GETTING RID OF UNWANTED THOUGHTS
“fill the shelf with other thoughts. bad ones atrophy.”
The Lesson
You can't make a thought go away by trying not to think it. The brain doesn't process 'not.' Instead, starve the thought by filling your mental shelf space. Find thoughts that are so engaging they turn off other thoughts. Learning new skills works well because it's engaging and complex. Visual, spatial, exciting thoughts seem most effective: imagining playing soccer, programming (which can be visualized as systems). The reframe: bad thoughts aren't a problem, they're an opportunity to build your talent stack. It took a decade to clear childhood trauma this way, but the side effect was an impressive skill collection.
Real-World Example
A founder can't stop ruminating about a failed raise. Telling themselves 'don't think about it' fails. Better: Fill the shelf. Start learning a new technology. Get deeply engaged in a complex product problem. Plan an upcoming feature in visual detail. The rumination doesn't disappear through willpower; it gets crowded out by more engaging thoughts. Over time, it atrophies from lack of attention.
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