What is Analysis Paralysis?
In our everyday life, we are surrounded by a lot of information and several tasks that require us to make decisions and our views. We always try to ponder over the topics and give the best possible way to make the decision, however, we are not always able to do so and at times we are confused and overloaded. This condition is known as analysis paralysis. Analysis paralysis takes charge in your life when you are feeling extremely confused and engulfed about a particular decision or in a certain situation.
Decisions resulting in Analysis Paralysis:
We don’t always make the decisions or conclusions that are easy to conclude, there are certain decisions that can lead to analysis paralyzes, such as family, career, finances, and relationships/marriage. These decisions in our life have a magnanimous influence on our future. We all understand how every single aspect of our lives can be affected by them; thus, we are always trying to accumulate as much information as we can from everyone around us, which further results in an overload of information and thus, can lead to analysis paralysis. Unintentionally, with all this overload of knowledge about these crucial matters of life, we become subsumed by this and get far from taking a confident and clear decision about them.
How does analysis paralysis feel?
Obviously, being confused about a major life event is not going to make a person feel good or pleasant. In fact, it increases our level of stress, there is a constant race of thoughts in our minds and we experience frustration due to it, which can make us feel tired physically. There are several stress-related symptoms that an individual with analysis paralysis may experience (like, dwelling on thoughts, sweating, feeling anxious, problems in sleep, racing heart rate, feeling less interested to make decisions, unable to concentrate, shallow breathing, and reduced productivity).
Personality Traits and Analysis Paralysis:
Even though analysis paralysis can be experienced by anybody but there are certain traits of personality that can contribute to feeling this:
- Lacking Confidence: When an individual views themselves as unable to take correct choices they often spend tremendous time accumulating information from others, which makes them confused between right and wrong. Also, at times when people deal with the consequences of wrong decisions, they feel less confident to make other decisions.
- Perfectionism: People who are only like perfect in every aspect of their life are cautious in nature. It is good for several things but not when the decisions are related to relationships, career, family, love, or future goals.
- Pleasing Others: When we want to please others and be in their good books, we try our best to make it happen and it can at times cost our own happiness. There are also times when pleasing others not only impacts our happiness but also those whom we love, and at that time, decision-making becomes a troublesome task.
- Inflexible Thinking: When someone’s thoughts are caught along the lines of right or wrong, correct or incorrect, good or bad, then the task of making decisions become much tougher. Like anything that is not falling into these two divisions, or is a mix of both, they are unable to comprehend and judge it clearly. This can make individuals distance themselves from deciding about those concerns.
- Empathy: Although it is a warm and essential trait in developing relationships while making a decision it can cause concerns about how our choices might impact others and thus, we may experience overwhelmed in making our decisions.
Coping with Analysis Paralysis:
There are several ways of coping with it:
- Being flexible towards yourself: Pleasing others, practicing perfectionism, and having rigidity in thoughts can make the person unable to make decisions. It is essential to remind yourself that it is okay to make some mistakes and make decisions.
- Identifying what is going on: Understand the physiological changes that you experience and be honest to yourself about your feeling and thoughts.
- Being present in the moment: When we get constantly stuck in the past and fearful about the results that may come due to this decision. We might not be able to do any work at all. Thus, break done the task into smaller decisions.
- Stop taking the opinions of others: It is important to understand that you also have the information required to take your decision. Others’ opinions can overload the knowledge that you have and make you doubtful, so deliberately stop yourself from doing so.
- Trusting your capability: Taking decisions can be tough but it’s essential to believe in yourself and your capabilities. Remember how you have dealt with similar things earlier and you have the ability to handle it currently as well.
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