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How to set clear objectives
How to follow up after a meeting
How to manage time effectively
The Pink Elephant Paradox
Can you imagine a pink elephant? Is it big or small? Hot pink or pastel pink Give your pink elephant as much detail as you can. Now that you have got your pink elephant clear in your head, it is time to stop thinking about it. Think about any other topic for 30 seconds, and observe where your thoughts take you.
How long did you last without the pink elephant creeping back into your mind? For most of us, that pink elephant will appear back in our thoughts within seconds. The same is true of unwanted and intrusive thoughts: the more you try to suppress them, the more they will bother you. T
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The Impact of the Pink Elephant Paradox
- Propagation of persistent negative emotions. Intrusive or unwanted thoughts are associated with depression, anxiety, post-traumatic stress, and obsessive-compulsive disorders. However, individuals who are otherwise healthy can also develop intrusive thoughts that are compara...
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How to Manage The Pink Elephant Paradox
- Becoming more aware and accepting of negative thoughts or feelings can help to reduce the frequency of intrusive thoughts, as well as making them feel less distressing.
- Engage in constructive distractions. When an intrusive thought arises, finding a ...
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The Ironic Process Theory
- It is the psychological process where a person tries to suppress certain thoughts but ironically ends up thinking about them instead.
- It was first explored by Daniel Wegner in 1987.
- Also known as the ironic rebound and the white bear problem
The Goals of Keeping A Journal
- You can bring your problems to a journal. Journaling is you figuring things out and clearing your head.
- Leave your destructive thoughts in your journal. We all carry around destructive thoughts about the things that went wrong. Instead of holding o...
The inner tyrant
When a time constraint is placed on you, it will play on repeat in your head: “Get to work!”. If a task takes longer than expected, thoughts like “What is taking so long?" might appear. And at the end of a chaotic day, you might find yourself thinking “You have done nothing ...
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