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Thinking Errors Pt. III


As a people, the working human being wants to see him or herself as a balance of the absurd and rational. A great deal of care is afforded in this balance, but the paths are not always certain or smooth. Our thinking, lack of, or sometimes poorly contrived thoughts leads us to errors in thinking.

This of course leads us to look at two more thinking errors. . .

CATASTROPHIC THINKERS: Sometimes we think things are much worse than they actually are. If you fall short on meeting your financial goals one month, you may think, “I’m going to end up bankrupt,” or “I’ll never have enough money to retire,” even though there’s no evidence that the situation is nearly that dire. It can be easy to get swept up into catastrophic the situation once your thoughts become negative.

Yes, this one is the weakness to a worrier; a person who expects bad things to happen as if they were as normal as breathing. This thinking error is better known as... "Making a mountain out of the mole hill." Thinkers like this have the ability to make "something" out of nothing so quickly, that one may not notice, there was a problem to begin with. There are so many examples to be made from this. You can look at a student who receives a "D" on a test, and suddenly believes they'll fail the entire course. Or how about the student who doesn't get an "A" on the test, and begins to believe they'll only make sub-par grades all year. Or the person who gets turned down by a love interest, and truly believes they're not good enough to have a significant other or romance in their life.

As mentioned, numerous examples are available, due to the fact, it's common showcase with just about anyone who has had self-doubt at one time or another. The mind must be strengthened to look at every setback as a sign to move forward and correct prior mistakes. The catastrophic thinker puts a large amount of stress upon themselves for reason that doesn't actually exist. Just say no to self-doubt and be sure of yourself. Right or wrong, you'll feel better that you weren't the source of your downfall.

LABELING: Labeling involves putting a name to something. Instead of thinking, “He made a mistake,” you might label him as “an idiot.” Labeling people and experiences places them into categories. Often, these labels are based on isolated incidents.

Labels are a slothful way of measuring someone while having limited, to no facts, and only opinionated assumptions. This is the basis of a prejudice mind, a closed mind and a lazy one. None of which are inviting to an intelligent person. Yes, we're using emotionally charged words in describing such a behavior, an error in thinking, but ponder on the aftermath. Do you really believe that placing a label on a person from limited knowledge or interactions is a smart, reasonable, or fair thing to do? If so, then you should read over the list in its entirely to see what advice you're not heeding.

STAY TUNED FOR PART 4, THE FINAL INSTALLMENT!!

Education of the mind is power!

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