Balanced Thinking: In Harmony With The World

Balanced thinking allows you to think about the world without using many filters or distortions. It also helps you stay authentic and not get carried away by prejudice. It means being able to think without too many cognitive distortions.

By accepting and putting this way of thinking into practice, you enable yourself to let go of multiple negative elements. These range from fear to those discouraging thoughts that can sometimes haunt you.

Do not fall

When you hear the word “balance,” several ideas probably come to mind. And chances are, one of these ideas is the classic image of someone standing on a tightrope somewhere high in the sky between two buildings, doing their best not to fall.

Skillfully and patiently, he takes small steps forward, always aware that he must not fall. However, he does not maintain his balance in his body, but in his mind. This image could not be more appropriate.

We often find ourselves in the same situation in our daily lives. Our reality is sometimes chaotic, demanding, complex and even painful. Life is the tightrope and we are the acrobats who have to keep our balance in order not to lose control.

Balanced thinking is the key in this case to avoid falling. This way of thinking ensures that our emotions also find peace. Our ‘feet’ find the right direction and thus enable us to achieve a concrete goal.

However, we can say with ease that this way of thinking is by no means easy. Our brains function most of the time unconsciously and through automatic processes. These mental shortcuts are usually the result of many prejudices, restrictive attitudes, and strict schedules that often push us to the limit.

So you have to take control of yourself to find flexibility and that magical balance that regulates (almost) everything.

Balanced thinking: finding peace in the midst of uncertainty

A few years ago, an interesting study was conducted by the University Medical Center Hamburg-Eppendorf. A group of patients with depression and obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD) was brought together. These patients would participate in a one-year metacognitive training program.

The goal was concrete and challenging: to get people to tolerate uncertainty, reduce their cognitive distortions, make them think about their own thoughts and improve their reasoning processes.

The result of this study was very positive. Even so positive that the medication doses of many of the patients could be reduced. So you could say that better thoughts lead to a better life. Balanced thinking is therefore a very useful way to invest in yourself. It is also a good tool for confronting thinking patterns that only trap us.

Now let’s look at the inner processes that actually lower our quality of life.

Many of our thoughts are distorted

Anxiety, constant worry and nervousness work through negative anchors. We apply them almost completely unconsciously. We are only concerned with what will happen, the mistakes we have made in the past and the worst possible scenarios… However, this thinking pattern is often based purely and solely on cognitive distortions.

These are some of the fallacies that many of us regularly apply in our daily lives:

• Filtering: We focus our attention on negative details, in order to intensify them.
• Polarized thinking: In our reality there are no middle terms. Everything is good or bad, black or white.
• Overgeneralizing:  We are able to draw the biggest and most dramatic conclusions from the smallest and most trivial things.
• Catastrophic views: Nothing good will ever happen. Whatever you do, everything will go wrong!
• Personalize: Every chance event or even everything you do, think or say to others has to do with you.
• Emotional reasoning: what you feel is what defines you. If you feel like a failure, it’s because you really are a failure.

Then positive?

Seeing these fallacies listed like this may leave you wondering what to do to avoid them. Do you have to completely change it and always just ‘think positively’? Well, this may sound weird, but this isn’t the solution either. You are not meant to suddenly become extremely positive, nor to constantly tell yourself that everything will be fine.

How to put balanced thinking into practice

Balanced thinking in your daily life will not only reduce your risk of stress, anxiety or depression. Developing a balanced way of thinking also improves your relationship with others, as it helps you avoid prejudice, selfishness, and fanaticism.

Balanced thinking helps you avoid many of those inner pitfalls that keep you from living a fulfilling life. It allows you to love yourself more and respect those around you more. So let’s see how you can put this way of thinking into practice.

The keys to developing a balanced way of thinking

The first step is to stay calm. Sometimes we live in too much of a rush, because we have become accustomed to living on autopilot. However, this way of life causes ‘unbalanced’ thoughts. That is, we think without reasoning. We let ourselves be carried away without reflecting, seeing or appreciating… We need to slow down and allow ourselves moments of silence and tranquility.

• The second step is to make no assumptions. It can be quite tricky to get this done. However, try to avoid being quick to judge and label people. Judging quickly may be easier, but it also increases the chance of making mistakes.
• Step Three: Stop Sabotaging Yourself. Say ‘no’ to cognitive distortions and victimization. Respect yourself, work on your self-esteem and confidence. You will see that opportunities suddenly arise where you previously only saw closed doors.

• Step Four: Accept Uncertainty. Balanced thinking means tolerating uncertainty because you know that not all bad things lie ahead. And if it does, you know you have the right strategies in place to deal with these things.
• Step five: don’t change reality, learn to see things as they are. Don’t obsess about how you want things to be. Be receptive and more humble.
• Step Six: Place More Trust in Others. Don’t exclude people who think differently than you. Don’t feel superior or inferior to anyone. Practice acceptance and let go of old grudges.

Finally

We are aware that it is not easy to develop a balanced way of thinking. In order to do this, you have to restructure your whole being, break down walls, correct approaches and allow yourself to be a little more ‘free’. You can achieve this by making it a daily exercise. Learn to take a calmer, more receptive and balanced approach.