When Is Overthinking Helpful? 4 Ways to Figure It Out

The word “overthinking” already implies a negative connotation, but I think it’s worth considering whether overthinking is always problematic. There are four dimensions we can consider to determine if our overthinking in a specific instance is productive or unproductive:

1. Impact on Time and Energy

The first dimension to consider is how overthinking influences your time and energy. Helpful overthinking is unlikely to disrupt your daily life or impede essential tasks. It doesn’t interfere with your sleep, nor does it prevent you from being present in your daily activities.

Unhelpful overthinking, on the other hand, consumes an excessive amount of your time and energy, and feels out of your control. For instance, if you’re distracted because you’re “in your head” to the point where you have a hard time focusing on a conversation or a task, it may be a sign that your overthinking has shifted to an unhelpful state. 

Sometimes we are consumed by our thoughts because whatever problem we’re trying to solve is very important. In these cases, it may be a good idea to pause your normal activities and devote time to thinking productively about the problem until you have more clarity about what action to take.

2. Information Generated by Overthinking

Consider the nature of the information your overthinking generates. Helpful overthinking often leads to new solutions, ideas, or approaches to situations. It fosters flexible thinking and encourages considering multiple options, thus producing beneficial insights.

Conversely, unhelpful overthinking fails to generate new information, trapping you in repetitive thought cycles. If your thoughts revolve around improbable worst-case scenarios or if your overthinking isn’t producing any new insights, it may be unproductive.

3. Overthinking and Anxiety Levels

Anxiety isn't inherently negative—it can be a valuable motivator that propels us into action. It can also help us identify what we really care about. Helpful overthinking aligns with this optimal level of anxiety as depicted in this diagram of the Yerkes-Dodson Law. 

The idea is that there’s a zone of optimal anxiety in which we are sufficiently activated to move towards a goal. Too much or too little anxiety prevents us from taking effective action.

It’s useful to reflect on whether your anxiety in any given situation is within that optimal zone or not, and build self-awareness of your own anxiety markers so that you can get better at disengaging from unhelpful anxious thinking.

4. Relationship to Action

The fourth and final dimension to consider in assessing whether your overthinking is helpful or not is how it relates to your actions. Helpful overthinking can prevent impulsive decisions by encouraging thoughtful decision-making. As long as your thinking is moving you towards a decision, it’s probably still helpful.

When overthinking leads to missed deadlines, procrastination, or delayed decisions that impact others negatively, it becomes unhelpful.

Summary

In summary, consider four key dimensions to differentiate between helpful and unhelpful overthinking: the impact on your time and energy, the type of information generated, the interaction with anxiety levels, and the relationship to action and decision-making.

For those looking to manage overthinking, check out my guide From Fear To Forward, in which I walk you through seven steps designed to navigate risky decision-making situations. You can also check out the video for the guide below.