Stop Overthinking Memes

I don’t know about you, but I tend to analyze things. A lot. Welcome to the world inside my head—a place where a simple question turns into a full-blown mental exercise of pro and con lists. But I’m going with the concept that overthinking is an art form we’ve mastered. (And you’re here, so I’m guessing that’s you, too.)

Are you looking for that perfect overthinker meme or image to post, share, or just obsess over? Then sit back and get your internal list maker ready.

Is Overthinking a Gen X Trait?

Overthinking isn’t exclusive to any generation, but it can definitely feel like a bit of a Gen X vibe. And according to this survey, “Gen-X employees are ~25% more eager than millennials to know in advance, what’s expected of them before they go on to tackle their problems.”

Growing up in a time when things weren’t as instantaneous as they are today—no smartphones, social media, or instant answers on Google—we had a lot more time on our hands. We understood boredom. We learned to be self-reliant and maybe a bit skeptical, which can easily lead to overthinking.

Add in the fact that Gen X has often been sandwiched between Boomers and Millennials, figuring out our place and how to navigate changing tech, work environments, and culture—it makes sense that we’d develop a bit of an overthinking muscle. So while overthinking is universal, Gen X definitely has its own flavor of it: a mix of practicality, introspection, and maybe a dash of “better safe than sorry.”

What do you think? Does it feel like a Gen X trait to you?

Not an earth-shattering statement, yes, I know. And there are images galore with this very phrase – it took me about 2 Google seconds to find them. But it was very relevant to me in the moment as I took on new roles at my job and had to learn to let go of old ones to get things done. I was able to hire resources to take on some of the work, so I could focus more on strategy and dig deeper into efforts. But that meant giving away work I enjoyed doing. It has since been filled by other aspects of my job that I also love doing, ones I didn’t have time to do before.

It’s made me realize that often times when you let go of one small piece that you cling to for all its worth, you open up the possibilities of what else could be.

It seems to be a theme for me this year. There are a LOT of “what else could be’s” that I’m starting to embrace.

I just have to stop the tendency to overthink and over-analyze, as I have done with this post, mind you. I have now moved it on my schedule at least 5 times. I have officially overthunk the overthinking post. So let’s queue the memes and call it a day.