Shift your thinking patterns: How to think better to feel better

Do you ever catch yourself thinking things like, “Well, that didn’t go perfectly, so I must have totally messed it up”? Or assume someone’s annoyed with you without any real reason? Yep - those are common thinking errors, and we all make them.

Your inner self-talk shapes how you feel, how you interact with others, and how you respond in different situations. Much of this comes from past experiences and learned behaviours from your upbringing.

Sometimes these thinking patterns can be unhelpful - leading you to jump to conclusions, project onto others, or catastrophise by imagining the worst-case scenarios.

17 Common Thinking Errors

Here are 17 of the most common thinking errors - how many of these sound familiar to you? The good news is, once you start recognising your thinking patterns, you can begin to change them. Awareness is the first step towards shifting your mindset and adopting healthier, more empowering ways of thinking.

Download the full guide at the end of this article!

1. All-Or-Nothing Thinking

Also known as black-and-white thinking. This involves seeing situations in extremes with no middle ground—e.g., “If I’m not a complete success, I’m a total failure.”

2. Jumping to Conclusions: Mind Reading

Assuming you know what others are thinking—usually something negative—without any actual evidence.

3. Jumping to Conclusions: Fortune Telling

Predicting the worst possible outcome and treating it as inevitable, even when there's no evidence to support it.

4. Labelling

Using harsh or negative labels for yourself or others, like “I’m useless” or “They’re so lazy,” which often aren't fair or accurate.

5. Magnification

Exaggerating the significance of negative events—turning minor issues into major catastrophes.

6. Minimisation

Downplaying your achievements or important experiences—like saying a promotion is "no big deal."

7. Overgeneralisation

Drawing broad conclusions from a single event, like “Nothing ever goes right for me.”

8. Discounting the Positive

Acknowledging good things but instantly dismissing them as flukes or insignificant.

9. Mental Filter (Selective Abstraction)

Focusing only on the negative aspects of a situation while ignoring the positives.

10. Should and Must Statements

Using rigid rules for yourself or others, like “I should always succeed,” which can create unnecessary stress.

11. Emotional Reasoning

Believing that because you feel something, it must be true. For example, “I feel anxious, so something bad must be about to happen.”

12. Catastrophising

Always expecting the worst-case scenario and assuming you won’t be able to cope.

13. Personalisation

Taking on blame or responsibility for things that aren’t entirely within your control.

14. Blame

Placing all responsibility for a situation on others, even when it's not fully theirs.

15. Comparisons

Making unfair comparisons that leave you feeling inferior or resentful—e.g., “They’re doing better than me, so I must be failing.”

16. Awfulising

Imagining the most terrible outcomes and letting them dominate your thoughts.

17. What If? Thinking

Worrying about every possible thing that could go wrong, even if it’s unlikely.

Change Starts With Awareness

The first step to breaking free from unhelpful thinking patterns is noticing them. Once you do this, you can begin to challenge and replace them with more balanced, helpful thoughts—ultimately leading to greater emotional resilience, self-compassion, and clarity.

Would you like some support shifting your mindset? Let’s talk! Book a free discovery call, or email cathy@infiniteme.co.uk to get started—I’m here to help.

Click below to download your free guide to common thinking errors.

Common Thinking Errors.pdf

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