A Simple Test of Your Emotional Clarity

Key points

When a situation upsets you, it’s likely to take over your mental resources.

A new study shows how negative emotions can clutter up your thinking.

By cleaning out your negative emotions, your thinking can become both clearer and more effective.

You've had a disastrous interaction with the person closest to you in the world. It's likely you'll get past this, but until you do, you can hardly think about anything else. Unfortunately, you can't put your brain on hold until this all resolves itself.

Researchers in the area of emotions and cognition have long maintained that there are strong links between feeling and thinking. One approach in particular, the “broaden and build” theory, maintains that when you’re upset about something, you view the world in terms of tiny details