Yesterday, I was scrolling through Instagram before my bedtime, a habit of mine, because I prefer not to waste my productive hours scrolling. Anyways, this is not the point here. So, I was scrolling a literary page, and I came across a question: “If we can over think the worst; why can't we over think the best?” Ironically, to answer this statement, I started to overthink it. My brain came up with lots of answers and further questions – kind of unjust bombardment, if I am being honest.
Well now let me take us on a roller coaster ride.
(Taken by me)
First thing first, what actually is overthinking?
Of course, with this question, everyone will have their own style of understanding. And, to answer this question, I asked a few of my friends. The answers did vary, but one thing was common in all – it being an extremely negative phenomenon. I, too, came up with the same resolve. To me, overthinking is this strange curse. If one remains unchecked, it can cause eternal damage to this beautifully chaotic life. It has the power to create more problems around one single problem. Funny, isn’t it? Well, with the first thing, we came up with the conclusion that overthinking is not something positive, so that can be the one reason.
Second thing: does it mean thinking brings the best?
Like we just came up with a conclusion that overthinking is not something to give positive results. No matter how much you hold up to the bar, ultimately you are falling down, the only difference is the time frame. Whatsoever, this is where the “deep thinking” part comes in. So, what is deep thinking? Simple answer: just think about it deeply, hehehehe! Just kidding. Deep thinking is something which demands beyond the surface level answers. Rather than just asking what happened? One goes with why, who, what caused it? Like in my scenario, I am thinking about bringing the best out of the worst (overthinking). How narcissistic of me to consider myself a deep thinker. Now, for the second part, we came up with the conclusion that there is a difference between overthinking and deep thinking. The danger is not thinking deeply, because deep thinking can create wisdom. The danger is when thinking becomes circular instead of constructive.
However, I am still not fully satisfied with the answer. Just because I have changed the terminology, it does not mean that it answers the query. Now with the help of Google, I came across a research, actually someone mentioned it in their post, which calls this thinking a “negativity bias”.
Negativity Bias
In simple words, it is the tendency of the human mind to focus more strongly on threats, failures, rejection and embarrassment than on possibilities or success. Furthermore, the research revealed that the human brain evolved in this way, to keep themselves alive. In order to survive, ancient humans had this predictive nature. So, this argument does sound logical now, because it was the survival of the fittest (still is).
Moving forward, it cannot be the sole reason behind it. And there is this counterargument from my personal observation. What about the sportsman? Consider Cristiano Ronaldo, or Muhammad Ali. They have achieved a lot, and they are/were confident with their claims. But is it really overthinking? Of course, it is. Johan Cruyff expressed this idea: “Football is a game you play with your brain.” Or Andrea Pirlo once said: “Football is played with the head. Your feet are just the tools.” So, it means that athletes do this intentionally. They start to visualize their victory, calmness, and successful performance, way before the competition starts. And with examples, it has proven to be successful. So, we do have a field where overthinking can be the best.
But it isn't general
There is a big difference. It is easy to stay positive, to overthink your way out being a sportsman. Because there are few possibilities attached: win, draw or lose. However, in general life, the possibilities are infinite. With these infinite possibilities, the chances of failure do rise. Alas! We are back at it.
In the end, I am left with one hope: HOPE
Hope, in my opinion, is the most basic element in life. Like, imagine a life without it? There will be nothing left other than the nihilistic behavior. However, hope, too, is a double-edged sword. On one hand, it is the initiator of everything, i.e. progress. On the other, it is the most demonic thing.
As Nietzsche said, hope is “the worst of evils because it prolongs the torments of man”.
In this aspect, hope is working as a antidote for overthinking, like if one kills the hope behind the reasoning, then there is no need to overthink. But wait, it was a delusional belief. Because ultimately, this whole thing will result in overthinking.
However, in the end, I realized something else too. The kind of hope I was holding onto throughout this whole internal debate was not entirely healthy. It was passive. A hope that quietly revolves around the illusion that somehow everything will fix itself. That one day clarity will magically arrive. And Nieztsche called this type of hope as an evil element, because this passiveness will result in torment.
But perhaps that is where the real problem begins. Passive hope keeps a person waiting instead of living. It becomes less about courage and more about postponement. One keeps imagining a better tomorrow without facing the chaos of today. And honestly, isn’t that another form of overthinking itself? Maybe, a softer version, but still the same endless mental loop.
This is where Nietzsche’s idea of the Ubermensch (positive hope in our case) becomes strangely relevant. The Ubermensch is not someone who sits and waits for meaning, peace or happiness to arrive from somewhere outside. Rather, it is a person who creates meaning despite uncertainty. Someone who accepts that life may never give complete answers, yet still chooses to move forward.
And maybe that is the difference between destructive overthinking and constructive thinking. Because at some point, the mind must stop questioning life and start living it.
Marcus Aurelius quipped: “We suffer more in imagination than in reality”.
So perhaps the answer to that Instagram question is not that we cannot overthink the best. Maybe we absolutely can. But somewhere along the evolution of human survival, fear became louder than hope. And yet, despite all this overthinking, all the paradoxes, all the confusion, humans still continue to hope, to dream, to imagine better futures.
Maybe that, too, is part of being beautifully chaotic.
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What are your thoughts about it?
Peace 🕊