Jumpstart Your Dream Life

10 Signs You’re Overthinking Things

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There’s an epidemic sweeping across the population.

It isn’t from a pathogen floating in the air, or a substance lying on a table surface. It’s right in our heads.

We’re faced with levels of uncertainty that many of us have never had to deal with. We’re faced with concerns about whether things will remain stable. And then there’s the inability to make future plans, which leaves people with lots of spare time.

Lots of time to think. Lots of time to worry. Lots of time to overthink.

Overthinking has always been prevalent. A study showed that 73 percent of 25 to 35 year olds overthink, while 52 percent of 45 to 55 year olds overthink. A large part of the population is doing a lot of thinking.

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What to Do When Every Day Feels the Same (Especially During a Pandemic)

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Do you ever feel like you’re living your own version of Groundhog Day?

You’re repeating the same day over and over again. Nothing is unexpected, nothing can be changed. You wake up, do the same thing, go to bed, repeat.

Any sense of spontaneity you might have experienced before has been sucked out, leaving only muted shades of black, white, and grey. You look ahead, and everything looks the same. You look back, and it’s all a blur.

It’s a common feeling during normal times. You’ve been doing the same thing for awhile. Maybe you’re working in a job, running a project, and going through your routine.

You’ve lost motivation, you’re just not that excited anymore, and things are getting stale. It’s normal, no matter what you do.

But during a pandemic? Multiply that feeling by a hundred.

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8 Reasons to Keep Moving Forward When You Feel Self-Doubt

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Do you ever have one of those down days where you’ve fallen and can’t get up?

You’ve spent all your energy and have none left. You’ve exhausted every avenue you had. You’ve run into obstacles that you can’t climb over.

If this sounds familiar, no wonder you feel uncertain about things.

You’ve put in all the effort, only to yield little results. You started at the same time as everyone else, only for others to leapfrog over you. You realize that your time is limited, and yet you’ve squandered it away.

No wonder you feel doubtful about yourself.

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What to Do When Everything is Up In the Air

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It’s been a hard year.

Over the past several months, we’ve been faced with challenges that none of us have had to deal with before. All of a sudden, everybody’s lives have changed dramatically.

We can’t celebrate special occasions with loved ones out of safety reasons. Many of us are struggling to cope with a mix of emotions, such as fear, sadness, and loneliness. It feels like everything is just hanging in the air, full of uncertainty.

When will it end? And what do we do in the meantime?

The easiest and most obvious answer is: wait. Wait. That’s a heavy word.

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Should You Suffer Now to Enjoy Life Later?

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We’re stuck in an age-old dichotomy.

Work hard now, reap the rewards later. Enjoy life now, suffer the consequences later. We’re told you can’t have both, especially not at the same time.

When you’re stuck doing something that makes you unhappy, the feeling worsens when you look around and notice other people enjoying themselves. To console yourself, you tell yourself that same line.

You’re suffering now so that you can have a better future down the road. Meanwhile, others who aren’t suffering are going to have to pay the price later. It all evens out in the end.

The question is: Does it?

Why is suffering seen as a prized state of being? Is there something to be gained from pain?

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How to Start Over Again After a Bad Ending

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In 1914, a massive fire burned through Thomas Edison’s life’s work.

The flames engulfed five city blocks in New Jersey, including Edison’s lab complex. Fueled by chemicals, flames licked the sky at 100 feet high. The firefighters fought the fire from a nearby building called the Battery Factory, which had been built with his durable Edison cement and produced batteries for experimental vehicles.

Nikola Tesla, a rival inventor, heard the tragic news. He sent his condolences in a telegraph: “As one of the millions of your admirers, I send you my sympathy. It is not only a personal and national loss, but a world loss, for you have been one of its greatest benefactors.”

Newspapers ran articles on the story, clamoring about how the fire was the worst thing to happen to Edison, who was 67 years old at the time. Was this it for him? Was this how he would see all his hard work go down?

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Overthinking is Damaging Your Well-Being

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Imagine that it’s close to bedtime.

You’ve finished a long day of work, ate dinner, and watched TV. You get into bed and relax by doing some reading.

After a while, you realize it’s getting late and decide to call it a night. You reach over and turn off the light. It’s pitch dark now.

You know you should be falling asleep. And yet there you are, staring at the ceiling. Your mind is racing with all sorts of thoughts.

You think back to something you said and wonder if things came out wrong. You reflect on a past action that resulted in negative consequences. Then, you start to worry about all the things that could possibly go wrong.

With each passing thought, you feel yourself sinking into a low mood.

If this sounds like you, you may be suffering from overthinking.

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Now Is the Time to Start Fresh

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In 1918, a 15-year-old named Violet Harris decided to keep a diary. To prevent the spread of Spanish Flu, all schools, churches, and public venues in Seattle were closed until further notice. Her response to not having to go to school was that of pure joy: “Good idea? I’ll say it is!”

Despite the lockdown, the disease spread. Vi, as her family called her, heard news of her friend Rena when she went to return her umbrella. Rena’s father met Vi and informed her that both Rena’s mother and Rena were sick with the flu.

Eventually, they both recovered. Sometime later, Rena called Vi on the phone. When Vi asked her what it felt like to have the flu, Rena said, “Don’t get it.”

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5 Ways You Can Increase Your Intelligence, According to Science

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We often assume intelligence is fixed from birth.

If you’re born with it, you have it. And if you aren’t? That’s too bad. End of story.

Previously, neuroscientists believed that our brains were “fixed”. No matter what someone did, there was nothing they could do to change their brains. If anything, our brain functions would become worse over time.

However, more recent research shows otherwise.

But before we get to that, let’s answer the question: what is intelligence?

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5 Everyday Facts About Life That Are Unfair (Which We Need to Accept)

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Fairness is subjective.

When things are going smoothly, everything seems fair. You’re riding high on the clouds, soaking in all the wonderful things life has to offer. But once you hit turbulence and rough storms, you start to feel everything turn against you. It all just feels so…unfair.

The thing is that life operates on its own terms, not yours. And while you might not like those terms, that’s the way things are. Rather than refusing to accept their existence, it’s better to acknowledge them and keep moving forward.

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