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Exaggeration: why we make a mountain out of a molehill
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SIMILAR ARTICLES & IDEAS:
11
Key Ideas
The way we talk to ourselves about the events in our lives is subject to the same laws of learning and habit formation that physical behaviors are.
That means we can learn to talk to ourselves in specific ways just like we can learn to tie our shoes or say please and thank you.
Our emotions are always mediated by some form of thinking.
If our thoughts determine how we feel, that means how we habitually think will determine how we habitually feel.
It happens when we assume we understand what other people are thinking without any real evidence.
It is a failure of imagination because we often only imagine and focus on the negative aspects.
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Key Ideas
People became philosophers when they began to question what guides their thinking and analyze their thoughts.
Today, one of the most common destructive thought patterns is all-or-nothing thinking. In other words, perfectionism.
Pragmatism — as opposed to perfectionism — does not share the same paralyzing hang-ups; it takes what it can get.
Our pursuits should be aimed at progress, no matter how much it’s possible for us to make.
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Key Ideas
Take a negative thought and change it to something encouraging that's also accurate. Repeat until you find yourself needing to do it less and less often.
Simply stopping negative thoughts in their tracks can be helpful. This is known as "thought-stopping" and can take the form of snapping a rubber band on your wrist, visualizing a stop sign, or simply changing to another thought when a negative train of thought enters your mind.
Telling a trusted friend what you're thinking about can often lead to support or a good laugh when the negative self-talk is ridiculous. Even saying some negative self-talk phrases under your breath can remind you how unreasonable and unrealistic they sound, and remind you to give yourself a break.