Fortune telling: predicting things will turn out badly

• “It won’t work anyway.”
• “I’ll definitely fail the interview.”
• “They’re going to say no.”

• situation

  You think about applying for a new role.

  the thought

  “They’ll never pick me, so why bother?”

• situation

  You’re invited to a party where you know few people.

  the thought

  “I’ll be standing alone all night.”

• situation

  You start a new routine.

  the thought

  “I’ll give up in a week like always.”

Predicting the worst can feel like protection — if you expect it, it won’t hurt as much. But it also stops you from trying.

1. 1Write the worst case, the best case and the most likely case. Plan for the likely one.
2. 2Note your prediction, then check what actually happened afterwards.
3. 3Ask: what’s the smallest step I could take to test this?

Fortune telling often comes with the Visionary thinking style — usually as the flip side of a real strength.

• CatastrophizingExpecting the worst possible outcome.
• Mind readingAssuming you know what others think.