How to Manage Negative Thoughts at Work

The biggest threat to my career wasn’t my boss, my workload, or the market. It was my own mind, and the thoughts I kept watering. If your mind is a garden, your thoughts are the seeds. And what you feed grows. When doubt takes root, confidence shrinks. When comparison thrives, clarity dies. When fear dominates, opportunity hides. I’ve been there myself: a high-achiever with a head full of overthinking, self-criticism, and invisible “what-ifs” that no one could see, but I felt every day. The truth is your career doesn’t grow from the hours you put in. It grows from the thoughts that shape how you show up. Here are 5 ways to plant the right seeds so your career can bloom: 1. Name the weed. Catch the negative loop (“I’m behind,” “I’m not ready”). Labeling emotions reduces amygdala activity and emotional reactivity. (UCLA study, 2007) 2. Challenge the narrative. Ask, “What’s the evidence this is true?” Cognitive reappraisal reduces negative emotions and stress responses. (Neuroscience research) 3. Reframe the soil. Shift from “Why me?” to “What can this teach me?” Leaders who reframe failure as learning recover better and improve future performance. (Leadership research) 4. Water what you want to grow. Write down one win a day. Daily gratitude increases optimism and resilience. (Emmons & McCullough, 2003) 5. Prune your environment. Surround yourself with people who think in solutions, not problems. Positivity spreads through social networks up to three degrees of separation. (Harvard Social Network Study, 2008) Your thoughts are not facts. They’re seeds. And your attention is the sunlight. Choose what you water. Because your next career breakthrough might already be growing in your mind. ♻️ Share this to help someone water better thoughts today. What’s one thought you’re choosing to water this week? ➕ Follow Loren Rosario - Maldonado, PCC , for human-centered career shifts.

Are you frequently overwhelmed by worries, even about minor things? This could be a sign of anxiety. While anxiety is a common feeling involving unease, worry, or fear - particularly during periods of uncertainty, change, or high-stress situations - if not addressed, it can evolve to be pervasive. Anxiety can make it difficult to focus on our work and impact productivity and well-being. According to a study by Champion Health in the UK, 60% of employees experience some form of anxiety. This statistic is concerning, but what's more troubling is that many people suffer in silence, unaware or unwilling to acknowledge their struggles. Throughout my journey, I've encountered numerous moments where, in retrospect, anxiety was a silent battle for me. Externally, I appeared successful, but I was wrestling with persistent worries and self-doubt internally. Thankfully, with professional help and a supportive personal network, I've learned to manage these challenges better. My experiences have underscored the need to openly discuss anxiety and educate ourselves on coping mechanisms and support options. To get some practical insights and tips on this topic, I reached out to my friend Dana Berri. Dana is a licensed psychologist with expertise in applying Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT) and Acceptance and Commitment Therapy (ACT) techniques. Here are 3 invaluable tips she shared on managing anxiety: 1. Befriend your anxiety and allow it to be: Contrary to the common advice we often hear telling us ‘not to worry’, a positive approach for managing anxiety involves intentionally allowing ourselves to explore these worries and letting the worry run its course. Ask yourself: ↳What am I thinking about right now? ↳On a scale of 1-10, how stressful do I feel? ↳Explore the worst-case and best-case scenarios and their probability. 2. Reframe your thoughts: Once you have identified these negative thoughts, try transforming them into more positive or constructive ones. E.g. ‘I will never be good at this’ to ‘This may be challenging now, but with practice, I can improve my skills over time.’ 3. Lean on problem-solving: Apply a problem-solving approach once you've identified and reframed negative thoughts. 1. Identify the Concern: ‘What's the specific concern that's causing anxiety?’ 2. Ask the Right Questions and focus on what’s helpful rather than what is right or wrong: Instead of dwelling on the worst-case scenario, redirect your focus. E.g. ‘What aspects of this situation are within my control?, is this thought helping me get what I want?’ 3. Set Realistic Goals: E.g. If you're anxious about an upcoming presentation, dedicate specific time to preparation. 4. Consider the Variables: Determine which variables you can influence and take action. E.g. You can’t control your manager’s mood, but you can plan to leave home early to avoid peak traffic. PS: Approach your feelings with kindness and curiosity. Image Credit: 6seconds.org

Have you ever noticed how a single piece of criticism can linger in your mind longer than a dozen compliments? This phenomenon, known as the "negativity bias," is an evolutionary survival mechanism deeply embedded in our brains. It made sense for our ancestors who needed to stay alert to dangers, but in our modern era, it often causes us to dwell unnecessarily on negative experiences. This bias influences more than just personal feelings; it can impact our professional decisions and relationships as well. By understanding that our brains are predisposed to focus on the negative, we can start to retrain ourselves to also see the positive. Recognizing this can lead to a significant shift in how we process daily interactions and setbacks, leading to a healthier, more balanced perspective. The real challenge is to transform our awareness of this bias into action. When faced with criticism, try to balance it with positive affirmations. For every negative comment, remind yourself of two positive achievements. Share your successes and positive experiences openly; this not only helps to counterbalance your own biases but also encourages others to focus on their positives, fostering a supportive and resilient network. Additionally, nurturing a workplace culture that values constructive feedback over criticism can help in reducing the impacts of negativity bias. Encouraging open communication and celebrating small wins are practices that can enhance team morale and overall productivity. But how do we embed this into our daily routine? Start with small, manageable changes: - Begin meetings with positive updates from each team member. - Keep a gratitude journal to note daily successes or things you are thankful for. - Set reminders to recognize and appreciate others' efforts regularly. Over time, these practices can help shift the focus from what's going wrong to what's going right, enhancing not just individual well-being but also contributing to a more positive organizational climate. In summary, while our brains may be wired to prioritize the negative, we have the power to change this narrative. By fostering a culture that balances critical insights with positive reinforcement, we can enhance our personal well-being and drive our teams towards greater success. Let’s continue to challenge ourselves to focus on the positive, embracing a more balanced view that can lead to a more fulfilling personal and professional life. #leadership #culture

The brain is not a static organ. Thanks to neuroplasticity, it has the remarkable ability to rewire itself in response to experiences. Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT) leverages this adaptability, offering structured ways to reshape our thought patterns and behaviors. Here's a step-by-step approach to harness neuroplasticity using CBT principles: 1. Awareness & Identification: Before you can change a thought pattern, you need to recognize it. Regularly journal or reflect on situations that cause negative emotions. What thoughts are accompanying these feelings? 2. Challenge the Thought: Once you've identified a negative thought, ask yourself: Is this thought based on facts or assumptions? Are there other perspectives I haven't considered? 3. Cognitive Restructuring: Replace the negative or irrational thought with a balanced one. For instance, instead of thinking "I always fail," you might think, "I didn't succeed this time, but I can learn and try again." 4. Visualization: Use mental imagery to reinforce positive outcomes. Imagine yourself successfully navigating situations that previously triggered negative thought patterns. 5. Behavioral Activation: Encourage activities that elevate mood and challenge negative beliefs. If you believe you're "not a social person", attend social gatherings and practice interaction. The experience can reshape the belief. 6. Feedback Loop: Regularly assess the accuracy of your beliefs. Gather evidence from your experiences. Over time, this evidence-based approach can further cement new, positive thought patterns. 7. Mindfulness & Meditation: Incorporate mindfulness exercises to stay present. This can prevent rumination and help you detach from negative thoughts, viewing them as mere 'thoughts' rather than facts. 8. Practice & Patience: Neuroplasticity can be a slow process. Reinforce the new thought patterns daily. Just as a new path in a forest becomes clearer with repeated use, so too will your new neural pathways with consistent practice. By integrating these CBT techniques, you can capitalize on the brain's adaptability and promote healthier, more constructive thought patterns. Remember, changing deep-seated beliefs takes time, but with persistence, the brain's plasticity can be your ally in transformation.

Understanding Your Potential — Summary and Key Points: - Self-Understanding: Reflect on who you are and how you have arrived at your current state. This awareness is the foundation of personal growth. - Emotional Control: Preserve your peace and clarity by allowing others to misunderstand you without reacting. This conserves your energy and focus. - Resilience Against Negativity: Just as a ship stays afloat by keeping water out, you can stay positive by not letting external negativity sink you. - Mental Strength: Success comes from having a mind that is smoother, stronger and more controlled than your emotions. Practical Applications: 1. Mindfulness and Self-Reflection: - Practice Daily Meditation: Set aside time each day to meditate. This helps in understanding your thoughts and feelings, reducing stress by 20% and enhancing emotional health (Goyal et al., 2014). - Journaling: Write about your experiences and feelings to clarify your thoughts and track your personal growth. 2. Managing External Opinions: - Selective Attention: Focus on constructive feedback and ignore unnecessary criticism. This helps maintain emotional well-being (Gross, 2002). - Developing Inner Peace: Engage in activities like yoga or nature walks that foster inner peace and improve emotional regulation. 3. Building Mental Strength: - Cognitive Behavioral Techniques (CBT): Use CBT to challenge and change negative thought patterns. CBT is effective in building mental resilience, with a 75% success rate in reducing symptoms of anxiety and depression (Hofmann et al., 2012). - Positive Affirmations: Repeating positive statements about yourself daily can strengthen your mindset, improve self-esteem, and enhance your outlook. A Couple of Case Studies: 1. Mindfulness in the Workplace: - Google's "Search Inside Yourself" Program: Google implemented a mindfulness program resulting in employees reporting 37% higher levels of emotional intelligence and productivity (Tan, 2012). 2. Resilience Training in Schools: - Penn Resiliency Program (PRP): This program teaches students cognitive-behavioral and social problem-solving skills, significantly reducing symptoms of depression and anxiety by 30% (Seligman et al., 2009). — Online photos:

🌟 Avoiding Self-Doubt at the Start of Your Career Starting a new career—especially in a new country or industry—can feel overwhelming. It’s normal to question yourself, but self-doubt can hold you back from growing and succeeding. Here's how to avoid it and build confidence early on: 🧠 1. Recognize That Self-Doubt Is Normal Everyone—even experienced professionals—feels unsure sometimes. It's not a sign of weakness, but a sign you care. 🔍 2. Focus on Learning, Not Perfection You’re not supposed to know everything on day one. Treat every challenge as a learning opportunity. Tell yourself: "I’m here to grow, not to be perfect." 📚 3. Remind Yourself of What You Bring Think of your training, certifications, or past work ethic. Reflect on compliments or positive feedback you’ve received. Keep a "confidence folder" with accomplishments and kind words from others. 💬 4. Ask Questions Without Shame Asking smart questions shows you're engaged, not incompetent. Managers prefer a curious employee over a silent one. 🧩 5. Avoid Comparing Yourself to Others Everyone’s journey is different. Stay focused on your progress, not someone else’s timeline. 🧘♂️ 6. Manage Negative Self-Talk Replace: > “I’m not good enough.” With: > “I’m still learning, and I’m improving every day.” 🧗♀️ 7. Take Small Wins Seriously Celebrate every success—even small ones like finishing a task independently, learning a new system, or helping a coworker. 💼 8. Surround Yourself with Encouragement Find a mentor or supportive peer. Follow professionals who inspire you. Avoid toxic or overly critical environments. 🛠️ Final Thought: Self-doubt fades with experience, action, and time. Be kind to yourself—you’re doing something new and brave.

I bring someone with me to every meeting. It’s not a person. It’s a voice. “What if I’m wrong?” "Am I being judged?" “I hope they don’t call on me” “I know the answer but can’t bring myself to say it” Since elementary school, I’ve sat in classes, discussions, and meetings with that inner voice speaking to me. Telling me to play it safe and keep my thoughts to myself. For a long time, it paralyzed me. Over the years, I’ve actively worked to turn the volume down. The work has been intentional, something I practice daily. I realized that those thoughts weren’t coming from other people. They were judgments I was putting on myself. As a recruiter who speaks with senior cloud professionals, I often hear individuals experiencing a similar inner voice to mine. These technically-minded people are deeply analytical and brilliant builders. When it comes to communication, they doubt themselves. Regardless if they’re communicating with an internal stakeholder, customer, or me as a recruiter, impostor syndrome flares up. Thoughts get in the way of action. But here’s what I’ve learned: this pattern can be broken. Here’s what works for me: 1. Awareness · Create awareness of situations where your inner voice flares up. This allows you to regulate emotions and control them better. 2. Acknowledgement · Accept when your inner voice is present. Embrace > Avoid. 3. Reframe · Reframe negative thoughts → empowering thoughts. This breaks default thought patterns and gives you the power back. · Ex: “I’ll be judged for speaking” → “I’m helping others learn” 4. Reflection · After steps 1-3, reflect on how you felt, what went well, and what you’d do differently. Next time your inner voice shows up in a meeting, acknowledge it, choose a reframe from the graphic, and speak anyway. ♻️ Re-share to help someone in your network. 👉 Follow me for more posts like this.

Ever felt unwieldy, nervous or anxious? Dark clouds hanging over your head? I know I have. 😫 Days I had anxiety and panic attacks prior to new trainings. 😣 Moments when I was criticized. 😓 Situations where I felt I had failed. Each of these amplified rousing negative feelings. Fortunately, I've gone through much of these and curated a list of ways I used to cope with them. See if these strategies (simply put) can open the doors to help you master your mind better! 1. Reframing (NLP) NLP uses the technique of reframing to change how a person perceives an event or situation, thereby changing its meaning and impact. Anxious = high energy; fear of being an imposter on stage = allocate preparation time. 2. Anchoring (NLP) Anchoring involves creating a stimulus-response pattern where a person can elicit a desired emotional state (e.g., calmness, confidence) by triggering a sensory anchor (such as touching a finger and thumb together). I have anchors for peace, confidence, compassion and excitement. 3. Swish Pattern (NLP) This technique involves creating neurological associations between a trigger and a desired behavior. Visualize the negative scenario and then send it away rapidly, replacing it with a positive image or set of actions, clear the mind, then repeat this until the trigger leads to evidence of acting on the desired behavior. 4. Mindfulness (Positive Psychology) Practices such as mindfulness meditation, deep breathing exercises, and progressive muscle relaxation can help reduce the anxiety. 5. Self-Talk (Sport Psychology) Inner conversations that are negative are often a result of not preparing your own internal script. Decide what is resourceful to say to yourself with (a) motivational phrases (under conditions of self belief) or (b) procedural instructions (under conditions of a sense of threat). 6. Challenging Irrational Thoughts Once negative thoughts are identified and evaluated, the next step is to challenge and dispute these irrational beliefs. Ask questions like, "What is the evidence for this thought?", "What could I tell a friend if they had this thought?", and "Is there a more balanced way of looking at this situation?" Hope these help you see that there are possibilities out there to support you in handling the inner world during difficult situations. Remember that what you are feeling is just a product of your brain, history and meanings. You can certainly find ways out of them using some of these simple tools for growth and mastery. Do you have any questions or experiences about of these approaches? Do share them in comments! 😊

Resilience isn’t just hype. And it’s not about being tough all the time. It’s about shifting how we handle challenges. Here’s a great tool for this: →    The ABCDE model (created by Martin Seligman) It’s super simple and practical. Let me show you how it works. 1.    A — Adversity Start with the challenge you’re facing. Get specific. For example: →    “I’m stressed about learning new skills” →    “I’m worried about not fitting into the new job” Why do that? Because naming the challenge helps you see it for what it is. 2.    B — Beliefs Next, notice the thoughts tied to the challenge. These might sound familiar: →    “I’m not good enough for this job” →    “I’ll never catch up with my new colleagues” Sound familiar? That’s okay. For now, just notice those beliefs. No need to fix them yet. 3.    C — Consequences Now, think about how those beliefs affect you. Ask yourself: →    How do these thoughts make me feel? →    How are they shaping my actions? Maybe they leave you feeling anxious. Maybe they leave you feeling stuck. It’s okay — this step is about noticing, not judging. 4.    D — Disputation Here’s where the magic happens: →    Challenge those negative beliefs How? Ask yourself: →    What evidence shows I can handle this? →    What strengths do I bring to the table? For example: Think about past wins or skills you’ve relied on before. Lean on those examples to challenge your doubts. 5.    E — Energization Finally, notice how reframing shifts your energy. Focus on what lifts you up: →    What strengths make me feel confident? →    What actions can I take right now? Write down one small step to move forward. For example, you could: →    Set up a meeting with a mentor →    Schedule time to learn a new skill Momentum is built one small step at a time. That’s it. That’s the ABCDE model in action. It’s not just about bouncing back — it’s about moving forward. Are you with me? “Let’s build a world where everyone belongs through the power of wellbeing!” – Matty

You can’t stop negativity from showing up, But you can choose how long it stays. With the right mindset shift, Frustration can turn into fuel. Here are 6 powerful ways to reset and refocus: 1 → Gatekeeping your mind Not every thought deserves to stay. - Ask: Is this thought helpful? - If not, let it go. - Protect your mental space like it's your greatest asset. 2 → Schedule positivity breaks Don’t wait for burnout. - Take short 5-minute pauses to breathe, stretch, or step outside. - Refresh your energy before negativity builds. - Small pauses can prevent big breakdowns. 3 → Park the negativity When negative thoughts show up, don’t wrestle with them. - Visualize setting them aside in an imaginary parking lot. - Come back later - if they’re even worth it. - Focus on what truly matters. 4 → Shift to a 360 perspective Other people's negativity? It’s often about them, not you. - Step back and look at the bigger picture. - Observe without judgment. - Protect your peace by choosing how you respond. 5 → Feedback as your fuel Negative feedback isn’t rejection - it’s redirection. - Look for one lesson in every critique. - Turn tough moments into your next growth step. - Growth happens where it’s uncomfortable. 6 → The gratitude jumpstart Start your day by focusing on the good. - List 3 things you're grateful for. - This small ritual trains your brain to notice the positive. - What you focus on shapes your day. You have 86,400 seconds in a day - don’t surrender them to negativity. Stay intentional. Guard your mindset. Look for the opportunities hidden in every challenge. Which shift will you try first? Let me know in the comments! PS/ The picture - sometimes the setting says it all.