Stock Doc: Bullish Thinking Cap

"Doubtful Dan" and "Proactive Paul" both lost new and wealthy clients on the same day because recent investments into volatile mutual funds went sour.

Paul viewed losing the client as a normal part of his job and an isolated incident. Dan, on the other hand, experienced a vicious cycle of negative thinking that he had been wronged and victimized. He started validating irrational and bearish thoughts such as, "I am incompetent or a fraud. All my clients will start jumping ship soon. I am completely to blame for this problem. I should have predicted that this fund would falter."

Paul's attitude allowed him to continue to seek new clients with optimism and tenacity, and without fear. He experienced lower levels of anxiety and anger. He felt he had control over rebounding from a bad situation and preventing a similar one in the future. Consequently, Paul moved on with his day and was able to enjoy his time away from work later that night.

It might seem simplistic, but for many self-critical, perfectionist individuals, thinking bullish thoughts after experiencing an unanticipated negative work or life event is very tough to do. It is often much easier to give in to self-defeating, absolute thoughts that can be catastrophic and irrational in nature.

When you notice that you're experiencing that churning feeling in your stomach after you experience a setback, that's the first sign of bearish thoughts entering your mind. What you say to yourself at that point is critical to your success.