Questioning Opinions and Thoughts
When it helps
When you notice you're defending an opinion very emotionally or vehemently, without knowing quite why – this method supports you in gently putting your own convictions to the test. It's not about questioning everything, but consciously choosing what you actually think. This transforms automatic reactions into a self-determined stance.
How to practice
- Choose the conviction: Find a thought or view you're currently defending very strongly (e.g. on topics like work, success, or lifestyle). Check in briefly: On a scale of 1 to 10, how certain are you of this opinion?
- Research its origin: Ask yourself without judgment: Where does this viewpoint actually come from? Did I develop it through my own experience, or did I unconsciously take it on from parents, teachers, or my environment? How long have I been carrying this 'truth' around?
- Check its currency: Ask yourself honestly: Does this stance still fit my life today and my current values? What do I know now that I didn't know when I first believed this thought?
- Distinguish: Recognize the difference between a mere thinking habit and a consciously chosen conviction. Both are possible – but simply knowing the origin gives you new freedom of choice.
- From 'must' to assumption: Breathe deeply. Observe how the pressure in your head loosens when you stop treating your opinion as absolute truth and see it instead as one of many possible assumptions.
- Your impulse for today: Is there an opinion you haven't questioned in a long time? Allow yourself five minutes of this thought experiment: 'What if the opposite were also a little bit true?'
Note: Questioning your own thoughts is not a sign of insecurity, but of intellectual maturity. It allows you to grow and to encounter other people more openly and less dogmatically.