How to Stop Overthinking 如何停止過度思考

Grace Fleming 景一

Are you guilty1 of dwelling2 on a problem much longer than you should？ Many people get caught up in overthinking problems from time to time， but some people make a habit of it. This habit can affect grades because students get so caught up in thinking mode that they never get to a good solution.

你是否因為在一個問題上花的時間比你應該花的時間更長而感到內疚？很多人有時對一些問題思慮過度，但有些人卻養成了這樣的習慣。這種習慣會影響學生的成績，因為學生陷入了思維模式的泥潭，他們永遠無法找到個好的解決方案。

Some people who overthink tend to get stuck in analysis3 mode. They will think over a situation again and again. That situation is sometimes called analysis paralysis4. Its also one form of procrastination5.

有些想得太多的人往往會陷入分析模式。他們會一遍又一遍地仔細考慮某個情況。這種情況有時被稱為“分析癱瘓”。這也是拖延癥的一種形式。

Analysis Paralysis

Its not difficult to imagine why this could be unhelpful or even harmful to academic6 work.

Students who face certain kinds of test questions are in danger of analysis paralysis.

●Complex questions can cause you to get stuck thinking about a single aspect of the question and ignore others.

●You will be at a loss when trying to decide how to start writing an answer to the questions because there are so many options7. This can be a time-waster.

●Long multiple-choice8 questions can also cause analysis paralysis. You may try to read too much into the question and spin yourself into total confusion.

●You can also overthink their choices in a multiple-choice situation and read more into each choice than you should.

If the situations above sound familiar， you are like many other students. You are also wise to recognize that this is a potential9 problem for you.

分析癱瘓

不難想象為什么這對學習毫無幫助甚至有害。遇到某些類型的試題，學生有分析癱瘓的危險。

●復雜的問題會讓你卡在思考問題的某一方面而忽略其他方面。

●在試著決定如何開始寫問題的答案時，你會不知所措，因為有太多的選擇。這可能會浪費時間。

●較長的選擇題也會導致分析癱瘓。你可能因過多地解讀這個問題，使自己陷入一片茫然。

●你也可能對選擇題的選項過度思考，并對每一個選項進行過多的解讀。

如果上面的情況聽起來很熟悉，那么你和其他許多學生一樣。你也應該意識到這對你來說是個潛在的問題。

Stop Overthinking

Overthinking during a test can really hurt！ The big risk you face is failing to complete the test because you think too much and cant make a decision. Go into the test with a time management plan.

As soon as you get the test， do a quick assessment10 to determine how much time you should spend on each section. The open-ended essay answers are the most time-consuming11.

When trying to answer an open-ended test question， you must give yourself time to brainstorm， but also give yourself a time limit. Once you run out of time， you must stop thinking and go into action.

If youre facing a multiple-choice， dont read too much into the questions and answers. Read the question once， then （without looking at your options） think of a good answer. Then see if this matches one thats listed. If it does， choose it and move on！

停止過度思考

考試時過度思考真的很要命！你面臨的最大風險是不能做完試題，因為你想得太多，無法作出決定。因此，參加考試時要有時間管理計劃。

一旦你拿到了試題，就做一個快速的評估，以確定你在每個部分應該花多長時間。回答開放式的論述題最費時。

在回答一個開放式的測試問題時，你必須給自己時間進行頭腦風暴，但同時也要給自己一個時間限制。一旦你時間用完了，就必須停止思考，開始動筆。

如果你面對的是選擇題，不要對問題和答案進行過多的解讀。讀一次這個問題，然后（不看選項）想出一個合理的答案。然后看看這個答案是否與列出的選項之一相符。如果相符，就選擇這一項并繼續做后面的題目！

【Notes】

1. guilty [?????] adj. 有罪的;內疚的

2. dwell [?????] vi. 細想某事

3. analysis [?????] n. 分析

4. paralysis [?????] n. 麻痹;無力;停頓

5. procrastination [???????] n. 拖延;拖延癥

6. academic [??????] adj. 學術的;學校的

7. option [??????] n. 選項

8. multiple-choice [?????] adj. 多項選擇的

9. potential [?????] adj. 潛在的，可能的

10. assessment [?????] n. 評定;評估

11. time-consuming [?????] adj. 耗時的