An Overthinker's Approach to Sanity.

"Let's just roll with it" is not something I do very well. To put it bluntly, I need to understand why and what I am doing as an overthinker. I think of almost every likelihood, the odds of this and that happening, possible outcomes, alternatives, and contingencies. Then I create a plan, map out expected outcomes, and I may even utilize a workflow chart! There I said it!

For some overthinkers, decision ownership can cause them to struggle because some people are comfortable just thinking about a problem without a solution. So overthinkers can fall into need-to-resolve traps if they do the decision-making and memory stowage for other people. Because, like all attempts to help, there is a downside.

As overthinkers endeavor to help others think their way to a solution, they can end up falling out with someone who did not even realize that there was an agreed-upon come-to-a-resolution plan! Susanna Abse, the Psychoanalyst, advises, "In an action-focused world, being an overthinker isn't necessarily bad." But there is a difference between perseverating, reflecting, and working towards a solution.

1.      If you are an overthinker, try not to spend too much time with underthinkers. You will likely end up thinking and solving problems for yourself and them.

2.      Overthinkers should also be careful not to do other people's thinking, catalog their to-do lists, or become a human USB storage drive of ideas for their friends and teammates.

3.      If you are an overthinker and prefer to muse with others, avoid guide-thinking them. It is never rewarding unless you enjoy feeling like the school monitor on an "are we there yet" middle school field trip.

4.      Conversely, as an over-thinker, you can engineer a personal "OH JOY" moment by deliberately letting another overthinker think for you. Overthinkers love it, not because they think you are stupid or cannot solve the problem, but because you have just given them something else to contemplate!

Some overthinkers tend to obsess their way toward solutions by doggedly 'think fighting' through their options. When that happens, it helps to think of something less challenging, which can seem almost impossible at first, but it can help quiet your mind. Think fighting can worsen if over-thinker partners with an under-thinker on a project. One remedy is to step back and try to learn something valuable from the situation, fix the problem, and move on.

Count yourself lucky if, like me, you have inherited the take it on the chin gene, which allows you to confront obstacles, bounce back, and move on.  There is a fundamental difference between being someone who can face obstacles, come to a decision, act on it, and progress forward. The opposite is someone who feels powerless and ruminates over real or perceived injustices without coming to a resolution.

And if that's you, you may need to look at why you cannot arrive at a solution. On the other hand, if you are a constructive overthinker, you sometimes have to face the fact that working out a problem can take time. So give yourself time to figure it out or move on.

Kim McCarthy Beth Wonson Mark Ogle, MBA Marlōn Hall, CFS® Elizabeth Cannon Hutch Hutchinson, CIMA® Connie Wilson Andre Wilkerson Patricia Richer Connie Jefferson Kimberly Roller-Hoereth Ronald Holly Wessol Najafi Jhae Thompson Victor M. Howell, CAIA, Spencer Goodridge  Bruce Nelson Marva Washkowiak, MS Hutch CIMA®Anderson Lee #franklinpatersoncompany #jobsearch #DWEN #resumewriting #jobsearch #forbeswomen #AssociationForWholesalingDiversity #ForbesCoachesCouncil