ANTs: Automatic Negative Thoughts & How to Tame Them
Ants thrive in most environments, just like ANTs, or Automatic Negative Thoughts, which often overpopulate our minds. While ants are vital to ecosystems, ANTs, stemming from our brain’s natural negative bias, can hinder our mental well-being and stifle our potential.
Where Do ANTs Come From?
Our brains produce around 70,000 thoughts a day, many negative. This negativity bias evolved to help us survive, but in modern times, it can cause a lot of unnecessary suffering and end up limiting us. ANTs often arise from past experiences, societal beliefs, and our survival brain, which is more attuned to risks than positive experiences.
What Are ANTs?
ANTs are automatic and often irrational thoughts that twist reality and can harm self-confidence. They include:
Mind Reading: Assuming you know what others think.
Labeling: Assigning negative traits to yourself or others.
Fortune Telling: Predicting bad outcomes with little or no evidence.
Catastrophizing: Expecting the worst; only considering worst-case scenarios.
Personalization: Blaming yourself for things outside your control.
Overgeneralizing: Drawing broad conclusions from a single event.
Discounting the Positive: Shrugging off any praise, ignoring positive feedback.
Comparisons: Unfairly measuring yourself against others, setting impossible standards.
I’ll Be Happy When... Tying happiness to future events and missing out on joy now.
Recognizing your ANTs is the first step in taming them.
Taming ANTs
Recognize the Clues: Pay attention to physical and emotional signals that ANTs might be at play. Negative emotions like stress, overwhelm, guilt, self-doubt and tension in the body.
Pause: A brief pause can calm the stress response and open access to clearer thinking. Use some simple mindfulness techniques, such as taking three slow breaths.
Get Curious: After calming, question the thoughts and explore what's really going on. Experiment with example questions at the end of this article.
Take Action: Consider what steps you can take next to move forward. Choose one small first step and commit to a time.
Proactive ANT Taming
Practicing mindfulness regularly—through breathing, focusing on sensory details, or simply pausing before reacting—can strengthen mental resilience. These habits can help tame ANTs before they become overwhelming, lessen their strength, and even prevent them from arising.
Insight is not enough
But here’s the thing: insight without action fades away. That great article, book, or workshop? It’s just knowledge unless you apply it. Neuroscience is crystal clear—only through practice does your brain lock in new learning, making real change possible.
I hope this article sparks an "Aha!" moment—where things click and make sense.
But insight alone isn't enough. Without action, it fades, and our ANTs (Automatic Negative Thoughts) still call the shots. The real game-changer is application.
It's like riding a bike. Watching or reading about it might make you think, "I get it, I could totally do that!" But until you actually hop on and ride, your brain won’t truly learn. It's the practice that solidifies the skill and turns knowledge into progress.
For the next 8 days, try these simple practices:
Morning: Add 30 seconds of mindfulness to something you already do—tune in to the sounds around you before you get up, savor your first sip of coffee.
During the Day: When an ANT (Automatic Negative Thought) pops up, hit pause. Take 30 seconds to breathe deeply. Notice the cool air entering your nostrils and the warmth as it leaves. Feel your body expand with each inhale and relax with the exhale.
Evening: Infuse mindfulness into your evening routine. Hug your loved ones with intention, feel the texture of your sheets, and notice the comfort of your pillow as you unwind.
Experiment, notice what changes, and celebrate even the smallest wins!
In Summary
ANTs are a natural part of human thought, but they can be managed. Recognizing and addressing them opens up more possibilities for positive outcomes, creativity, and growth. Practicing mindfulness and reflection helps us tame ANTs and improve our quality of life.
It is my hope you found this article insightful and ways to apply easy to practice and eventually incorporate to your life.
I believe, with awareness, pausing to slow down, and getting curious more often, you will notice an enriching evolution of your self- and mind-management.
Extra stuff
ANTs feed your inner critics, gremlins or saboteurs.
Get to know your saboteurs and what you can do about them.
Take (or retake) your free four-minute Saboteur Assessment.
Schedule your complimentary saboteur discovery session
Good resources!
How to give yourself an A, by the timeless and brilliant Benjamin Zander
Taming the Mammoth: Why you should stop caring what other people think, the wry wit of Tim Urban
Insight Timer for brief and longer guided mindfulness. The free app gives a lot!
Curious questions examples to explore
From the world of CBT (cognitive based therapy)
Is this true?
Is this really true?
What else might be true?
Byron Katie’s “The Work”
Is it true?
Can I absolutely know that it's true?
Who would I be without the thought?
How do I react when I believe the thought?
How would I reverse this thought?
What two or three pieces of evidence could support the opposite statement?
A client shared these questions that someone had given to her:
What are you afraid of?
What is the ideal possible outcome?
What would love do?
IMPORTANT: This article is high-level overview of ANTs, Automatic Negative Thoughts. There may be over-generalizations for the sake of simplicity. Any errors are mine and I welcome feedback. I too am learning about my ANTs and ways to tame them.
CAUTION: Therapy related to this topic may be advisable, particularly in cases of extreme emotional distress or ongoing conditions like anxiety, depression, and recent or post-traumatic stress. Consult with your doctor or other qualified health professional.
Sources:
Photo of "cute" ant by Alexander Wild, tetramorium pulcherrimum
Byron Katie, The Work of Byron Katie [methods of self-inquiry]
Dr. Lisa Orbé-Austin, Break Free from Impostor Syndrome, Cultivate Your Agency, and Achieve Your Ultimate Career Goals, IOC
By Maureen Salamon, Break free from 3 self-sabotaging ANTs — automatic negative thoughts, Harvard Health, November 8, 2022.
Shirzad Chamine, Positive Intelligence: Why Only 20% of Teams and Individuals Achieve Their True Potential and how You Can Achieve Yours, Greenleaf Book Group Press, 2012
Susan Merli, Coaching & The Imposter Syndrome, Coach Approach to Leadership Series, International Coaching Group
Comments