A dose of critical and analytical thinking never hurts anyone. However, sometimes doubts make us make bad decisions or, what is even worse, they lead us to total immobility. Obviously, the impossibility of knowing with certainty what a decision awaits us is something difficult to face, but taking risks is the only way to continue forward on the path.
Research that has been carried out in the field of Psychology shows that when we are prey to doubts, we end up seeking an excessive amount of information (probably in an attempt to search for certainties) but in the end, these lead us to procrastination. If you have ever faced doubts you will know exactly what I mean.
In addition, it is also known that people who tend to be prey to doubts tend to develop depressive and anxious symptoms. The good news is that now a new study reveals an escape route.
Researchers from the University of Kentucky and the Autonomous University of Madrid carried out a very interesting experiment. They recruited a series of people who could be described as “chronic doubters”.
To begin, they made them pass a test whose real objective was to awaken a feeling of insecurity. In practice, in this test the participants had to form a sentence with a series of disorganized words. An example of a sentence was: “The spokesperson questioned his reasons” and they were told that if they could not form a meaningful sentence, they could leave out the words “the spokesperson.” Therefore, the sentence could read as follows: “he questioned his reasons.”
But at this point the experiment took a 360 degree turn. The words that were supposed to encourage doubts had the opposite effect, triggering certainty. Therefore, this suggests that challenging our own doubts can be beneficial. Of course, this is not a permanent solution but it will work in the short term.
Researchers found that we can also dispel doubts by simply shaking our head in denial. Of course, this effect lasts only a few minutes so it is not the most appropriate solution to eliminate important doubts. However, the truth is that the study is very interesting since it shows us once again how simple gestures or words can enhance one state to the detriment of the other.
An exercise that will help you make decisions and remove doubt
When we have to make an important decision and we have doubts, our strategy par excellence is usually postponement. Perhaps because we believe that over time we will be able to collect more information and reduce insecurity. Obviously, I am not saying that this is a wrong strategy since sometimes the wisest thing is to wait. However, this strategy is not always assertive and in most cases ends up causing us great tension and sometimes even makes us miss out on excellent opportunities.
If you are one of the people who usually stops along the way because doubts prevent you from moving forward, here is a very simple exercise that will help you make the decision you have so often postponed.
1. Focus on the situation you must solve. Write on a piece of paper what decision you have been postponing (it is worth clarifying that almost always what we postpone is the implementation of the decision). At this point stop and examine your feelings. What do you experience when you think about your decision? Write these emotions in a column.
2. Make a list of your doubts. Reflect on each of them and try to associate the doubts with the emotions you experience. Now, ask yourself if your doubt has a real basis or is just a belief that is limiting you. Eliminate all doubts that have no real basis or whose possibility of occurrence is less than 50%. Eliminate all the feelings that you had associated with them.
You will be amazed to see that there are very few doubts and negative feelings left on your list because most of the hesitations that grip us come from erroneous beliefs about ourselves or about life.
3. Bring to mind a similar situation in which you made the right decision. This will give you confidence.
4. Identify your qualities. You will be surprised to see how doubts do not come from your best qualities but from your fears.
5. Take risks. Behind every decision there is always another path that you will not take. It is a risk and a responsibility that we must assume. The most important thing is that you are sure that at that moment, with the information you had at your disposal, you made the best possible decision.
Reference:
Wichman, A.L. et. Al. (2010) Doubting one’s doubt: A formula for confidence? Journal of Experimental Social Psychology ; 46(2): 350-355.
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