Decide How Much Attention to Give Each of Your Thoughts

I’m renting a log splitter this week. That’s probably a very Minnesotan thing to do. It’s used to divide large cross-sections of trees into logs to be used as firewood.

Since I have a time limit on the rental, I need to decide how much effort to spend with each tree slice. Splitting the logs into fewer, skinnier pieces is a waste of the machine’s time and energy. Leaving the logs too thick is a missed opportunity to put the splitter’s capability to use.

Just like logs going through a wood splitter, thoughts continuously pass through our minds every day. Dividing or analyzing thoughts too many times is a waste of time and energy. Not thinking about them enough forfeits the chance to learn and make good decisions.

It’s important to establish just how much to analyze each of our thoughts.

In my last post, I wrote about the importance of meta-cognition, which is the ability to think about your thinking. Most people need to use their power of meta-cognition to better discern when their mental logs need more splitting and when they don’t.

The key is to evaluate each “log” to determine whether further splitting would be:

1. Rumination. This is engaging in a repetitive negative thought process that loops continuously without end or completion. It feels like it’s accomplishing something as if splitting the logs into smaller pieces will get you closer to resolution, but it only drains and distracts you from living your life.
2. Reflection. This involves the contemplation of thoughts to better understand them, to learn and to grow. In the same way a mirror reflects an image for greater clarity and awareness, mental reflection allows you to see meaning and truths in the thoughts you’re having. Sometimes putting another log through the splitter helps reveal the quality of the log and what should be done with it.
3. Resolution. This form of splitting gets you closer to a decision or action. In contrast to rumination, resolution is about coming to an end point. It might be a resolution to start doing, stop doing or keep doing something. Metaphorically, you’re deciding the log has been split enough and it’s time to throw it on the wood pile.

As I gain responsibility as a parent and leader, more and more logs present themselves. Problems, questions, experiences, concerns and opportunities need to be analyzed and resolved. It’s essential that we attend to the thoughts these produce but not over analyze them. Ignoring them will leave unusable wood. Turning them over and over in our minds will leave us without the strength or focus to split the next logs.

The next time you’re mentally splitting logs, ask yourself: Am I ruminating, reflecting or resolving? If you’re ruminating, stop and move onto the next log. If you’re reflecting, gather your insights and move on. If you’re resolving, make the choice and act.

What logs are you splitting this week?

Patterns are Inevitable. Growth is Optional. Check out my award-winning book Four Patterns of Healthy People to become more aware of the healthy and unhealthy patterns in your thoughts, relationships, ego, and daily operations.

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About the Author. Matt Norman coaches and advises executives on how to build great people and culture. He is President & CEO of Norman & Associates, which offers custom coaching and consulting in the areas of talent strategy, personal effectiveness, planning, and goal alignment. Norman & Associates also provides Dale Carnegie cohort-style action learning programs to help people improve how they communicate, lead, influence, and work together.

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