Do you engage in twisted thinking?
I’m reading a book titled The Feeling Good Handbook, by David Burns, MD. Dr. Burns makes the connection between how we “think” and how we “feel”. What I’ve found really interesting are his ten twisted thinking patterns that we all at some point engage in – some more than others and at varying times. Here’s Dr. Burns ten twisted thought patterns.
ALL-OR-NOTHING THINKING: You see things in black and white categories. If your performance falls short of perfection, you see yourself as a total failure.
OVERGENERALIZATION: You see a single negative event as a never-ending pattern of defeat.
MENTAL FILTER: You pick out a single negative detail and dwell on it exclusively, so that your vision of all reality become darkened.
DISCOUNTING THE POSITIVE: You reject positive experiences by insisting they “don’t count.”
JUMPING TO CONCLUSIONS: You interpret things negatively even though there are no facts to support your conclusion.
MAGNIFICATION: You exaggerate the importance of your problems or you minimize the importance of your desirable qualities.
EMOTIONAL REASONING: You assume that your negative emotions necessarily reflect the way things really are: ‘I feel it, therefore it must be true.”
SHOULD STATEMENTS: You tell yourself that things should be the way you expected them to be.
LABELING: This is an extreme form of all-or-nothing thinking. Instead of saying “I made a mistake,” you label yourself “I’m a loser.”
PERSONALIZATION: You hold yourself personally responsible for an event that isn’t entirely under your control.
I tend to use two patterns. Mental Filter and Emotional Reasoning. Mental Filter is especially effective at making me feel despondent, and Emotional Reasoning comes in handy when it comes to eating junk food!
I share this list with you because I’m really interested in how these thought patterns show up during change initiatives at work. I see them showing up when people feel insecure and uncertain about their work. And yet, I also believe that for me to be a truly effective consultant, I need to not only understand them intellectually, but also personally and how they influence my behavior.
There is a process of untwisting your thoughts…but that’s for another conversation. For now, I’m curious if you agree with the list – and if you do, which pattern seems to be the most comfortable for you? If you do have one, what are the implications for you during change initiatives and for your professional relationships?
