Here’s a scenario.
Say you’re finalizing a client proposal. You know the core content is solid, but you start to find yourself obsessively re-reading every paragraph, scrutinizing each word for the perfect phrasing. As you pore over the document, you start to rethink your initial choices. You spend hours debating whether to add more detail or simplify the language. Your indecision grows, and you become paralyzed by the fear of making a mistake.
This is textbook overthinking. It’s the voice in your head that second-guesses every decision, magnifying doubts and paralyzing progress. The workplace is a breeding ground for overthinking, as the pressure to meet expectations, fear of failure, and desire for perfection can cloud your judgment.
Breaking free from this cycle is possible. By understanding the roots of your overthinking tendencies and embracing strategies to quiet your mind, you can reclaim clarity and confidence in your work.
In this article:
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What is overthinking and why do we do it?
Overthinking involves excessive analysis of current or future scenarios, affecting your ability to be productive, make decisions, and take action. It often centers around finding the “right” answer or outcome through revisiting thoughts or decisions repeatedly.
For example, you might overthink whether to accept a job offer, obsessively weighing pros and cons, seeking outside opinions or validation, and stressing about potential outcomes. You might ask yourself questions like, “Am I making the right choice? What if I don’t like the work environment? Will I be able to meet expectations? What if a better opportunity comes along? How will the job impact my relationship?” With any decision comes a certain amount of analysis, but if you find yourself getting more and more stressed without advancing your decision-making process, you’re probably overthinking.
If you’re an overthinker, you might also be prone to ruminating. “Rumination is the experience of having repetitive, frequently negative thoughts about a topic,” explains Dr. Brandon Patallo, a licensed psychologist at Behr Psychology. “Rumination is a core feature of anxiety conditions which often manifests as uncertainty about the future or an inability to let go of past mistakes.” For example, you could ruminate over a mistake you made in a presentation, continuously replaying the scenario in your mind, focusing on what went wrong and how it might have affected others' perceptions of you.
Why do we overthink and ruminate in the first place? Several reasons: personal life stressors, trauma, perfectionism, the list goes on. Licensed professional counselor Dr. Kendra Surmitis says overthinking can serve as a defense mechanism: “Overthinking and ruminations can serve as a protective barrier, defending an individual from other disavowed, less-familiar feelings and thoughts. Knowing this as a clinician, I evenly attune to both the content of my clients’ ruminations, as well as the possibility that they may be covering painful inner experiences related to traumas that continue to impact them deeply.”
In the workplace, Patallo says we often overthink because we’re programmed to fear uncertainty and we begin to doubt our own ability to resolve issues as a result. This becomes a cycle, according to Surmitis: “When someone feels negative feelings and distress, they’re more likely to remember more negative situations that continue to sustain a negative impact,” she says. “Individuals can become stuck in a rigid cycle of remembering and witnessing their own pain and distress, without movement toward resolution. So, when one is in a cycle of workplace distress, which oftentimes includes instances of sexism, racism, ageism, and other traumatic and chronic phenomenon, they’re more likely to remain encapsulated in feelings of hopelessness, sadness, and despair.”
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Common work scenarios that trigger overthinking
Usually, situations that involve uncertainty or high stakes prompt people to overthink and overanalyze. Major decisions such as choosing a project strategy, allocating resources, or hiring new team members can understandably lead to excessive worry, and concerns about promotions, raises, or your job security can trigger overthinking about your performance, future opportunities, and professional development.
Micromanagement and receiving feedback are also common scenarios that lead to overthinking. “Ambiguous or negative feedback on how we’re functioning is one of the most common causes of workplace overthinking. When we’re unsure of how we’re performing, it can be easy to slip into doubting ourselves,” Patallo says. “Separating your sense of worth from your workplace role can be an essential step to resolving such scenarios.”
Surmitis shares a tangible example of how micromanagement can cause overthinking:
“Daniella is enthusiastic about her new job as an apprentice electrician. Her supervisor is a champion of what he refers to as ‘excellence without exception,’ and initially, Daniella feels supported and excited by her supervisor’s leadership style. After a week of work, however, she feels fearful of making mistakes and inundated by her supervisor’s frequent communications. In a state of overwhelm and overstimulation, Daniella begins waking up in the middle of the night, terrorized by fear and wondering if she’s meeting her supervisor’s high standards. She imagines her completed tasks and suspects she’s not good enough to excel as an electrician. Sometimes these thoughts spill into her time with her son, which leads her to feel like she’s a ‘bad mom.’ She’s left feeling increasingly disappointed in herself, depressed, and fearful.”
Recognize the pattern: 4 signs you’re overthinking at work
Identifying when you’re caught in a cycle of overthinking is the first step to breaking free from it.
1. You think about work a lot in your free time
“One clear indicator of workplace rumination is that you find your thoughts drifting to work-related thoughts or stressors outside of work hours,” Patallo says. “It’s an especially clear sign if you find the thoughts feel intrusive and disrupt your ability to focus on the moment and your life outside of the context of work. It can become extremely difficult to avoid overthinking when we feel we need to respond to work-related stressors at any moment. Look out for feeling overwhelmed by minor details, difficulty making decisions, and a general sense of dread relating to the workplace.”
2. You regularly procrastinate on tasks
When you're overthinking, you may become overly concerned with producing perfect results. This fear can lead to procrastination, because you might avoid starting a task until you feel absolutely certain you can execute it flawlessly. It becomes a way to delay facing feared outcomes, even if they’re unlikely to occur.
3. You need validation before making a decision
Overthinking often makes you question your judgment and abilities. This lack of confidence can cause you to seek external validation to reassure you that your decision is correct. You might engage in lengthy discussions with colleagues or mentors about decisions before moving forward with a plan.
4. Your confidence and self-assurance are lacking
You experience intense self-doubt and second-guessing, even in areas where you have expertise or past success. You spend a lot of time comparing your work or decisions to those of others, worrying about how you measure up or if others don’t agree with your choices.
Coping mechanisms & how to break the cycle of overthinking
Create a mindfulness practice
Mindfulness helps you focus on the present moment and encourages a calmer and clearer state of mind. “Mindfulness exercises, such as focused breathing or meditation, can help center the mind and reduce the tendency to overthink. The ability to observe thoughts without getting entangled in them is often a key ingredient in overcoming rumination.”
Surmitis says grounding techniques such as physical activity, spending mindful time in nature, consciously calling to mind positive memories of empowerment and industriousness, and creating plans for necessary change can help you stop replaying situations, decisions, or ideas.
Create boundaries around your work habits
Setting boundaries is a powerful way to manage overthinking at work. “Allocating specific times for problem-solving or decision-making can prevent excessive deliberation,” Patallo says. “Boundaries around the time devoted to workplace tasks and thoughts provide a buffer that allows us to prioritize ourselves even if we are overwhelmed.”
For example, you might establish a firm rule that you won’t engage in work-related activities, such as checking emails or thinking about projects, after a specific time each evening. By committing to the boundary, you can reduce the tendency to overthink work-related issues during your personal time.
When drafting boundaries, Surmitis advises employees to “document any patterns of overthinking and notice who, where, and what common denominators and triggers may align with overthinking. Once those variables are identified, consider new ways of engaging in those spaces and evaluate your proximity to those triggers.”
Ask for help from a professional
Surmitis encourages employees to call upon a mentor, advisor, therapist, or coach who can evaluate the situation objectively and offer support. “If your history includes discrimination, trauma, and interpersonal suffering, I recommend working through those memories with a therapist or psychoanalyst who’s equipped to support you as you process the past, while also inviting a new framework for engaging life with less rumination and worry,” she says. “Isolation and shame are often associated with rumination and overthinking, and empathic understanding and support counteract the narrative that oftentimes perpetuates distress.”
Patallo says individual therapy can be a valuable tool to unlearn old patterns and become aligned with a happier, healthier version of yourself, and there are strategies from therapy you can apply to your daily life. For example, you can try cognitive restructuring, a therapeutic process used to identify, challenge, and change negative thought patterns. Patallo says, “If an employee is obsessing over a potential mistake, slowing down can help them see it as a minor issue rather than a catastrophic failure.” After identifying the thought, “This mistake will ruin my career,” they might ask themselves:
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“What evidence do I have that this mistake is truly catastrophic?”
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“Have I made similar mistakes in the past, and how did I handle them?”
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“What is the likelihood that this one mistake will have long-term consequences?”
After reflecting, they might replace their initial thought with a more balanced perspective: “Mistakes are a part of growth, and I can address this issue and move forward.”
Is it possible to develop a long-term mindset that reduces the likelihood of overthinking?
“Developing a long-term mindset to prevent overthinking requires sustained effort toward building resilience and self-awareness,” Patallo says. “One helpful approach to stabilizing these anxieties is to increase compassion for yourself. Take time to slow down and realign with your values and self-worth and ground yourself in the present moment. Understanding that perfection is unattainable and mistakes are unavoidable can help lighten the load of overthinking.”
Directing your anxious energy toward “communicating, advocating, and engaging others in creating meaningful change can be an empowering method,” Surmitis says. “Are your ruminations perhaps a call for action? If so, who will support you in your efforts? Name one small step toward change and imagine taking that step with confidence and esteem.”
Adopting a growth mindset is necessary in order to confront and disengage from harmful patterns of overthinking. “It can be challenging to unlearn long-standing patterns. Embracing a growth mindset allows challenges to be seen as opportunities to practice new skills rather than as threats to our self-image,” Patallo says. “This can reduce the fear of failure that fuels overthinking.”
Surmitis shares a final, important thought on overthinking. “We must remember that not all overthinking is pathological, and we shouldn’t critique anyone for ‘thinking too much,’ especially when that person is enduring abuse. For example, some women have been accused of overthinking by their abusers who’d like them to remain participants in their cycle of intimate partner violence. Given our history of punishing or silencing women (and others) for their awareness and thinking, we need to be very careful not to criticize ‘overthinking,’ but rather attend to thoughts with benevolent curiosity.”
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