Stop Shoulding on Yourself—and the World!
The Philosopher Who Solved Everything (But Couldn’t Help Himself)
As a reminder, Dr. Jill Levitt and I are offering have an awesome FREE live webinar on perfectionism this coming Wednesday. It’s for everybody, including YOU, and therapists who attend can earn 2 CE credits. Struggling with perfectionism? Sometimes feel like you’re not “good enough?”
In the meantime, we’ve got two new cool videos for you. You SHOULD watch the first, and the second will BLOW YOUR MIND.
Video 1: The Thinking Trap of “Should” (11:24)
What’s the harm in telling yourself, “I should be better”? Or telling your child, “You shouldn’t act like that” or telling yourself that people “shouldn’t” be so screwed up?
Here’s why. Should statements arguably account for most of the world’s emotional suffering—fueling depression, anxiety, inadequacy, and hatred.
In this video, Dr. David Burns explores one of the most destructive thinking distortions: Should Statements, and they fall into three categories:
- 👉 Self-directed: “I shouldn’t be so screwed up,” or “I should be better than I am!”
- 👉 Other-directed: “You shouldn’t behave like that,” or “You shouldn’t feel that way!”
- 👉 World-directed: “This shouldn’t be happening. This is unfair!”
These distorted expectations often go unnoticed, but they can trigger guilt, anxiety, anger, broken relationships, and violence. And shame!
The famed and notorious Dr. Albert Ellis claimed that should statements account for most of the world’s suffering. Was he right?
Video 2: The Philosopher Who Solved Everything (But Couldn’t Help Himself) (32:16)
In this video, Dr. David Burns shares the emotional story of Ludwig Wittgenstein—the man rumored to have solved all the problems of philosophy. But despite his brilliance, Wittgenstein struggled with self-criticism, loneliness, and despair. He died in a state of intense self-doubt, not comprehending the incredible power, genius and ultimate impact of his work.
Dr. Burns walks through the philosophical insights that transformed his own life. You’ll hear how Wittgenstein’s view of language—and the illusions created by self-labels like “I’m a failure”—inspired a major breakthrough that helped reshape modern psychotherapy.
David and Sevde
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You owe it to yourself to feel GREAT!
