Clients I work with regarding anxiety sometimes tend to overanalyze the decisions they make in life, most of the time in a negative light. They might have a decision to make regarding a job opportunity, a choice about a romantic relationship, or some other important option that has the potential to change their lives in a big way. If the choice they make turns out badly, they excoriate themselves, reinforcing the image they have about themselves as making poor choices, doing the wrong thing, and having things always turn out badly in the end.
This reminds me of a concept that is often applied in the game of poker called “results-oriented thinking.” If the client plays poker, I might describe it in a more detailed way. If they do not, I will just sketch out the general idea. The concept of results-oriented thinking refers to the tendency for us humans to decide whether or not we made the right decision based on the outcome of our decision. However, this approach minimizes one of the most important factors affecting the results of our decisions: Chance. Luck. Fate. Whatever you want to call........