Thinking traps are patterns that shape how we read situations. Everyone uses them. They become a problem when they run on autopilot and start affecting how you feel.
I.Browse the twelve most common thinking traps.
II.Mark the ones you recognise in your own thinking.
III.Download a summary with practical tips for each one.
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Jack Wells · CBT Therapist
Do any of these feel familiar?
Tap any to read more. Mark the ones you recognise. None, one, or several is fine.
All-or-nothing thinking
If it is not perfect, it is a failure.
Things get sorted into two categories: complete success or complete failure. There is no middle ground. A single mistake can feel like it cancels out everything that went well.
What to try instead
Look for the middle ground. Ask yourself: on a scale of 0 to 100, where does this actually fall?
Catastrophising
The worst-case scenario feels like the most likely one.
Your mind jumps to the worst possible outcome and treats it as though it is already happening. The gap between "what if" and "what is" disappears.
What to try instead
Ask yourself: what is the most likely outcome? Not the best case, not the worst. The realistic one.
Mind-reading
You feel sure you know what someone else is thinking.
You assume you know what others think of you, usually something negative. These assumptions feel like facts, but they are guesses. You rarely check them.
What to try instead
Notice when you are guessing. Ask: do I actually know this, or am I filling in the blank?
Fortune-telling
You predict how things will go, and it is usually bad.
You treat your predictions about the future as though they are certainties. This often leads to giving up before you start, because the outcome already feels decided.
What to try instead
Remind yourself: a prediction is not a fact. What happened last time you were sure something would go badly?
Emotional reasoning
It feels true, so it must be true.
You use your feelings as evidence. If you feel anxious, the situation must be dangerous. If you feel incompetent, you must be incompetent. The feeling becomes the proof.
What to try instead
Feelings are real, but they are not always accurate. Ask: what would I think about this if I were feeling calmer?
Should statements
A running list of rules about how you or others ought to behave.
"I should be further along." "They should have known." These rules feel reasonable, but they are rigid. When reality does not match the rule, the result is guilt, frustration, or resentment.
What to try instead
Notice the word "should" when it appears. Try replacing it with "I would prefer" and see how the sentence changes.
Overgeneralisation
One thing goes wrong and it becomes a pattern.
A single event becomes proof of a general rule. One rejection means you are always rejected. One mistake means you always make mistakes. Words like "always" and "never" are clues.
What to try instead
Watch for "always", "never", "everyone", "no one". Then ask: is this actually always true, or did it happen once or twice?
Mental filter
You notice the one thing that went wrong and filter out everything else.
Your attention locks onto the negative detail and ignores the rest. A day with nine good moments and one bad one feels like a bad day. The filter is automatic.
What to try instead
Try listing three things that went well alongside the one that did not. The negative detail is real, but it is not the whole picture.
Discounting the positive
Good things do not count.
When something goes well, you explain it away. "That was just luck." "Anyone could have done that." "They were just being nice." The positive evidence never gets through.
What to try instead
When you catch yourself dismissing something good, pause. Would you dismiss it if a friend told you the same thing?
Personalisation
If something went wrong, it was probably your fault.
You take responsibility for things that are not entirely (or at all) within your control. Someone is in a bad mood and you assume you caused it. A project fails and you carry all the blame.
What to try instead
Ask: what other factors were involved? List them. Responsibility is rarely 100% yours.
Labelling
Instead of describing what happened, you label yourself.
"I made a mistake" becomes "I am an idiot." "I felt nervous" becomes "I am weak." A specific event gets replaced with a fixed identity. The label sticks.
What to try instead
Describe the behaviour, not the person. "I made a mistake" and "I am a failure" are very different statements.
Magnification and minimisation
Problems grow. Strengths shrink.
You magnify negative things (your mistakes, other people's achievements) and minimise positive ones (your strengths, others' flaws). The comparison always tilts against you.
What to try instead
Ask: am I making this bigger or smaller than it actually is? What would a fair assessment look like?
Your thinking traps.
Most people recognise several of these. That is normal. Noticing the pattern is the first step to changing it. In therapy, we would work on building new habits of thinking around the ones that come up most.
Vision Wellbeing
Created at visionwellbeing.co.uk
Jack Wells · CBT Therapist
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