journey to success. If you aren't failing, you aren't trying... there is nothing wrong with finding out that something doesn't work a certain way, just learn from your mistake and try something else, don't keep making the same mistake.
One thing is for sure - don't let the thought of what someone might say who hasn't already done what you are trying to do deter you from trying.
Anyone who has accomplished anything great in life has failed at that same thing a thousand times before they achieved it - so stop overthinking it, go out there and fail!
9. You can't control everything
A lot of people get hung up overthinking every little detail, when the fact of the matter is - you can't control everything!
Just do what you can do and have faith in the process - whatever that might be for you.
Now, that's not to say be totally ignorant of major risks that you can foresee - for these you just need to be aware and have mitigation's in place...
But, there WILL be things that happen along the way that you could have never imagined would have happened - it's called life, and life has a funny way of testing you to see if you are really ready to go to the next level.
Until you pass the test, you will remain on the same level, facing the same problems, until you overcome them.
Spending too much time thinking about every eventuality won't serve you, just understand that things will happen and deal with them as they do.
10. Believe in yourself - not your thoughts!
Belief. It is such a powerful force.
'What the Mind can perceive and believe, it can achieve' - Napoleon Hill, Think And Grow Rich
==> Download Think And Grow Rich for FREE Here!
The thing is, this works both ways.
If you have true belief in yourself that you will be successful, and you will achieve your goals, then this can be the driving force you need to push you towards your goals...
However, remember that if left unattended, the garden of your mind will sprout negative thoughts of doubt and worry.
But, you don't have to listen to them!
Remember, your thoughts are not you - you can chose to engage with them or not. If you capture yourself thinking negative, limiting thoughts, then counteract them by reinforcing your belief in yourself.
Practicing positive self-affirmations each day, repeating aloud 'I AM...' statements affirming you belief in yourself can keep your mind focused on believing in yourself, instead of overthinking the negative self talk that comes to us all!
Conclusion
It is important to realise that YOU have control over YOUR thoughts, you just need to develop a more positive way of thinking.
A positive mindset however doesn't happen on it's own - it needs to be propagated.
If you walk into a dark room and don't turn the light on, it will remain dark. It is no different with your mind, you need to put the positivity in there, otherwise, left to it's own devices, your mind will create it's own story, and this is rarely self-serving!
==> Find out how you can Reprogram Your Subconscious Mind
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