Big Trouble in Little…Thoughts

Author: Dr Joe Gaunt

One of the most powerful support tools I’ve been using lately when working with executives and high-performing leaders is surprisingly simple: taking time to truly understand thoughts. Not strategy. Not productivity frameworks. Thoughts. Because thoughts quietly shape how we feel, how we behave, and ultimately how we lead.

Research shows that humans experience a continuous stream of automatic cognitions throughout the day, many of which are negatively biased due to evolutionary threat-monitoring systems (Baumeister et al., 2001). While exact numbers vary, studies consistently demonstrate that negative thoughts occur more frequently than positive ones, particularly under stress and high responsibility, a common state for senior leaders.

Many of these thoughts are known as Negative Automatic Thoughts (NATs). They arise quickly, often without conscious awareness, and are usually accepted at face value.
“Will he just get on with it?”
“I wonder if there’ll be traffic again.”
“I wasn’t very clear in that meeting.”
“This is so bad.”

These thoughts are habitual and reflexive. And here’s the key point: it’s not the presence of the thought that creates difficulty. The real impact comes from the degree of belief we assign to it.

The stronger the belief, the stronger the emotional response.
The stronger the emotion, the more powerful the behavioural outcome.

When a thought is treated as an unquestioned fact, it can drive stress, self-criticism, rumination, avoidance, or reactive leadership behaviours. Cognitive models show that emotional distress is less about events themselves and more about how those events are interpreted (Beck & Haigh, 2014).

But what if the thought isn’t accurate? What if, for any number of reasons, you’re being overly harsh on yourself, assuming the worst, or worrying about something that hasn’t even happened yet? In these cases, emotions and behaviours are shaped by misinterpretations, not reality.

The good news? Thoughts are manageable.

Several evidence-based principles support this:

First, thoughts are not the self. They are transient mental events that can be observed rather than obeyed. Psychological flexibility research shows that creating distance from thoughts reduces emotional reactivity and improves decision-making under pressure (Hayes et al., 2012).

Second, thoughts are not facts. They are hypotheses, not conclusions. Cognitive restructuring techniques demonstrate that questioning and reframing automatic thoughts can significantly reduce stress and improve performance (Beck & Haigh, 2014).

Third, while this skill comes more easily to some, it improves with practice. For many leaders, coaching and structured psychological support accelerate this learning process, especially in high-stakes environments.

When we pause between a thought and our response, we reclaim choice — in how we feel, how we act, and how we lead.

So the next time a negative thought creeps in, remember:
You are not your thoughts.
Thoughts are not facts.
And you can choose how you respond to them.

As Marcus Aurelius so powerfully captured:

“If you are distressed by anything external, the pain is not due to the thing itself, but to your own estimate of it; and this you have the power to revoke at any moment.”

References:

Baumeister, R. F., Bratslavsky, E., Finkenauer, C., & Vohs, K. D. (2001). Bad is stronger than good. Review of General Psychology, 5(4), 323–370. 

Beck, A. T., & Haigh, E. A. P. (2014). Advances in cognitive theory and therapy: The generic cognitive model. Annual Review of Clinical Psychology, 10, 1–24. 

Hayes, S. C., Levin, M. E., Plumb-Vilardaga, J., Villatte, J. L., & Pistorello, J. (2012). Acceptance and commitment therapy and contextual behavioral science: Examining the progress of a distinctive model of behavioral and cognitive therapy. Behavior Therapy, 44(2), 180–198.