By Sage Moran

Fifteen years ago this month, my father made a bold and ambitious choice to step away from a job, in which he succeeded and enjoyed, to embark on a new chapter in his life. This decision occurred in August 2007, but it was August 1^st, 2008 that he made the leap from corporate executive to entrepreneur. We all now know, and perhaps wince at, that timing; at the time, though, he knew that the economy was on shaky ground, but he had no idea that we were on the cusp of what would become the Great Recession. Little did he know of the turmoil he was about to encounter.

In October of that year, the tension reached a pinnacle, as everything started to crumble, and his financial plans fell into jeopardy. It was only recently that he shared with me how scared he was at that time, and the reason for his fear was appropriate. He had two young children and a deepening uncertainty about the future. In the late fall of 2008 and the early winter of 2009, his rising stress manifested in the form of rumination. He would often lay awake at night, spinning in thoughts about the risks he had taken and how his decisions might adversely impact our family.

One of my father’s coaching colleagues introduced him to several techniques that helped him manage that stress. Contemplation became one of the most powerful techniques he adopted to deal with episodes of rumination. Contemplation enabled him to transform his unhealthy and unproductive rumination into something healthy, focused, and even beneficial.

So, what is contemplation? How is it different from rumination? How do we adopt this powerful technique to manage our own stress?

Part One: What Is Rumination?

The National Institutes of Health and the American Psychiatric Association identify that rumination refers to repetitive, perseverant thinking that usually focuses on negative content and emotional distress. It is the unhealthily persistent reviewing of a past or present occurrence, often an action, idea, or choice. This detrimental type of thinking is marked by its excessiveness as well as its negative content. We may fall into rumination when we are seeking to garner insight from a (usually negative) situation, when we are experiencing chronic (often uncontrollable) stress, or when our confidence or sense of self wavers. Characteristics like perfectionism or excessive worry about outside judgment/perspective can predispose us to rumination.¹

Ruminations’ Associations with Unwellness:

Practicing rumination is not only unpleasant and unproductive but it can also contribute to negative health outcomes as well. The American Psychiatric Association has identified its link to anxiety disorders, mood disorders, and sleep disorders, and it can exacerbate inflammation and physical health conditions through chronic stress. 

Strategies to Interrupt Rumination (American Psychiatric Association):

• Distraction: Conversations, activities, and media can redirect a perseverant thought. Be mindful of the potential impact the source of distraction may have, positive or negative.
• Planning and/or Acting: When possible, taking action can offer a sense of agency. Specific and realistic planning can ease worry through preparation. When developing a plan, consider breaking tasks down into small parts; addressing one factor at a time; writing out the plan of action; and being as specific as possible.
• Identifying Control: When planning or taking action, it may be helpful to look at the elements of the situation that you can or cannot change.
• Movement: Physically changing location or engaging in light physical exercise (walking, stretching, yoga, etc.) can provide grounding as well as distraction.
• Thought Adjustment: When it is possible, shifting perspective on thoughts or readjusting goals and expectations can help in breaking rumination. A trusted coworker or friend may be beneficial in initiating and supporting these changes.
• Awareness: Pay attention to factors that may be more likely to cause you to ruminate (consider subject matter, company, activity, location, etc.).

Part Two: Understanding Contemplation

Another form of deep, reflective thought is contemplation, and like rumination, contemplation takes shape as a focused consideration of a specific subject matter. However, in many ways, its practice contrasts with rumination. It differs in the way that examining a flower by plucking its petals and dismembering its leaves contrasts studying it from different angles and analyzing the plant it comes from. Both provide a greater understanding, but the former invokes images of harmful scrutinizing and dissecting while the latter suggests open reflection and broadening perspective. (In this comparison, simply thinking could be noting the appearance or smell of the flower without seeking to better understand it or gain insight.)

Contemplation vs. Rumination vs. Thinking (British Psychological Society): 

There are several crucial differences between contemplation, rumination, and simply thinking. Factors specific to contemplation include:

• Volition: We choose to engage in an act of contemplation. It is deliberate, neither intrusive nor uncomfortably persistent as in rumination.
• Focused: The subject of contemplation is focused thematically. It does not necessarily fixate on very specific events/occurrences/concepts, which would lean towards rumination, and contemplation may differ from simply thinking through its constructive structure and connection.
• Openness: While contemplation is thematically focused, there is an openness to considering different sources of thought input and angles for reflection. There may be a wide range from which to draw insight about the subject matter. Openness is a crucial difference between contemplation and rumination because when we emphasize alternate perspectives/sources of consideration, it is difficult to get sucked into cyclical, perseverant thinking.
• Attentiveness: We maintain awareness of our thought patterns as well as our surroundings and events occurring around us during acts of contemplation. We are mindful of the way we are thinking and of passing time. Doing so offers grounding to help prevent rumination. 
• Evolutionary Thought: During contemplation, we may reflect, observe, consider, and/or study a subject matter, and as a result of such processes, there is often some form of development or growth, such as identifying a new area to consider or finding a new perspective. Development and growth separate contemplation from rumination, because when we ruminate, we get stuck in repetitive thinking.
• Purpose: When we engage in contemplation, we often have a specific goal or reason for doing so. Examples of purposes include developing understanding, fostering insight, identifying meaning, and stimulating growth (personal or professional). Having purpose sets contemplation apart from simply thinking, because we have a set objective at hand.

It is important to remember that, while rumination fixates on negative content and contemplation contrasts rumination in many ways, contemplation does not have to be wholly positive or optimistic. In reality, contemplation often includes elements that are positive, negative, and neutral. This diversity of tones reflects the openness and different perspectives in the act of contemplation.

Practicing Contemplation: Methods and Benefits (British Psychological Society)

Activities that can help facilitate contemplation are often those that connect us to our existence in the world and allow us to step back from routine thought patterns for greater reflection. 

Examples include:

• Meditation – Focusing awareness/attention with the purpose of settled emotions and mental clarity. See the below resources for more information and strategies for practicing meditation:station:
  • Mayo Clinic – “Meditation: A Simple, Fast Way to Reduce Stress”
  • National Center for Complementary and Integrative Health – “Meditation and Mindfulness: What You Need To Know”
  • New York Times – “How to Meditate”
• Mindfulness – Directing the mind towards a particular subject (including thought, activity, or object). See the below resources for more information and strategies for practicing mindfulness:
  • Mayo Clinic – “Mindfulness Exercises”
  • American Psychological Association – “Mindfulness”
  • National Institutes of Health – “Mindfulness for Your Health”
• Introspection – Examining/observing one’s own thoughts and emotions. See the below resources for more information and strategies for practicing introspection:
  • Positive Psychology – “Self-Reflection Questions for Introspection”
  • TED – “The Right Way to Be Introspective (yes, there’s a wrong way)
• Metacognition – Placing awareness on the patterns in one’s thought processes to better understand one’s viewpoints. See the below resources for more information and strategies for practicing metacognition:
  • Cambridge– “Getting Started with Metacognition” 
  • Institute of Education Sciences – “Metacognitive Skills for Adult Learning. Trends and Issues Alert”
• Self-Regulation – Practicing expression of a flexible and appropriate range of emotions, judged by situation (location, company, time, etc.). See the below resources for more information and strategies for practicing self-regulation:
  • Positive Psychology– “What Is Self-Regulation?”
  • Better Up – “Emotional Regulation: Skills, Exercises, and Strategies”
• Self-Awareness – Focusing conscious attention on one’s existence and individuality (including but not limited to feelings, thoughts, motives, and desires). See the below resources for more information and strategies for practicing self-awareness:
  • Positive Psychology – “How to Increase Self-Awareness”
  • Better Up – “What is Self-Awareness and Why Is It Important?”
• Mind-Body Connection – Understanding and utilizing the direct link between one’s mental/emotional state and physical body. See the below resources for more information and strategies about the mind-body connection:
  • National Institutes for Health (National Library of Medicine) – “The Mind-Body Connection: Not Just a Theory Anymore”
  • Positive Psychology – “Exploring the Body-Mind Connection”

Often, we may find structured or tangible “props” (such as guided exercise, written instructions, breath awareness, mantras, postural techniques, etc.) helpful in these practices if they feel uncomfortable or unapproachable. Because they have the ability to deeper understanding and alter perspective, these tools can be highly beneficial in our self-development in the workplace and beyond. Additionally, whereas rumination can negatively impact baseline health, contemplation can provide positive health outcomes physically and mentally as well as improve performance and productivity.

Ultimately, any steps we can take to recognize and interrupt rumination and to practice tools for contemplation offer benefits in the workplace and beyond. In a workplace environment, rumination not only limits our performance but can also lead to burnout, unrealistic goals and expectations, interpersonal conflict, and imposter syndrome. The above strategies to interrupt rumination may be able to help us escape perseverant and cyclical thinking, and the contemplation practices above can elevate thinking (for those of us with or without ongoing experiences of rumination) to a higher degree of analysis, insight, and growth by emphasizing openness to differing perspectives and thorough reflection.

1Anxiety vs Rumination: It is important to note that, while anxiety and rumination may overlap and contribute to one another, they are not the same thought process. Where rumination focuses on negative beliefs (such “I am…” or “That was…”), anxiety centers around uncertainty (such as “What if…” or “Is there…”). In that sense, rumination usually considers past and present and anxiety usually future. At its core, rumination concerns loss, whereas anxiety centers around anticipation.