*Trading Psychology: "Why 'Don't Mess Up' Might Mess You Up* "
Ever noticed how commands like "Don't enter," "Don't mess up," or "Don't lose" can backfire?
Ironically, the more you try to resist or avoid something, the higher the chance you'll do exactly that.
What you resist persists.
Let's dive into exactly why this happens:
Ironic Process Theory:
So, Daniel Wegner came up with this idea that when we try to suppress a thought, two things happen in our head:
Monitoring Process: Your brain is like a detective looking for that thought you're trying not to think about, just to make sure it's not there. This process actively searches for any sign of the suppressed thought, which ironically keeps it at the forefront of your consciousness.
Operating Process: This one's trying to distract you or replace that thought with something else. It's the part of your mind that engages in other activities or thoughts to fill the mental space where the unwanted thought would reside. However, if this process is not robust enough, or if you're under stress, the monitoring process can take over, causing the thought to bounce back even stronger.
And this leads me to the next thing...
The White Bear Problem:
In a classic experiment, people were told not to think about a white bear. Guess what happened? They thought about it even more! It shows how not thinking about something can actually make it stronger and stick in your mind.
