How To Stop Overthinking Everything

How to Stop Overthinking
Everything: 12 Simple Habits

By Henrik Edberg Updated August 12, 2020
What is holding people back from the life that they truly want to
live?
I’d say that one very common and destructive thing is that they
don't know how to stop overthinking.
They overthink every little problem until it becomes bigger and

scarier than it actually is. They overthink positive things until
they don’t look so positive anymore (and as the anxiety starts to
build).
Or overanalyze and deconstruct things and so the happiness

that comes from just enjoying something in the moment
disappears.
Now, thinking things through can be a great thing of course.
But getting lost in a sort of overthinking disorder can result in

becoming someone who stands still in life. In
becoming someone who self-sabotages the good things that
happen in life.
I know. I used to overthink things a lot and it held me back in
ways that weren’t fun at all.
But in the past 10 years or so I've learned how to make this issue
so small that it very rarely pops up anymore. And if it does then
I know what to do to overcome it.
In this article I'd like to share 12 habits that have helped me in a

big, big way to become a simpler and smarter thinker and to live
a happier and less fearful life.
Bonus: Download a free step-by-step checklist that will show

you how to stop overthinking (including 2 bonus steps that are
not in this post). It’s easy to save as a PDF or print out for
whenever you need it during your day or week.
Download

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1. Put things into a wider perspective.

It's very easy to fall into the trap of overthinking minor things in
life.
So when you are thinking and thinking about something ask

yourself:
Will this matter in 5 years? Or even in 5 weeks?
I've found that widening the perspective by using this simple

question can quickly snap me out of overthinking and help me
to let go of that situation.
It allows me to finally stop thinking about something and to

focus my time and energy on something else that actually does
matter to me.
2. Set short time-limits for decisions.
If you do not have a time-limit for when you must make a
decision and take action then you can just keep turning your
thoughts around and around and view them from all angles in
your mind for a very long time.
So learn to become better at making decisions and to spring into

action by setting deadlines in your daily life. No matter if it's a
small or bigger decision.
Here’s what has worked for me:
 For small decisions like if should go and do the dishes,

respond to an email or work out I usually give myself 30
seconds or less to make a decision.
 For somewhat larger decisions that would have taken
me days or weeks to think through in the past I use a
deadline for 30 minutes or for the end of the workday.
3. Stop setting your day up for stress

and overthinking.
You can’t totally avoid overwhelming or very stressful days.
But you can minimize the number of them in your month and
year by getting a good start to your day and by not setting
yourself up for unnecessary stress, overthinking and suffering.
Three things that help me with that are:
Get a good start.

I’ve mentioned this many times by now. And with good reason.
Because how you start your day tends to often set the tone for
your day.
A stressed morning leads to stressed day. Consuming negative
information as you ride the bus to your job tends to lead to
more pessimistic thoughts during the rest of your day.
While for example reading something uplifting over breakfast,

getting some exercise and then getting started with your most
important task right now sets a good tone for the day and will
help you to stay positive.
Single-task and take regular breaks.
This will help you to keep a sharp focus during your day and to
get what’s most important done while also allowing you to rest
and recharge so you don’t start to run on fumes.
And this somewhat relaxed mindset but with the narrow focus
will help you to think clearly and decisively and avoid winding
up in a stressed and overthinking headspace.
Minimize your daily input.

Too much information, too many times of just taking a few
minutes to check your inbox, Facebook or Twitter account
or how your blog or website is doing leads to more input and
clutter in your mind as your day progresses.
And so it becomes harder to think in a simple and clear way and
easier to lapse back into that familiar overthinking habit.
4. Become a person of action.

When you know how to get started with taking action
consistently each day then you’ll procrastinate less by
overthinking.
Setting deadlines and a good tone for the day are two things that
have helped me to become much more of person of action.
Taking small steps forward and only focusing on getting one

small step done at a time is another habit that have worked
really well.
It works so well because you do not feel overwhelmed and so

you do not want flee into procrastination or lazy inaction.
And even though you may be afraid, taking just a step is such a
small thing that you do not get paralyzed in fear.
5. Realize that you cannot control
everything.
Trying to think things through 50 times can be a way to try to
control everything. To cover every eventuality so you don't risk
making a mistake, fail or looking like a fool.
But those things are a part of living a life where you truly stretch
your comfort zone. Everyone who you may admire and have
lived a life that inspires you has failed. They have made
mistakes.
But in most cases they've also seen these things as valuable

feedback to learn from.
Those things that may look negative have taught them a lot and
have been invaluable to help them to grow.
So stop trying to control everything. Trying to do so simply

doesn’t work because no one can see all possible scenarios in
advance.
This is of course easier said than done. So do it in small steps if

you like.
6. Say stop in a situation where you
know you cannot think straight.
Sometimes when I'm hungry or when I'm lying in bed and are
about to go to sleep negative thoughts start buzzing around in
my mind.
In the past they could do quite a bit of damage. Nowadays I've

become good at catching them quickly and to say to myself:
No, no, we are not going to think about this now.
I know that when I'm hungry or sleepy then my mind

sometimes tend to be vulnerable to not thinking clearly and to
negativity.
So I follow up my “no, no…” phrase and I say to myself that I
will think this situation or issue through when I know that my
mind will work much better.
For example, after I've eaten something or in the morning after

I have gotten my hours of sleep.
It took a bit of practice to get this to work but I've gotten pretty
good at postponing thinking in this way. And I know from
experience that when I revisit a situation with some level-
headed thinking then in 80% of the cases the issue is very small
to nonexistent.
And if there is a real issue then my mind is prepared to deal

with it in much better and more constructive way.
7. Don't get lost in vague fears.

Another trap I've fallen into many times that have spurred on
overthinking is that I've gotten lost in vague fears about a
situation in my life.
And so my mind running wild has created disaster scenarios

about what could happen if I do something.
So I've learned to ask myself: honestly, what is the worst that

could happen?
And when I've figured out what the worst that could happen
actually is then I can also spend a little time to think about what
I can do if that often pretty unlikely thing happens.
I've found that the worst that could realistically happen is

usually something that is not as scary as what my mind running
wild with vague fear could produce.
Finding clarity in this way usually only takes a few minutes and
bit of energy and it can save you a lot of time and suffering.
8. Work out.
This might sound a bit odd.
But working out can really help with letting go of inner tensions
and worries.
It most often makes me feel more decisive and when I was more
of an overthinker then it was often my go-to method of changing
the headspace I was in to a more constructive one.
9. Get plenty of good quality sleep.

I think this is one of the most commonly neglected factors when
it comes to keeping a positive mindset and not get lost in
negative thought habits.
Because when you haven’t slept enough then you become more
vulnerable.
Vulnerable to worrying and pessimism. To not thinking as

clearly as you usually do. And to getting lost in thoughts going
around and around in your mind as you overthink.
So let me share a couple of my favorite tips that help me to sleep

better:
Keep it cool.
It can feel nice at first to get into a warm bedroom. But I’ve
found that I sleep better and more calmly with fewer scary or
negative dreams if I keep the bedroom cool.
Keep the earplugs nearby.
If you, like me, are easily awoken by noises then a pair simple
earplugs can be a life-saver.
These inexpensive items have helped me to get a good night’s

sleep and sleep through snorers, noisy cats and other
disturbances more times than I can remember.
Don’t try to force yourself to go to sleep.

If you don’t feel sleepy then don’t get into bed and try to force
yourself to go to sleep.
That, at least in my experience, only leads to tossing and turning

in my bed for an hour or more.
A better solution in these situations is to wind down for an extra

20-30 minutes on the couch with, for example, some reading.
This helps me to go to sleep faster and, in the end, get more
sleep.
10. Spend more of your time in the

present moment.
By being in the present moment in your everyday life rather
than in the past or a possible future in your mind you can
replace more and more of the time you usually spend on
overthinking things with just being here right now instead.
Three ways that I often use to reconnect with the present
moment are:
Slow down.
Slow down how you do whatever you are doing right now. Move
slower, talk slower or ride your bicycle more slowly for example.
By doing so you become more aware of how you use your body
and what is happening all around you right now.
Tell yourself: Now I am…

I often tell myself this: Now I am X. And X could be brushing
my teeth. Taking a walk in the woods. Or doing the dishes.
This simple reminder helps my mind to stop wandering and

brings my focus back to what is happening in this moment.
Disrupt and reconnect.

If you feel you are getting lost in overthinking then disrupt that
thought by – in your mind – shouting this to yourself : STOP!
Then reconnect with the present moment by taking just 1-2

minutes to focus fully on what is going on around you. Take it
all in with all your senses. Feel it, hear it, smell it, see it and
sense it on your skin.
11. Spend more of your time with

people who do not overthink things.
Your social environment plays a big part.
And not just the people and groups close to you in real life. But
also what you read, listen to and watch. The blogs, books,
forums, movies, podcasts and music in your life.
So think about if there are any sources in your life – close by or

further away – that encourages and tends create more
overthinking in your mind. And think about what people or
sources that has the opposite effect on you.
Find ways to spend more of your time and attention with the
people and input that have a positive effect on your
thinking and less on the influences that tends to strengthen
your overthinking habit.
12. Be aware of the issue (and remind

yourself throughout your day)
Being aware of your challenge is important to break the habit of
overthinking.
But if you’re thinking that you’ll just remember to stop

overthinking during your normal day then you’re likely just
fooling yourself.
At least if you’re anything like me.
Because I needed help. It wasn’t hard to get it though. I just

created a few reminders.
My main one was a note on the whiteboard I had on one of my

walls at the time. It said “Keep things extremely simple”.
Seeing this many times during my day helped me to snap out of

overthinking faster and to over time greatly minimize this
negative habit.
Two other kinds of reminders that you can use are:
A small written note.

Simply use a post-it note or something similar and write down
my whiteboard phrase, a question like “Am I overcomplicating
this?” or some other reminder that appeals to you.
Put that note where you cannot avoid seeing it like for example
on your bedside table, your bathroom mirror or beside your
computer screen.
A reminder on your smart phone.

Write down one of the phrases above or one of you own
choosing in a reminder app on your smart phone.
I for example use my Android phone and the free app

called Google Keep to do this.
Here’s the next step…
Now, you may think to yourself:
“This is really helpful information. But what’s the easiest way to

put this into practice and actually make a real change with my
overthinking?”.
Well, I’ve got something special for you…

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How can widening one's perspective help reduce overthinking?

How can widening one's perspective help reduce overthinking?

How to Stop Overthinking

Everything: 12 Simple Habits

They overthink every little problem until it becomes bigger and

Or overanalyze and deconstruct things and so the happiness

Now, thinking things through can be a great thing of course.

But getting lost in a sort of overthinking disorder can result in

In this article I'd like to share 12 habits that have helped me in a

Bonus: Download a free step-by-step checklist that will show

1. Put things into a wider perspective.

So when you are thinking and thinking about something ask

Will this matter in 5 years? Or even in 5 weeks?

I've found that widening the perspective by using this simple

It allows me to finally stop thinking about something and to

So learn to become better at making decisions and to spring into

Here’s what has worked for me:

 For small decisions like if should go and do the dishes,

3. Stop setting your day up for stress

Three things that help me with that are:

Get a good start.

While for example reading something uplifting over breakfast,

Minimize your daily input.

4. Become a person of action.

Taking small steps forward and only focusing on getting one

It works so well because you do not feel overwhelmed and so

But in most cases they've also seen these things as valuable

So stop trying to control everything. Trying to do so simply

This is of course easier said than done. So do it in small steps if

In the past they could do quite a bit of damage. Nowadays I've

No, no, we are not going to think about this now.

I know that when I'm hungry or sleepy then my mind

For example, after I've eaten something or in the morning after

And if there is a real issue then my mind is prepared to deal

7. Don't get lost in vague fears.

And so my mind running wild has created disaster scenarios

So I've learned to ask myself: honestly, what is the worst that

I've found that the worst that could realistically happen is

9. Get plenty of good quality sleep.

Vulnerable to worrying and pessimism. To not thinking as

So let me share a couple of my favorite tips that help me to sleep

These inexpensive items have helped me to get a good night’s

Don’t try to force yourself to go to sleep.

That, at least in my experience, only leads to tossing and turning

A better solution in these situations is to wind down for an extra

10. Spend more of your time in the

Tell yourself: Now I am…

This simple reminder helps my mind to stop wandering and

Disrupt and reconnect.

Then reconnect with the present moment by taking just 1-2

11. Spend more of your time with

So think about if there are any sources in your life – close by or

12. Be aware of the issue (and remind

But if you’re thinking that you’ll just remember to stop

At least if you’re anything like me.

Because I needed help. It wasn’t hard to get it though. I just

My main one was a note on the whiteboard I had on one of my