When Overthinking Hurts Your Productivity
A short analysis of overthinking and what to do about it
Have you ever tried to solve a problem only to realize that the problem gets bigger the more you think about it?
I bet you have. And so have I… Way too often.
Why do we overthink?
I read a beautiful quote today that answers this question perfectly.
“You will never be happy if you continue to search for what happiness consists of.” — Albert Camus.
Let’s change that quote a bit to fit our topic.
“You will never be satisfied with a solution to a problem, if you continue to search for what satisfaction, in the context of your problem, consists of.”
Overthinking happens when you (and I) haven’t decided on what ‘good enough’ looks like.
If you’re dwelling on the end-goal, there’s no way for you to reach it. Because for every solution you think of, the problem becomes a tiny bit bigger.
Without clearly set milestone’s, you will keep pushing the problem forwards. And you won’t feel satisfied with the solution(s) you’ve come up with because they don’t really fit the end-goal you were trying to reach… Because you didn’t really have an end-goal written down to begin with!
Overthinking feels like digging yourself into a hole. It feels like moving away from the light at the end of the tunnel. And most important: you aren’t solving the problem you set out to solve.
Do this instead
You have to clarify what solution you are working towards. And you HAVE to keep it stupid simple. Or else, your mind will try to solve more than you originally set out to do. Fogging your problem-solving skills along the way.
Before your start to work on your solution, create a clear challenge-assessment.
- Write down the problem or challenge you’re facing.
- Then write down a solution that’s a good enough fix for now.
- Split that solution up into 1–5 milestones.
- Celebrate milestones.
Notice that I highlighted ‘for now’ in step 2. It’s important to keep your focus on the short term when creating a challenge-assessment. You are not defining a long-term strategy.
A long term strategy is basically a collection of short-term challenge-assessments all working towards a predefined end-goal…
So remember:
• Problems are solved during your challenge-assessment.
• A good challenge-assessment is made before you start working
• Don’t mix up problem-solving with strategy-making.
So… Do you feel ready to get back to work? I sure do! I hope this article helps you as much as it helps me. I will see you tomorrow.
— Christiaan van Eijk
Before you leave…
I want to thank you for being here. You are one of my first readers! Since discovering I will be a father soon, I have decided to start sharing a single thought, idea, or experience with you, per day. For a hundred days. The article you are reading right now, is article #008. I hope you are as excited as I am. I am writing it for you. And believe me… Writing is not my strong suit. (But let’s try anyway!)
