Thinking more by slowing decisions and reviewing more data can lead to better decisions.

However, overthinking occurs when we get stuck in a loop and can't move forward.

You can learn how to avoid a repetitive loop that feels unpleasant and does not improve decision quality.

Scientifically, overthinking is not a singular phenomenon. But because the experience is common to many people, we use an umbrella term to describe different mental patterns. In this post, you’ll learn to spot typical patterns you may fall into, and how you can not only resist those patterns but also make better decisions and feel more confident in them.

But thinking more usually improves decisions!

Much of the scientific literature on decision-making recommends taking more time and reviewing more data. When advising leaders, social scientists and business scholars alike recommend practices that slow the decision process and force a wider range of evidence to be considered [1,2]. In my own work developing people’s leadership, communication and influencing skills, my goal is to instill a pause before your automatic response, so you can respond in a manner that is more effective than your usual, default approach.

But thinking longer does not always improve outcomes and can cause emotional distress. So, when does thinking become overthinking: a repetitive loop that feels unpleasant and does not improve decision quality?

When we prolong the decision without improving it

Neuroscientists have proposed that our brains treat the effort of evaluating different options as a cost we pay in order to buy confidence [3]. As a result, we stop thinking once we feel confident enough. However, if you can’t reach the point of feeling confident enough – because you can’t verify the value of the options or distinguish between them – you may keep reviewing the same evidence. Your brain keeps “paying” in time and effort without gaining any reassurance.

Postponing the decision may itself dwindle your confidence. Computational modelling indicates that we use our decision-making time as a direct source of information about our confidence in that decision [4]. Thus, the longer we take to decide, the less confident and more uncomfortable we may feel, particularly when there is no new information available.

What form of overthinking do you experience?

Here are three common variants you might recognise in yourself:

Maximising:........

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