The Hidden Cost of Overthinking: How to Reclaim Your Mental Space
Have you been there? Caught in a loop, running conversations, decisions or future
“possibilities” replaying like a broken record? That is overthinking – and while it may feel like
you are being cautious or smart, it is actually robbing you of your peace, productivity and
energy.
The biggest loss from overthinking is not just stress, but the loss of mental space. Every “what
if” and “should I” influx fills your mind as though you are living in squalor and overwhelm like
a messy room. Which slows your reaction time, makes uncomplicated tasks feel complicated,
and results in mental fatigue.
Let’s talk about someone like Ayesha, a young entrepreneur. She spent weeks over-analyzing
her idea to launch an online clothing store. She did all the preparation, planning, questioning
and analyzing, doubting, and replanning but never took action. Her overthinking disguised
itself as “preparation”, but in reality, it was absence and fear. On the day she finally decided to
take action, she discovered that taking action was not as overwhelming as her “brain” had told
her. The “overthinking” was the only thing holding her hostage.
Here are some helpful strategies to help you stop overthinking and reclaim your mental space:
- Give yourself time limits for decisions – Not every decision should take hours or days
to analyze. - Write things down – Get the thoughts out of your head and onto a piece of paper.
- Back yourself into a corner and take imperfect action – Clarity comes from doing not
thinking. - Consider breath work and mindfulness – 10 minutes of deep breathing is a great way to
reset your mind. - Limit your intake of information – Overloading yourself with too much information
leads to paralysis by analysis.
Overthinking is often driven by fear of failure or rejection – But here is the fact of the matter,
thinking more will not yield the best results. In fact, overthinking will stifle your creativity,
defer your opportunities and will drain your confidence.
To reclaim your space mentally, treat your mind like you would your house; keep it clean,
organized and peaceful. There are far too many thoughts that we dismiss as “noise” in our lives,
but once you recognize that you can simply say “no” to a thought that no longer serves you;
you will be surprised at how much you can declutter your mental shelf.
You do not need to have all the answers to succeed; you just need to have the guts to take one
small vulnerable step at a time even when you don’t have all the answers. When you decide to
stop overthinking, you will begin to live in action instead of in your head.
So now take a breath; you have all the information you need, trust yourself and take the next
step. Your peace is worth far more than perfection.