Overthinking Is Fine… If You’re Focused on Problem-Solving
By: Tenzin Ozaki
Tags: Mindfulness, Self, Problem Solving, Life Lessons, Life

Unless you’ve been living under a rock, I’m sure you’ve read countless articles or listened to podcasts that talk about meditation and mindfulness. The modern personal development narrative preaches the benefits of living in the present while actively suppressing thoughts about the past or future.

The narrative creates so much pressure to be mindful and non-reactive. To live like a monk — except you aren’t in an isolated monastery, you’re facing the stresses of everyday life.

As the wise tortoise, Master Oogway, says in Kung Fu Panda,

‘Yesterday is history, tomorrow is a mystery, but today is a gift. That is why it is called the present.’

I agree; living in the present is essential. Overthinking about the past or the future doesn’t provide any value because the present moment is the only thing in our lives that is real and tangible.

For example, our memories are more skewed visual perceptions than accurate accounts of reality. But ironically, we’re confident in our ability to remember things even though our memories are pretty awful.

Scientists introduced DNA testing in the 1990s. The Innocence Project was founded a couple of years later in 1992. The Project’s mission was to overturn wrongful convictions by leveraging DNA testing to prove innocence. Since them, cases based on eyewitness testimony represented over 70 percent of the criminal convictions overturned by DNA testing.

So, our memories suck.

It’s also odd to think about the future. Thinking about the future is merely an attempt to predict the unpredictable. Who would’ve thought that a global pandemic would change everything in 2020?

I spent so much time at the beginning of 2020, worrying about finding an apartment near campus. Then COVID happened, the semester transitioned to an online experience, and I was back with my mom paying no rent and getting homemade meals.

Overthinking about the past or future isn’t beneficial.

However, I don’t think all overthinking is necessarily negative. Unfortunately, the narrative surrounding overthinking suggests that any non-present thinking is now worthy of condemnation.

I think the narrative over-generalizes overthinking and applies a broad label that does not account for the different types of overthinking. If you overthink, it’s bad. If you overthink, you’re not demonstrating mindfulness, and that’s bad. If you overthink, you’re not practicing non-reactivity, and that’s bad.

We don’t differentiate between thoughts.

Yes, sometimes overthinking is bad by the definition that you’re focusing on pointless thoughts. For example, I’ll catch myself regretting that one time in high school when I said something incredibly stupid. Or, I’ll find myself worrying about whether or not I’ll find a wife or if I’ll be a single 45-year-old hanging out at bars that are a couple of decades too young for me.

But sometimes, overthinking is symptomatic of something more profound. Your thoughts are like back pain — you can ignore it and hope it goes away, or you can try and fix the root problem.

Maybe your thoughts are trying to identify a problem that is stressing you out or a situation that is bothering you. They are symptomatic that something is wrong. These thoughts are your mind’s way of ringing the alarm bell.

Overthinking and reflecting on these thoughts isn’t harmful if you’re approaching it with a problem-solving mindset.

So how do you transform overthinking into problem-solving? Ask yourself these four questions.