Something I figured out about myself many years ago, is what I’ve come to call the “all or
nothing syndrome.” I discovered that I viewed many situations in an all-or-nothing way; naturally
gravitating toward polar extremes rather than middle ground.
I’ve never done this through conscious choice. No, it has simply been how my brain works, and
I’m betting there are others like me. I suppose there are times when an all or nothing outlook
would benefit a situation, but frequently, it does not. Here are a few examples of all-or-nothing
thinking that can work against us.
A person, not necessarily me, but anyone, could say:
“I know I need to lose weight, but I just ate too much for breakfast so now the day is blown. I’ll
eat whatever I want today and start tomorrow again, and tomorrow I will be perfect all day.”
“I’ve got that huge project that needs to be done. I’m going to wait until this weekend until I can
devote the whole day and do it all at once.” (Several weekends pass and of course, as
frequently happens in life, there hasn’t yet been a big block of time to devote to the project.)
The project could be chipped away at a little here and a little there, but it is reasoned that that
would take “too long,” and that the project should be done all at once. (Meanwhile the weeks
and months keep ticking by…)
“I need to save money, but not this week because I’ve already paid bills and don’t have enough
left to give that will really make a difference. Next month I will be really good and sock a lot of
money away.” (Next month never comes.. meanwhile, little bits here and there would have
added up to a lot of money by now).
Hopefully these examples convey the inner talk that all-or-nothing people deal with.
Recognizing and moving away from all-or-nothing thinking can help us reap big dividends from
another principal: the power of cumulative effort. That will be discussed in another section; read
on!
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