In the office, that overthinking cycle might be curtailed by a quick chat. “Maybe we’re feeling a little bit anxious, but then we run into [that person] at the water cooler, or on the way to the bathroom. And we have that moment, or that smile, or ‘how are you doing?’, and you can sense the warmth,” says Brucks. In the work-from-home world, that isn’t easy.
Of course, while remote work can exacerbate overthinking tendencies, working in person isn’t a panacea for these noxious thoughts. There are still plenty of ambiguous scenarios in the office that can trigger overthinking spirals. But remote work, with its increased ambiguity, can trigger overthinking.
‘Short circuiting’ intrusive thoughts
No matter whether it happens remotely or in person, overthinking can take a toll on worker wellbeing. Cycles of negative thinking and worrying about potentially bad outcomes can be a gateway to maladaptive coping mechanisms including substance abuse; plus, one study of more than 32,000 participants in 172 countries showed that brooding too much on negative events is the biggest predictor of depression and stress.
But there are things overthinkers can do to break free of the obsessive thoughts.
When someone is stuck in an overthinking loop, taking a step back and looking at the situation objectively to “short circuit” the intrusive thought patterns can help, says Sawchuk. He suggests people write down their doubts and fears about the situation, and asking, “What’s a different way of looking at this? What’s a less bad way this could go? Do I feel this to be true, or do I know this to be true? Do I have any objective evidence to support this?” The goal here, he says, is “challenging those thoughts” that trigger overthinking.
With remote work, workers can schedule more informal check-ins with bosses and colleagues; creating windows to facilitate more contextualised communications (like a phone or video call), to help get a better read of the other person’s mood and reduce anxiety-producing ambiguity.
But experts also say it’s up to remote managers to communicate more effectively to eliminate any anxiety that can negatively affect staff. “Even before the pandemic, managers overestimated how clear they are and overestimated how much they communicate,” says Sanchez-Burks. He says if managers aren’t checking in more with workers – especially while remote – it can lead to workers having those gnawing feelings of being out of the loop. Managers need to actually “over-communicate in order to communicate just sufficiently enough”, says Sanchez-Burks.
There is also room for improvement in terms of how people communicate in text, says Brucks; now is time to change our norms and “infuse [text-based communication] with more information and reduce the ambiguity”. Not only should remote teams communicate more frequently, but in a way that’s more informative than brusque one-line emails. (Studies show that even emoji can help with this.)
Ultimately, though, while communication can always be improved, overthinkers need to come to a place where they can make peace with ambiguity – especially lately. “One of the consequences” or remote work, says Sawchuk, “is that we also introduced more uncertainty into the mix.”
