Tips for “How to Stop Jumping to Conclusions”

Most people jump to conclusions at some point or other throughout the day. After all, our point of view is at the forefront of our mind. However, if you find yourself constantly jumping to conclusions about every little thing, you might find this is starting to affect your daily life in a harmful way. Dr. Gene Devers and Associates of Philly Family Life Counseling LLC are here to offer a few tips on “how to stop jumping to conclusions.”

4 Ways to Stop Jumping to Conclusions

A tendency to consistently jump to conclusions can be indicative of a larger anxiety disorder and can begin to take a toll on your mental health. Whether jumping to conclusions is affecting your personal relationships or causing you to ruminate on the worst possible outcomes of a situation; if you’re starting to feel the effects in your everyday life, you may need help. Here are a few tips for how to stop jumping to conclusions:

• Assume positive intent – Typically people jump to conclusions because of a practice called “mind-reading.” This means you’re assuming others have negative intentions or are always seeing the worst in you. It takes practice to always assume positive intent; but in most cases, you don’t always know what someone else is thinking.
• Reframe your situation based on facts – When you find yourself jumping to conclusions, it can help to use facts to reframe how you are thinking. For instance, if you reach out to a friend and they don’t respond, you might jump to the conclusion that they don’t like you anymore. Try to reframe using facts: Did they tell you they had a lot going on at work or in their home life? Maybe they just forgot. What in your past interactions with your friend has led you to make that assumption? Is there validity to your thought process or have you jumped to conclusions? If it helps, make a list of what you know to be true.
• Avoid predicting the future – As much as we like to think we have all the answers, we can’t tell the future. For example, if you see a listing for a job you might like, you might not even apply because you assume you won’t get it. When you jump to conclusions about what will happen, you might stop yourself from trying in the first place. 
• Ask questions – Ultimately, a lot of jumping to conclusions is assuming an outcome based on information we don’t have. Because of the uncertainty of the unknown, it’s reasonable to feel anxious and jump to conclusions. The best practice is to ask for clarification, get the facts, and see how others feel.

Anxiety Therapy with Philly Family Life Counseling LLC

When jumping to conclusions, it begins to affect our relationships and everyday life. It may be indicative of a larger anxiety disorder. If you find yourself having panic attacks, stopping yourself from doing things or talking to people, or pushing people in your life away, it might be time to get anxiety counseling. At Philly Family Life Counseling, LLC, Dr. Gene Devers and Associates can help you learn to cope with anxiety and give you the tools you need to stop jumping to conclusions. For more information, call our office at 215-677-3810 between the hours of 9am -5pm or fill out our online form. You don’t have to endure this alone; help is just a call away.