The search for certainty

Thinking is useful. Not exactly a groundbreaking statement, but it is. 

Thinking helps us solve problems, make decisions and prepare for things. Useful thinking moves us somewhere. It might lead to a decision, an action, a solution or simply a better understanding of something. 

Think > Act > Outcome 

However, sometimes thinking stops moving us forward and starts going around in circles. Then, overthinking steps into the room. 

Overthinking also follows a pattern, but a less useful one. 

Think > Search for certainty > Think more > Repeat 

Despite all the mental effort, overthinking rarely moves us much closer to an answer. The same questions, worries and possibilities are repeatedly visited without reaching a useful conclusion. 

Why do we overthink? 

There isn't one single reason, but some common ones include: 

Fear of making the wrong decision. 

Trying to predict other people's reactions. 

Avoiding uncomfortable emotions. 

Perfectionism. 

Past experience. 

The search for certainty 

Often, underneath overthinking, there's an understandable desire: certainty. 

We might think that if we analyse something enough, perhaps we can guarantee that we'll make the right decision, avoid embarrassment, prevent something going wrong or know exactly what another person thinks. The problem is, life rarely offers complete certainty. 

When an answer isn't available straight away, our minds continue searching for one. More thinking feels as though it will eventually provide certainty, but often it simply creates more questions and more doubt. 

The aim then isn't to stop thinking. It's to recognise when thinking is no longer helping. 

When you find yourself in an overthinking loop, ask yourself: 

“Is my thinking giving me new information, or am I going over information I already have?” 

Or perhaps: 

“Is there an action available to me right now?” 

What can be done about overthinking? 

1. Catch the loop. 
Start to recognise: I'm no longer solving this problem. I'm trying to feel certain. 

Simply noticing that you've entered the loop can help create some distance from it. 

2. Separate what you know from what you're predicting. 
What's fact? What's assumption? What's an imagined future? 

3. Identify what you can control. 
Ask yourself which parts of the situation you can actually influence. 

4. Find the smallest useful action. 
Make the phone call. Send the email. Make a provisional decision. Ask the question. Write something down. 

5. Practise tolerating some uncertainty. 
The solution to uncertainty isn't always more thinking. Sometimes it's becoming more comfortable acting without knowing exactly what's going to happen. We don't have to know exactly how something will turn out before we take a step towards it. 

6. Create some mental space. 
Sometimes we don't need to think harder. We need to give our minds some room. Getting outside, going for a walk or simply spending some time away from the constant input of our phones helps create distance from the loop. Often, clarity comes when we stop trying so hard to find it. 

How mindset coaching can help 

Mindset coaching can help you take a step outside your own thinking and look at it from a different perspective. Together, we can identify recurring thought patterns, separate what you can control from what you can't, challenge assumptions and limiting beliefs, and turn repeated thinking into more useful action. 

The aim isn't to never overthink again. We're human, and our minds will always try to predict, analyse and protect us from uncertainty. But we can become better at recognising when useful thinking has turned into an unhelpful loop. 

We may not always get the certainty we're looking for. But sometimes, we don't need certainty. We just need enough clarity to decide what comes next.